INKED: OT Chase Brown signs with Pitt

Chase Brown became the ninth player to sign with Pitt’s football program in the 2018 recruiting class on the early National Signing Day, joining his classmates signing today in the class at Pitt. Brown is a 6-foot-6, 310-pound offensive tackle who comes to Pitt by way of Scranton (Pa.) Lackawanna Community College. Here’s a brief look back at Brown's journey as a recruit, which began in his native Virginia, and his history with Pitt:

First appearance on Rivals: Brown was lightly recruited coming out of the high school ranks, signing with Virginia FCS program James Madison before ending up at Lackawanna Community College. In his re-recruitment, Brown quickly took off and landed big-time offers from programs like Pitt, Maryland, Virginia Tech (his first offer off his second recruitment), Minnesota, Texas Christian, UCF, Cincinnati, West Virginia, and Temple. Later (following his commitment), Brown added Power Five offers from Tennessee and Kansas, but neither were ever serious factors in his recruitment. After finishing his spring semester at Lackawanna, Brown took a number of visits around the eastern seaboard to the programs who had offered him. Among those visits was a June trip to Pitt, where Brown fell in love with Pat Narduzzi's program and named the Panthers as his leader in an interview with Panther-Lair.com.

Brown commits to Pitt: Less than a week after making his June visit to Pitt's campus, Chase Brown made his decision to commit to the Panthers. Brown chose Pitt primarily over those offers from Virginia Tech, West Virginia, and Maryland, becoming the eighth commitment in Pitt's class. Brown is set to graduate from Lackawanna in December and will enroll at Pitt in January, at which point he'll have two remaining years of eligibility to play two seasons of football.

In his words: “It felt like a good fit for me, academically and football-wise,” Lackawanna College tackle Chase Brown told Panther-Lair.com. “I liked what they had to say about academics and stuff and I liked the coaching staff a lot and the facilities and the opportunities with the program. There were a lot of things I liked about it.”

Brown's Impact: "As a prospect, Brown’s biggest advantages seem to be his quick feet, impressive frame and size, and his plus athleticism. Although you wouldn’t generally look at a hulking offensive tackle like Brown and think of him for his athleticism, he’s able to stay light on his feet and beat defensive ends to the corner more often than not. Brown also shows the capability to get out and pull-block in Lackawanna’s offense, another showcase of his mobility." Read more about Brown's strengths and expected fit in the impact of his commitment.

On his official visit: Although Brown had returned to Pitt for a second summer visit shortly after committing, bringing the rest of his family and signing the commitment ball at Pitt, it was his official visit that filled in a major gap for Brown. "“It was really great to be back,” Brown told Panther-Lair.com. “I can’t wait to get up there, but it was great to visit and experience the game day and see how they do everything. I just wanted to see how they are during the season. I’ve seen everything else, but I wanted to see the structure of pre-game and stuff, so I watched some film with Coach (John) Peterson and he was kind of quizzing me, seeing how smart I was. I wanted to see how they structure things on a game day. I’ll be there before you know it, so I wanted to get an idea of what I’m stepping into.