Before Jordan Bass started his senior season, he had an announcement to make.

On Thursday night, in the minutes leading up to his Phoebus squad kicking off the 2022 schedule against Menchville at Darling Stadium in Hampton (Va.), Bass told the world where he’ll be going to college.

And while he stepped onto the track with two hats in his bag - one for Virginia Tech; the other for Pitt - Bass picked the one he has known would be his choice for the last two months.

"I decided during my official visit (to Pitt)," Bass said. "It felt like home; a home away from home. It started with the coaches. They made me feel like I was their top priority and I felt like I should be here. The players and everyone there felt like a family.”

Bass, 6’3” 205, is listed in the Rivals database as a three-star safety prospect, but he projects as a Star linebacker in Pitt’s defense. He chose the Panthers in the offseason following their first ACC championship, and their atmosphere of winning is something Bass is accustomed after he led Phoebus to a State title as a junior.

Bass is one of three linebackers in Pitt’s 2023 class, but he has been one of the Panthers’ top overall targets, and he thinks Pitt fans will like what he brings to the team.

"They are going to get a very athletic player who is going to do everything he can to help the team win" he said. "They are getting someone who is going to work hard each day to be the best player on the field.”

While his future team was locked into a battle with West Virginia on Thursday night, Bass and his Phoebus teammates had little trouble dispatching with Menchville. While Menchville made the playoffs last season, Phoebus blew out the Monarchs 63-0.

Bass contributed two touchdown receptions and an interception to the victory.

"I love the way we came out tonight but we have to look past this game,” he said. “We have to get ready for next week and improve upon what we did tonight. We know teams will be coming after us so we need to be focused and fix the mistakes to defend our championship."

Bass is known among his Phoebus teammates as the unquestioned leader of the team; he serves as a team captain who is also the hype man during the teams pre-game warmups, and Phoebus head coach Jeremy Blunt sees a lot of upside in his star player.

“He’s a physically imposing athlete,” Blunt told VirginiaPreps. “He moves around so well and when you start to put him in space with that size, speed and twitch, you put some fear in people’s heart.

“The kid is actually a hybrid. He’s so physical, has got great ball skills, intellect and a wonderful understanding of the game that you know his ceiling is so high. He’s someone that Mother Nature may put on 15 more pounds or he may stop at 205, you just don’t know. He’s got a lot of range that I can see him doing so many different things well.”

Now that his commitment announcement is out of the way, Bass is looking to lead Phoebus to another title before he heads off to college.

"My goal is to try to lead this team to another state championship and become back-to-back champions," he said. "I feel like I can improve and get better; there is always room for improvement."

Special thanks to Will Garlick and Matthew Hatfield of VirginiaPreps for contributing to this report.