Overman eager for new opportunity in Pittsburgh
Pitt picked up a commitment from Jake Overman on Tuesday night. Overman is a 6-4 and 245-pound tight end who is a transfer from Oregon State and will come with two years of eligibility to finish out his career in Pittsburgh.
Overman was one of the first players Pitt made contact with in the transfer portal and he was in town for an official visit the second week of December. That visit was a huge factor in making his decision.
“Pitt, I think, just offers a unique opportunity,” Overman told Panther-Lair.com after his commitment. “I’m able to play football at the highest level and earn an extremely high level degree and do so in a city that offers as much as Pittsburgh does. So that alone is something I don’t think you can find anywhere else and the culture that Coach Narduzzi and his staff have created, I think it is second to none.”
Overman is a native of California from the Anaheim region and then spent three seasons at Oregon State. The contrast of what he saw in Pittsburgh both surprised and intrigued him.
“The city was something like I never experienced,” he said of his visit. "I’ve never been to city like Pittsburgh and I never imagined myself living in a city like Pittsburgh so being there and just seeing everything that it had to offer from the restaurants, the parks, the rivers and businesses all stood out. The main thing was how my family and I were treated when we were in the facility by the coaches and it just felt like a family atmosphere.”
On the visit, Overman spent most of his time with tight ends coach Tim Salem and got to have some time with Pat Narduzzi as well. At the time of his visit, Pitt did not have an offensive coordinator, but he has since been in contact with the newly hired Kade Bell.
“We’ve talked and texted and I’ve just been able to get a better understanding of his offense and what he’s looking to do,” Overman said of his impressions of Bell. “I think that it’s going to be able to benefit the team tremendously being able to play fast and score a lot of points.”
Overman will join a tight end room that features veterans Gavin Bartholomew and Karter Johnson and he expects to go in and compete for snaps. While at Oregon State, Overman made nine starts with the Beavers and has eight career catches. He actually entered the portal in September, so his last playing time occurred back in 2022.
“They expect me to come in and contribute,” Overman said of Pitt’s message to him. “They know that being a proven power-five that I have the ability to do it and I’ve just got to go in and help the team in any way that I can.”
Overman will be enrolled at Pitt in January and will have two years to play. He noted throughout the recruiting process he also heard from Boise State, Vanderbilt, Georgia Tech, San Diego State, and more.