High School Football in the state of Florida is a big deal. It produces some of the best talent in the country, and that is why many division-one programs have used Florida as an area of emphasis in recruiting, and Pitt is certainly a prime example of that.
Pitt’s assistant head coach Charlie Partridge is from Florida and he was the head coach at Florida Atlantic prior to returning to Pitt back in 2017. He is instrumental in bringing talent from Florida north to Pittsburgh.
The returns on his hire are noticeable. Pitt has 17 Florida natives on its current roster, and two more guys played high school football in Florida if you count Jared Wayne and Habakkuk Baldonado - two international prospects that flocked to Florida to get noticed as recruits.
That’s nearly a fourth of the team’s 85 scholarship players hailing from The Sunshine State. In Pitt’s current 2019 class, six of the 17 verbal commitments are also from Florida. For Pitt, the state of Florida has become pivotal to its success.
Fast-forward to this week and the opponent on the schedule might have a little extra meaning for some of the Panthers from Florida. The Miami Hurricanes come to Heinz Field for a noon kickoff on ESPN. Miami is one of the three major programs from Florida and like the Gators and Seminoles, the Hurricanes don’t have to leave the state much to recruit. Since Florida is so plentiful in terms of producing talent, these programs sometimes overlook some pretty talented players in their own backyard.
Take for example Shocky Jacques-Louis. The Pitt sophomore wide receiver was graded as a three-star prospect by Rivals.com and he held over 25 scholarship offers coming out of Dunbar High School in Ft. Myers. He originally committed to Tennessee, but a coaching change in Knoxville ultimately led to him ending up in Pittsburgh.
As he put it, he had to look out of state as none of the “Big 3” Florida programs wanted him during the recruiting process.
“It sucks being back home and the schools back home with you aren’t looking at you,” Jacques-Louis told reporters on Tuesday. He mentioned Florida and Florida State actually came calling on national signing day but at that point he was already signed with Pitt.
“It sticks with me in the back of my head,” Jacques-Louis said about never hearing from Miami. “I don’t really think about it now. I’m a Pitt Panther now, so we’re just going to see the results on Saturday.”
Deslin Alexandre is a 6’4” and 265-pound sophomore defensive end that hails from Pompano Beach, just 40 miles north of Coral Gables where the University of Miami is located. Alexandre said he never heard from the Hurricanes either.
The sophomore with 4.5 sacks on the season doesn’t outwardly hold it against the ‘Canes.
“Miami’s just another team on the schedule,” he said. “We got to prepare for them, respect them, and be ready to play against them.”
In addition to Jacques-Louis and Alexandre, the Pitt team receives significant contributions from V’lique Carter, A.J. Davis, Vincent Davis, Damarri Mathis, and Dontavius Butler-Jenkins. Of course, the injured Rashad Weaver and Keyson Camp would also be playing big roles. Among that group, however, only A.J. Davis and Camp reportedly held offers from Miami.
Pat Narduzzi said players find motivation all the time, and being from Florida and not being recruited by Miami could give certain guys some fuel.
“There's always that little edge, playing with a chip on your shoulder if you're from that area. They're coming up to your house. Certainly.”
I don't care who you play. Whether you're from New York or New Jersey, playing Syracuse. Or you're from Miami, playing in that area. There's always some type of edge. I hope guys find motivation to play particular teams every week,” the Pitt coach said.
Jacques-Louis is ready for the opportunity on Saturday. “I’m from the crib, so I can’t wait to play them boys. They’re real fast and I can’t wait to have the opportunity to play against them.”
