Inside The Panthers

Pitt DT Calijah Kancey Fully Recovered from Shoulder Injury

Pitt Panthers defensive tackle Calijah Kancey is fully healthy.

Stephen Thompson

Pitt DT Calijah Kancey Fully Recovered from Shoulder Injury
Pitt DT Calijah Kancey Fully Recovered from Shoulder Injury /
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INDIANAPOLIS -- A shoulder injury knocked Calijah Kancey out of his final home game as a Pitt Panther and kept him sidelined for Pitt's regular season finale and the bowl game. But after undergoing surgery and recovering for more than three months, Kancey is happy to report that he has a clean bill of health coming into the NFL Combine. 

Kancey, who was named the first ACC Defensive Player of the Year in Pitt history this past season, said he was cleared a few weeks ago and will be 100% for drills this week. 

“Getting the shoulder right was the priority," Kancey said. "I just got cleared about three weeks ago and I’m ready to go.”

Despite being pegged as one of the top defensive linemen in this class, Kancey will still play with a chip on his shoulder as he fights to prove his relatively small frame won't hold him back at the next level. 

“I just kind of prove myself right and I don’t play to prove anyone else wrong," Kancey said. "I just want to prove myself right.”

Kancey was a unanimous All-American despite missing those two and a half games this past season after recording 31 tackles, 14.5 for a loss and 7.5 sacks in 11 games this year. He suffered a shoulder injury that kept him out of the regular season finale and will sideline him for the Sun Bowl against No. 18 UCLA, but Kancey still led the country's interior defensive linemen in tackles for loss.

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Stephen Thompson
STEPHEN THOMPSON

Stephen Thompson graduated with a bachelor's degree in communications and political science from Pitt in April 2022 after spending four years as a sports writer and editor at The Pitt News, the University of Pittsburgh's independent, student-run newspaper.  He primarily worked the Pitt men's basketball beat, and filled in on coverage of football, volleyball, softball, gymnastics and lacrosse, in addition to other sports as needed. His work at The Pitt News has won awards from the Pennsylvania News Media Association and Associated College Press.  During the spring and summer of 2021, Stephen interned for Pittsburgh Sports Now, covering baseball in western Pennsylvania. Hailing from Washington D.C., family ties have cultivated a love of Boston's professional teams and Pitt athletics, and a fascination with sports in general.  You can reach Stephen by email at stephenethompson00@gmail.com and follow him on Twitter. Read his latest work:

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