Pitt made it through all of spring without a single commitment for the 2019 recruiting class. The floodgates opened with Leslie Smith committing to the program on June 10th. He became the first member of this class, and the first of 12 commitments during the month of June.

The 6’0” and 195-pound linebacker helped lead his Miami Northwestern High School team to a Florida Class-6A state title this season and is a teammate of fellow commitment Calijah Kancey. He is slated to come to Pitt and play in the star linebacker role for the Panthers’ defense.

Smith has yet to take an official visit, but spent some time in Pittsburgh in June for a prospect camp. That visit helped lead to his commitment. “I felt like I was at home,” Smith told Panther-Lair.com following his commitment. “When I was there on Saturday, the players treated me like a brother and the coaches treated me like family.”