Pitt Football May Have Discovered California Gold with Juco Transfer Commitment

The Pat Signal went up Saturday. Receivers Coach Kevin Sherman helped spread the news on twitter.

Pitt has received a commitment from  wide receiver junior college transfer Rafael Araujo-Lopes (nickname RaRa). He is originally from Central Florida but has been attending Reedley College in California, the college his Florida high school coach had attended. Araujo-Lopes has found a home, and the Panthers may have pulled off a major coup, since he is relatively unknown to most schools at this point and could conceivably have received other offers.

Tennessee appears to be the only other school that approached him, and Pitt appears to be the only school that offered him.  Some believe that the lack of school interest is because to this point he played only briefly in junior college. Araujo-Lopes made his decision from visiting Pittsburgh this weekend.

He recently remarked that he needed to make a decision soon.

His statistics are solid and, on video, Araujo-Lopes has a remarkable ability to cut back and reverse field with lightning speed after getting the ball on a run or pass.

Araujo-Lopes has mentioned that Pitt was considering him as a third, or slot, receiver.

This adds more Coach Pat Narduzzi-type fast energy to the mix. This also could provide offensive coordinator Jim Chaney with a chance to run a full spread on some plays. In fact, a Tennessee fan commented in a Volunteer blog that Araujo-Lopes would fit perfectly into a spread offense.

Imagine Tyler Boyd, Elijah Zeise, Araujo-Lopes, and Avonte Maddox as the four wides. Blanketing all four would be nearly impossible, along with the possibility of criss-crossing Rachid Ibrahim and Chris James in the backfield on some plays where three of the four wide receivers are spread.

The addition of Araujo-Lopes should make Boyd even more difficult to double-team and increase the effectiveness of the run with the coverage needed on the fledgling recruit.

Congratulations to recruit Rafael Arauja-Lopes on his offer, decision, and commitment, and congratulations to the coaching staff on a potentially outstanding pickup.

Pitt Football Offseason Heats Up

Reasons to be optimistic for this fall:

Coach Pat Narduzzi has kept the intrigue about the upcoming season at a fever pitch with fans this offseason.

Pitt added 15 new signed recruits and has additionally acquired some walk-ons, notably New Castle Neshannock’s Jim Medure, who is projected by sources as an outside linebacker or tight end.

A possible transfer from Tennessee, Dewayne Hendrix, is on campus this weekend. Depending on his ability, this could be a major transfer, because his position is defensive end, Pitt’s current weakest spot. Coach Chaney could be a major link there, too, as he hails from Missouri and Dorsey is from next-door O’Fallon, Illinois, a suburb of Saint Louis. He would have to sit out a year, but that would be a solid foundation for the new coaches’ second year.

And the football coaches have been busy supporting the basketball teams and have attended games along with prospective recruits.

The offense v.s. defense tug-of-war videos have been a hit. If you haven’t seen Pitt tug-of-war on “you-tube,” recommend you take a look. This is the new energy and apparently reflects the no-nonsense, lively practices.

IMHO, what this group of coaches is adding to this year’s program:

P-pep

I-intensity

T-tenaciousness

T-thoroughness

Only five players have departed through transfer (four players) or dismissal (one player), and all of those played sparingly or not at all last season.

There will be a return of the spring practice game this year (yay!), and the date will be announced shortly.

If anyone was curious about the whereabouts of last season’s coaches, here is the most recent list I have compiled:

Head coach Paul Chryst – Wisconsin head coach

Offensive coordinator Joe Rudolph – offensive coordinator, Wisconsin

Defensive coordinator Matt House- defensive coordinator, Florida International

Offensive line coach Jim Hueber – unknown

Defensive line coach Inoke Breckterfield – defensive line, Wisconsin

Wide receivers coach Greg Lewis – New Orleans Saints

Running backs coach John Settle – currently leading contender for running backs coach vacancy, Wisconsin

Defensive and special teams coach Chris Haering – special teams coach, Wisconsin

Defensive coach John Palermo – unknown

Defensive backfield coach Troy Douglas – unknown

Pitt Football: Chad Voytik Potential Revisited

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Trivia answer: The 2014 Ohio linebacker recruit who set high school records in track is Philippie Motley.
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One question that has sprung up this season is Chad Voytik’s quarterback play. Revisiting and comparing Chad Voytik’s high school videos with the Chad Voytik that has played in the first four games for Pitt gave a better understanding of where he has been and where he is now.
Conclusions:
Overall, there is a lot to look forward to. We have only seen the tip of the iceberg of the Chad Voytik learning curve.
On the ground, Voytik can be even a stronger runner than the solid gains he has shown so far at Pitt. He is a fearless runner and in high school even hurdled some defenders (Please, not now, though, Pitt needs him healthy). He has the strength to run into the end zone once he is in the defensive backfield.
In his passing game, it is obvious what Coach Graham saw in his recruiting. Voytik can spread the ball all over the field, throw short or deep, similar to Coach Graham’s Tulsa quarterback of the previous year.
He can throw on a line or let up on the pass. He can throw deep.
He can move horizontally to get himself in position for a run or throw, whichever is most advantageous.
In short, he is a very talented player with a lot of potential.
Coach Paul Chryst’s comments on where he is at would indicate he is in a learning mode, adjusting his talent, abilities, and former knowledge to what is available in the Pitt playbook and player pool.
It may take a little time, and that may involve Voytik and current players becoming more familiar with each other on the field,but if the Chad Voytik of Cleveland, Tennessee emerges at some point this season, it will be long afternoons or evenings for ACC defenses.
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Trivia question: What legendary Chicago Bears coach participated in both football and basketball during his years at Pitt?