Signed: Cruce Brookins

Pitt’s second commitment from the WPIAL is in.

Cruce Brookins was one of the last recruits to receiver an offer from the Panthers in the class of 2023, but the Steel Valley defensive back jumped on the opportunity and signed with Pitt on Wednesday.

Brookins committed to Kent State in early August and maintained that commitment for four months. But in the wake of Pitt’s late-November offer, as well as Kent State head coach Sean Lewis leaving to be offensive coordinator at Colorado, Brookins reopened his recruitment and took an official visit to Pitt the weekend before Signing Day.

By the time the weekend was over, he was committed to Pitt.

Brookins had been on the staff’s radar since last season as a top local defensive back, but he was the engine behind Steel Valley’s 9-0 regular season and WPIAL Class 2A championship. As the Ironman’s do-it-all quarterback, he threw for 785 yards and seven touchdowns with just one interception while rushing for 1,663 yards - 11.7 yards per carry - and 34 touchdowns. That included a 170-yard/3-touchdown performance in Steel Valley’s WPIAL championship win over Beaver Falls.