Pitt flips DE Temple from MTSU

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Pitt broke a three-month streak without any commitments on Tuesday when Abbeville (SC) defensive end Nate Temple announced for the Panthers.

Temple’s commitment was a flip from Middle Tennessee, where he had been committed since the summer. Pitt originally offered him a scholarship after seeing him work out at a camp in Georgia late in the spring, and the staff maintained contact with him despite his commitment.

“They stayed in touch with me through the fall,” Temple told Panther-Lair.com. “I really liked the staff there when I was there for a visit in the summer and they wanted me to come up for a game. Pitt was always a place I liked from the beginning, so I went to Virginia Tech game and fell in love with it.”

Temple was in attendance at Pitt’s 52-22 win over the Hokies two weeks ago and liked what he saw both on and off the field.

“I was really impressed with the brotherhood of the team from what I saw of how they played and in the locker room,” Temple said.

Pitt linebackers coach Rob Harley and defensive line coach Charlie Partridge led the recruitment of Temple, who is currently 6’4” and 225 pounds.

“Coach Partridge is a great guy,” Temple said. “He knows what he’s talking about and he’s a coach I’d love to play for.”

With the visit to Heinz Field fresh in his mind, Temple made the decision this week before calling the Pitt coaches on Tuesday.

“I really love MTSU, all credit to them; but Pitt is the better overall opportunity for me. It’s where God wants me to go.”

Temple said he is in the process of scheduling an official visit to Pitt and that he plans to sign with the Panthers in December. With him in the class, Pitt currently has 18 commitments and its class of 2019 sits at No. 39 nationally. The Panthers also have defensive end commitments from Brandon Mack, Bam Brima, DeAndre Jules and Bryce Nelms, although almost all of those players have positional versatility.