Ranking the classes 2003-17: No. 14

Over the next few weeks, Panther-Lair.com is ranking Pitt's recruiting classes from 2003-17: 15 classes that have defined the last decade-plus of Pitt football. Today, we're at No. 14 on the list: the class of 2012.

Like the class that ranked No. 15 - the class of 2011 - the class of 2012 was a transition class. It's atypical to have back-to-back transition classes, but such was the case for Pitt in 2011 and 2012.

The 2011 class was the transition from Dave Wannstedt to Michael Haywood to Todd Graham; the 2012 class was the transition from Graham to Paul Chryst. The results were better in 2012 than they were in 2011, but there were still some significant issues.

To start, let's look at the class that Pitt signed in February 2012.

The Class of 2012

Player	Position	Hometown	Stars

Rushel Shell	RB	Aliquippa, PA	4
Chad Voytik	QB	Cleveland, TN	4
Adam Bisnowaty	OL	Pittsburgh, PA	4
Deaysean Rippy	LB	McKees Rocks, PA	4
Chris Davis	ATH	Austintown, OH	3
Demitrious Davis	ATH	Austintown, OH	3
Darryl Render	DE	Brook Park, OH	3
JP Holtz	TE	Pittsburgh, PA	3
Terrell Jackson	DT	Columbus, OH	3
Bam Bradley	DB	Trotwood, OH	3
Trenton Coles	WR	Clairton, PA	3
Devon Porchia	LB	Baltimore, MD	3
Jahmahl Pardner	DB	Rochester, NY	3
Ryan Lewis	ATH	Sammamish, WA	3
Mike Caprara	LB	Pittsburgh, PA	2
Gabe Roberts	OL	New London, WI	2

The class of 2012 was a transition class like the class of 2011 was, but it wasn't quite the same level of disaster. Chryst held onto nine of the commitments he inherited, and almost all of the departures were more or less encouraged to go by the new staff.

Chief among the players who stayed committed were Rushel Shell, Chad Voytik and Adam Bisnowaty: three four-star prospects, one a quarterback and the other two locals. Chryst then filled out the class with another local four-star in Deaysean Rippy, local tight end JP Holtz and five more for a 16-man class that ranked No. 47 nationally.

Given the circumstances - Pitt wasn't exactly a bastion of stability at that point - getting a top-50 class in a transition year wasn't too shabby, but the results, naturally, were mixed.

Bisnowaty and Holtz were the stars of the class when they got to college, and Pitt also got solid contributions from Mike Caprara, Ryan Lewis, Bam Bradley and Darryl Render. But the misses were considerable.

Shell was the big one. He showed flashes as a freshman in 2012 but left the team the following spring. Voytik was a one-year starter who lost the job the next season and then transferred. Rippy, the Davis twins (Chris and Demitrious), Terrell Jackson and a host of others never saw the field and all left the team over the next few seasons.

Five years after the class of 2012 signed with Pitt, just six of the 16 recruits in the class finished their eligibility as Panthers. Combined with the 2011 class's 6-out-of-21 success rate - that's just players who finished their eligibility at Pitt, not necessarily starters or even contributors - the two classes that the Panthers signed during the turmoil of the coaching changes were quite damaging.

Getting full careers from 12 out of 38 recruits over two classes is a recipe for trouble, and that's a big part of why the mid-2010's were as average as they were.