After a brief (and I do mean brief) time of speculation, Michigan cornerback Cullen Christian is officially transferring to Pitt. I mentioned the possibility over the weekend and it apparently didn't take him long to decide where he wanted to go.
After the pickup of transfer former Michigan Wolverine Ray Vinopal, Pitt now is beginning to stockpile some quality depth in the secondary. The unit should be looking in great shape in a year or two.
Because of the transfer, Christian will need to sit out next year, but he could compete for a starting spot in 2012.
But nonetheless, he's excited to be making the move.
Christian is another player leaving the program after Rich Rodriguez and his staff were ousted:
"I'm coming home and I am going to be a Pittsburgh Panther," Christian said. "Pittsburgh got my release and all that is left for me to do is to give them my transcripts and fill out paperwork. I'm leaving here on Tuesday after finals, so I might stop down this week, but I am supposed to go down May 9th and meet with the staff and do all the paperwork."
The true sophomore has gone through a myriad of feelings over the past few weeks.
"I was very mad at first," explained Christian. "I never wanted to be the type of guy who quit something he started or transferred. I came her to be a part of something special, but I don't fit what they want.
"It feels real good to get a fresh start," Christian continued. "I'm just happy to be coming home. Coach (Tony) Gibson is at Pitt and he was the main reason why I chose Michigan. I just feel like I will enjoy it being home. I wasn't enjoying myself here at Michigan."
There's also the Penn Hills connection and, oh yeah, having Tony Gibson on the coaching staff didn't hurt, either:
"I was thinking about WVU," he said when asked about what other schools he considered. "I wanted to be closer to home and being back with Coach Gibby is too much to pass up. I know what he expects from his players and I know how he coaches. I am also familiar with Tony Dews and Calvin Magee."
Christian is also being reunited with three former Penn Hills Indians Aaron Donald, Brandon Ifill and Dan Mason.
I don't know if Todd Graham had all this in mind when he picked up all the Michigan guys he formerly worked with at West Virginia, but man...this is some kind of pickup.