Official visit sealed the deal for Pollock
Brice Pollock visited Pitt in March and saw enough to know where he wanted to go.
At least, that’s what he thought. As the recruiting process evolved for the Snellville (Ga.) Shiloh cornerback prospect, though, he thought he might have to reconsider.
Then, after seeing the Panthers in person again on an official visit over the weekend, Pollock knew for sure.
“Throughout the whole process after my unofficial visit, I thought I would take one visit to Pitt and then commit,” Pollock told Panther-Lair.com. “Then I got Ole Miss and North Carolin to offer, and that kind of changed things, so I had no clue I was going to commit this weekend.”
But that’s exactly what happened, as Pollock finished his official visit with a verbal pledge to the Panthers.
“This morning, we got to talk to Coach (Pat) Narduzzi,” Pollock said on Saturday night. “I talked to him and it was me, my mom and my dad, and at first we weren’t going to do it; we weren’t going to commit because we had to make sure it was right for us. But in talking to him, we realized that it was a business decision: they have spots right now, but if two more corners come on the next visit and commit, then there’s no more spots, so why wait? No school is going to beat what Pitt has for me.
“So we left his office and went and did a photo shoot, then we went back and did it. It was me and my boy Shelton Lewis; we did it together. We were getting recruited by the same schools and we texted the whole week before visit, like, ’Is this the move?’ This morning, we were unsure, but I was like, ‘Bro, I’m ready, I’m going to do it.’ Se walked up there and did it.”
Pollock committed to Pitt over offers from Georgia Tech, Indiana, Kansas State, Kentucky, Michigan State, Ole Miss, Mississippi State, North Carolina, Penn State, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest and West Virginia. Last week, he announced a top seven of Pitt, Mississippi State, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, North Carolina, Michigan State and Vanderbilt.
He previously scheduled official visits to North Carolina and Michigan State, but those visits are now off the calendar.
“Those visits are definitely canceled,” Pollock said. “I’m 100% - no, I’m 1000% - committed to Pitt.”
What made the Panthers stand out so high on Pollock’s list?
“Ever since my unofficial, I’ve been really high on them,” he said. “They just feel like a family for me. No school has shown me that like Pitt, so it was always them.
“The distance was the only thing keeping me away, but the official visit made that easier because it showed me what it is really like.
“I came with my mom and dad. It was great for them, because they were uncertain about Pittsburgh, just being so far away. But this whole visit helped them see and get a better feel for what Pitt really is.
“It’s really the players, the coaches - I had a good relationship with pretty much every coach on the staff, but I got closer with even more coaches on the visit. I have a really good connection with everybody who committed and some of the people who are already on the team, and it’s just the right fit for me. And the city - at first I was’t sure but I love the city. I just love everything about it.”
At 6’1” and 182 pounds, Pollock projects as a cornerback at the next level, and he said Pitt’s defense is ideal for his skill set.
“I’m a shutdown corner. That was a reason I picked them: one school wanted me as a safety but Pitt wants me as a shutdown corner, and that’s what I’ve been doing my whole life.
“I think I’m great in press, I can run with anybody, my length is good for the defense and they like to press a lot and play a lot of man. I feel like I can ball in that defense.”