Checking in on the commitments

Football is not only in the full swing of things at the college level, but also in the high school ranks. Pitt has not received a verbal pledge in some time, but they still have 16 high school players committed to the program as of today. The class is very diverse with nine different states represented. There is still a long way to go before signing day, but here is what going with Pitt's verbal commitments.

Pat Amara has helped lead West Catholic to a 2-0 start in the Philadelphia Catholic league. You can see some Amara's highlights, including a pretty awesome one-handed catch against George Washington High.

Adam Bertke is one of two quarterback commitments and he comes from a winning tradition. His school is the two time defending Division VI champions and they are 2-0 on the season. Bertke went 18-26 227 yards and threw for a touchdown in their most recent victory.

Rori Blair has a unique story that allowed him to play an extra year of high school football. Blair is featured as the cover story for ESPN's recruiting site right now. He helped lead an upset over preseason WPIAL favorite, Woodland Hills as Upper St. Clair sits at 1-1.

Dennis Briggs has helped lead Shady Side to a 2-0 start, and scored a pair of touchdowns in a 63-0 win over Deer Lakes.

Connor Dintino hails from Connecticut and his season has yet to start. He plays for Choate Rosemary Hall, a private boarding school.

Wade Freebeck is the quarterback for national power, St. Thomas Aquinas in Florida. His team is ranked number five in the nation according to Maxpreps.com. He threw for over 100 yards in their opening game against Miami Northwestern. They will square off with Curtis High School from Louisiana on Friday night, and Curtis is also a national top ten program.

Mike Grimm and Bethel Park is off to an impressive 2-0 start. Grimm and company took down Mt. Lebanon on Friday night. Mt. Lebanon is led by Pitt's other top line target, Alex Bookser. Bethel Park will square off with Woodland Hills this weekend, and look to give the Wolverines an 0-3 start.

Connor Hayes plays for Traverse City West High School in Michigan. Traverse City is located up north in the state, and they play in the largest classification. The Titans are 1-1 on the season.

Mike Herndon plays for Riverheads High School in Staunton, Virginia. The Gladiators are 1-0 on the season.

Avonte Maddox is having a nice season for himself playing at King High School in Detroit. In week one Maddox caught seven passes for 161 yards and three total touchdowns. This past weekend he helped lead King to a hard fought 6-0 win in double overtime. Maddox had two long touchdown runs that were called back in the game.

Phillipie Motley has helped lead Hilliard Davidson to a 2-0 start this season. He had a big touchdown run on Friday in a 21-0 victory.

Brian O'Neil plays for Salesianum School in Delaware. The Sallies are 1-0 on the season.

Shane Roy plays for Reading High School near Cincinnati. His team is 1-1 on the season. After one game Roy has collected eight tackles, one sack, and one forced/recovered fumble. He is producing from his defensive end spot.

Jalen Williams plays for Newburgh Free Academy in New York. His team is 1-0, and a local paper gave him a nice preseason write-up.

Quentin Wirgins is a local product, but is out for the season with an injury.

Elijah Zeise plays for local power, North Allegheny. Coming off a state championship, some thought they may take a step backwards from graduation, except that is not the case. The Tigers are 2-0 highlighted by a blowout win over Mt. Lebanon. Mt. Lebanaon features what was thought to be one of Pitt's top targets in Troy Apke, but it sounds like Zeise got the better of him that night.

Be sure to join Cardiac Hill's Facebook page and follow us on Twitter @PittPantherBlog for our regular updates on Pitt athletics. Follow the author and manager/editor of Cardiac Hill @AnsonWhaley