Neal: 'I couldn’t contain my excitement'
Isaiah Neal committed to Pitt over the weekend. It was a flurry of commitments for the Panthers, as the coaches picked up six commitments after hosting 14 official visitors last weekend. Neal was one of the more prominent names on campus.
The 6’3” and 270-pound defensive tackle out of St. Frances in Baltimore checks in as three-star recruit. He holds 20 scholarship offers, but the one from Pitt was a notable one. Neal is a quick, powerful defensive tackle, the type of player that flourishes in Pitt’s attacking defensive scheme. He recognized that aspect of it, and decided to commit on the spot.
“I picked Pitt for a couple of reasons, one being the scheme they have,” Neal told Panther-Lair.com. "I feel like I fit best into the four-down scheme and they are famous for guys like Aaron Donald, Jalen Twyman, and currently Calijah Kancey. Another reason was the overall vibe of the program. When I was with my host, Calijah, all the guys who are already on the team embraced me like I was already a Panther.”
Neal did not go into last weekend planning a commitment, in fact his original decision date was on July 2nd, his mom’s birthday. He wanted to take his time, and for good reason with 20 scholarship offers from the likes of Boston College, Louisville, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Ole Miss, NC State, Ohio State, Virginia Tech, and Virginia to name some of them. There were other official visits planned, like one to NC State, but he couldn’t leave Pitt without committing.
“I was originally planning to decide on my mothers birthday, but after seeing and really feeling first hand what the program is about, I couldn’t contain my excitement and I went ahead and made my decision about a month early,” Neal explained. “Coach Duzz was surprised almost like I was joking, but overall he was happy for me and my mom. He treated us like family before the decision and now we truly are family.”
Neal talked about Pitt’s defensive scheme. Charlie Partridge is the key behind it all. Pitt has had one of the best pass rushes in the country under his guidance and he was a key figure in Neal’s decision.
“Coach (Partridge) is my guy,” Neal said of Pitt’s assistant head coach. “He has a crazy resume and is always looking for ways to improve his style of coaching. He is a coach who is willing to be coachable, which I haven’t seen too much in my recruiting process.”
The visit was also a big part in Neal deciding a month earlier than expected. He got to see all Pitt had to offer, but more importantly got to spend time with the current players and some future teammates who were also on their official visits.
“What really stood out about my visit was the players that are already on the team really treating me like a brother already,” Neal said of his time spent at Pitt last weekend. “It just goes to show the sort of bond I will have for the rest of my life with these guys, and my fellow 2023 Panther commits. After my visit I talked with a few of the other commits and we all picked up the same vibe: family.”
Neal was one of six players to decide last weekend along with Antonio Camon, Shadarian Harrison, Kenny Johnson, Shelton Lewis, and Brice Pollock. Two players were on the visit that were previously committed: Zion Fowler and Kenny Minchey. Overall the group connected with one another, and shared in that experience of committing all at the same time.
“I feel like committing with all these other guys really shows that they didn’t treat anyone of us better than the other, they treated us all like little brothers and we all decided this is where we belonged,” Neal said of his decision. “This also will help our bond being that we got to meet before actually attending Pitt.”
Neal said he is locked-in with Pitt and will not take anymore visits. His plan now is to help the coaches recruit to fill out the class.
“I plan on being a recruiting coordinator in a sense,” Neal said. “I want the best guys around me up at Pitt and I will do my best to get some guys there with me.”