It has become common practice in college football for high school seniors to enroll in college early. Players sign their papers in December, and in a few weeks, they join their program.
Of course, that means missing out on your final months of being a high school senior, which can be hard for some guys. The benefits, however, are pretty clear. Enrolling early can give guys a leg up on learning the rigors of college football, which could mean a faster path towards playing time.
That was the logic Denim Cook took when deciding to enroll at Pitt last month. The 6’4” and 245-pound edge rusher from Bishop Hartley High School in Columbus (OH) saw an opportunity for himself.
“That was one of the reasons I enrolled, just to get some early minutes, or just learn and develop and get stronger physically and get ahead of the game,” Cook told reporters after getting to Pitt.
Another reason for Cook to get to Pittsburgh faster was to get comfortable with the role he is playing. Cook’s size makes him a natural defensive end in Pitt’s scheme, but at the high school level he played some linebacker, safety, and also played in a stand-up edge rushing role. This spring will be the first time Cook will be working exclusively with his hand in the dirt, something he feels he is ready to add to his game.
“I'm really open to it,” Cook said when asked how he took it when Pitt started recruiting him as an end. “Coach (Tim) Daoust, he's a great teacher, obviously. I feel like he's going to put me in the best position to be great, whether it's putting my hand up in the dirt or standing up. I'm excited to put my hand in the dirt. First time, it's new for me, and yeah.”
Cook is back at full strength. In his senior year for Bishop Harley, he missed five games with a shoulder injury. The new Panther said there are no ill effects from that, and is moving full speed ahead into spring ball, which is expected to begin in March.
When healthy, Cook was a monster at the high school level. He recorded 116 tackles, 22 tackles for loss and 15 sacks as a junior. He had offers from the likes of Indiana, Louisville, Purdue, Virginia, and a number of MAC programs, but Pitt was a pretty easy choice for the Ohio native.
He had plenty of reasons to keep up with the Panthers of late, as his cousin is All-ACC linebacker Rasheem Biles. While they both grew up in Columbus, they attended different high schools. Cook cited having a chance to play with Biles as a big selling point in coming to Pitt.
Having see his cousin have a ton of success and being named an All-ACC performer at Pitt didn’t hurt the cause, either.
“It was inspirational, because one of my cousins, he plays, he's one of the Sharks' right-hand guys,” Cook said of Biles’ impact in the program. "Just seeing him and seeing where he came from really showed me what I can do, and what holds for the future here.”
The 2025 season will be the second for defensive line coach Tim Daoust at Pitt. In 2024, however, he did show his willingness to use true freshman if they were ready to handle it. Both Francis Brewu and Sincere Edwards were regular contributors as true freshman, and perhaps similar opportunities will come for freshmen this year..
With a wide open depth chart, and enrolling early, Cook is at least putting himself in position to be involved in 2025. The new Panther believes his traits of playing multiple positions in high school could be a benefit in picking up defensive end quickly.
“I feel like some strengths that helped me play defensive end this year would be my speed, my speed to power, something like that, and my hands, using violent hands,” he explained.
