Lovelace on Pitt commitment: 'It was a dream come true'
Braylan Lovelace has been dreaming of this moment for most of his life. The 6’2” and 200-pound linebacker from Leechburg grew up going to Pitt football games envisioning himself on the field at Heinz Field, and over the weekend he was able to make those dreams a reality.
On Sunday afternoon, Lovelace announced his commitment to Pitt. His decision came less than one week after picking up an offer from his hometown team. Lovelace took an official visit this weekend, and could not leave without committing.
“It’s been a dream of mine since I was about five years old,” Lovelace told Panther-Lair.com after his commitment. “I envisioned myself playing on the field and really I just fell in love with it when I went there. It’s like a brotherhood: everybody takes care of each other. The coaches’ energy is unmatched and that’s what I want to be a part of.”
Lovelace wanted to commit now to take some pressure off of his senior season. He is two-way standout for Leechburg and led his team to the playoffs last season, a rarity for one of the smallest schools in the WPIAL. Lovelace relished in the moment of telling the Pitt coaches he wanted to commit.
“Not a lot of people out of my town make it to big things like that, so it was a dream come true,” he said of the exact moment he committed. “People say I walk down the streets and the kids look up to me and really it’s a great thing to hear and to see that people look up to me and kids want to be like me, it’s a great thing to hear and maybe years will go by and some kids from my town will be committed to Pitt.”
Lovelace is a star player for Leechburg, and he is the only WPIAL player currently committed in the class of 2023. He also understands not many players from Class-A get this opportunity.
“It means everything,” he said of carrying on the WPIAL-to-Pitt legacy. “There’s not much you hear a WPIAL player in single-A makes it to play at Pitt.”
Lovelace had a visit to Virginia Tech scheduled for next week. That is now off, as he is 100% in with Pitt. He was one of five players to commit over the weekend, and Lovelace said it was a good bonding experience on the official visit.
“They saw what I saw,” he said of the other players to commit this weekend. “It was always a great time when I was with them and to be able to meet them and meet my future teammates at this point was very good. They’re all great guys and athletes. At one point in the visit we watched each other’s Hudls and they’re all great athletes and I’m very happy to be a future teammate with them.”
A key part of his decision was his relationship with linebackers coach Ryan Manalac. The two were able to work last weekend at a prospect camp, and got to know more about each other over the official visit.
“I have a great relationship with him,” Lovelace said of Manalac. “I was actually just talking to him yesterday, he called me twice. He’s a great guy and also a great coach. His energy is unmatched. He knows the game well and I know that I can develop under him.”
Lovelace grew up a Pitt fan and knows the area well, but on the visit he learned more about the closeness of the program, which stood out to him.
“Really just how much the whole Pitt staff takes care of the players, really that’s what stood out to me,” he said.