Pat Narduzzi uttered his best line of the season at the outset of Pitt’s signing day news conference when he told reporters, “I think we have a doozy for you.”
Name puns aside, Narduzzi and his coaches believe they signed a strong 2025 class of 21 high school seniors, some of whom were captains on the football team, sprinters on the track and star students with astronomical GPAs (who knew Trigonometry III was a thing?).
They come from nine states and one foreign country, as far away as Texas to the west and England across the Atlantic Ocean. There are 20 three-stars and one four-star, cornerback Mason Alexander.
Whether the class is a “doozy” or not will be determined through the remaining five years of this decade. Rivals.com rates it 43rd in the nation, ninth in the ACC.
Various Pitt assistants used such words as “dynamic, “workaholic” and “cerebral” to describe their new recruits. Here are other details they offered:
Kade Bell, quarterbacks
Mason Heintschel (6-foot-2, 215 pounds) — Three-year starter at Clay High School in Oregon, Ohio, Heintschel passed for 7,322 career yards and 79 touchdowns, this season completing 70% of his passes (188 of 272) and rushing for 770 yards. He also led Clay to its first league championship in 42 years.
“We truly believe we found a steal,” Bell said. “Of all the kids we watched in the entire country, no matter three-star, four-star, five-star, Mason was the highest-rated guy on our board. He naturally makes plays. He makes them off of feel. That’s what makes him so special. He can do things other people can’t do. You want to get him in the film room and teach more ball to him. He wants to be a great quarterback.”
Lindsey Lamar, running backs
Ja’Kyrian Turner (5-9, 180) — Turner gained more than 1,500 yards in two seasons at South Sumter High School in Wildwood, Fla. “He likes to be physical,” Lamar said. “You see him trying to run guys over in the end zone instead of running out of bounds.”
Jaylin Brown (5-10, 190) — Pitt flipped Brown from Louisville on Tuesday. He averaged more than 8 yards per carry at Cardinal Newman High School in West Palm Beach, Fla.
JJ Laster, wide receivers
Tony Kinsler (5-11, 170) — A sprinter who split time between football and track. Laster said Kinsler, who compiled 1,000 yards each in his junior and senior seasons, got home from a track meet at 3 a.m., went to school that morning at Spruce Creek in Daytona Beach, Fla., and competed in the spring game that afternoon. “He didn’t take a break. He didn’t make any excuses.”
Jeremy Darveau, offensive line
Shep Turk (6-4, 285) — After committing to Pitt in May, he kept in touch with several prospects Pitt was recruiting and built a strong relationship with his future teammates. Turk, a senior at Thomas Jefferson, is the only WPIAL recruit in Pitt’s class. “One of the best highlight tapes you’ll ever watch. It is so much fun to watch this kid play,” Darveau said.
Akram Elnagmi — (6-6, 295) — The British-born Elnagmi is a tackle who played U.S. football for only two years at the NFL Academy in Loughborough, United Kingdom. Darveau doesn’t mind a bit of inexperience. “It gives me a bigger canvas to paint with him,” Darveau said. “I can mold him into what I’m looking for in an offensive lineman.”
Tim Daoust, Defensive line
Trevor Sommers (6-2, 250) — Daoust said Sommers, a tackle, never backed away from contact at St. Thomas Aquinas in Davie, Fla. As Daoust explained, “He likes to put his face in the fan.”
Ryan Manalac, linebackers
Emmanuel Taylor (6-1, 195) — A wide receiver who grew into a linebacker, Taylor is another player who competes without fear, according to Manalac. “With the ball in his hands, he’s going to run through smoke.”
Cory Sanders, safeties
Joshua Guerrier (5-10, 175) — Guerrier earned his scholarship offer when he was watching Pitt scrimmage on a cold day at Acrisure Stadium. “Literally, all the recruits went up to the box,” Sanders said. “Josh stayed on the sideline the entire scrimmage, next to coach (Archie) Collins listening to every single adjustment that we made. We knew in that moment that was a kid we wanted to coach.” He also texted Sanders his good plays — and missed tackles — at Ocoee (Fla.) High School.
Archie Collins, cornerbacks
Mason Alexander (5-10, 175) — Alexander, rated the No. 4 prospect in Indiana by ESPN, is ranked the nation’s No. 27 cornerback by ESPN. “His 10.7 (100-meter) speed shows up on film,” Collins said. “With his change of direction and his explosion, he’s able to track things down very, very quickly.”
