The Pitt football team had a meeting on Wednesday morning before practice. As the team settled in to watch various highlights and film, a scene from the movie Batman: The Dark Knight came on the screen.

There might have been a target audience.

“I’m a really big Batman fan,” redshirt junior walk-on tight end Jim Medure said Wednesday afternoon. “I have this replica suit that is like movie quality - it’s kind of nuts."

That suit had been missing for two days, as Medure’s brother, who is also his roommate, said he was adding a special belt to the suit, which was a rather uneasy explanation for why it was missing.

“After two days passed, we were watching a team NFL highlight of players in the NFL and after the video they showed the clip at the end of The Dark Knight where he’s running and commissioner Gordon is the overlay on it - and it’s really nerdy,” Medure stopped and laughed.

"But then (Mike) Caprara came down dressed in my bat suit and he handed me the letter. It was really funny - it was a unique moment and really special to me. I’ll never forget that.”

The note was to announce that Medure is going on full scholarship for the Pitt football team. The Neshannock native has been paying his own way to Pitt for the last three years while also being a member of the football team for the past three seasons.

Medure had a natural first call to make upon receiving the news.

“I called my Dad as soon as it happened,” said Medure. “Coach (Tim) Salem let me to get out of the room and call my dad. He’s been with me from the start and supporting me throughout all of this time - so I had to give him the call first. It meant a lot to him I’m sure.

“He’s just proud of me. He’s just kind of speechless, so was I. It was a pretty emotional moment for both of us, but he told me was proud of me - it was just special.”

Medure’s hard work has paid off finally, but he also is important member of the tight end group for the Pitt football team. Following offseason departures by Chris Clark and Charles Reeves, the position took a bit of a hit.

Medure had played the past few seasons on the defensive line and at linebacker, but he was quick to change positions in the offseason to help the depth.

“I played tight end in high school,” Medure said of his position change. “Guys like Ty Sear has been a big help. We actually went to the same high school so we’ve been lifelong friends and he’s kind of adopted me into that room and helped me and taught me everything you need to know at the collegiate level to play, and it’s been smooth - it hasn’t been an issue at all.”

Pat Narduzzi was surprised that Medure took to the position so quickly, and initially thought it may have stunted his opportunity to earn a scholarship.

“When we moved him, I thought maybe we set him back from earning one,” Narduzzi said. “But we had targeted him a while ago. We’ve talked about him in staff meetings for a long time about his impact not only on the field, but the impact that guy makes in the meeting room with his teammates.”

Pitt has had luck with some walk-ons in recent seasons. In 2016 George Aston became an impact player on offense, scoring ten touchdowns for Pitt as a do-it-all fullback. Seun Idowu has spent the past two seasons as Pitt’s starting star linebacker, and led the team with 5.5 sacks in 2017. And last year during fall camp, Jimmy Morrissey won the starting spot at center which earned him a scholarship.

Medure noted it’s like a brotherhood among current and former walk-ons.

“Every walk-on on the team wants the next guy to get one, whether it be Seun (Idowu) or George (Aston),” Medure said. “I remember especially when Seun got his, because I know how hard he was working for it. It was special for him and therefore also special for me.”

Out of high school, the Neshannock star did not have to be a walk-on to play Division I football. He said he had an opportunity to play for the Air Force Academy but opted to stay close to home and attend Pitt. He is hoping to become a pediatrician someday and is currently majoring in Biology.

“I talked about the grind that practices become, but when our guys see a guy that’s worked so hard and watch all the sweat that guys put into it on the field, in the classroom, in the weight room, when you see the video and the impact it made on the team, that shows you everything you need to see,” Narduzzi said.

“So I think the rest of team knows. They could start awarding guys scholarships that deserve it. There’s some guys that are maybe more athletic and more this, more that, but it’s about the whole package. And Jimmy’s [Medure] got the whole package.”