Pitt Football DE Receives Praise from ESPN Writer

A Pitt Panthers defensive end received praise from an ESPN writer, who picked him as his favorite Pitt player.

Sep 25, 2021; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; A Pittsburgh Panthers helmet on the sidelines against the New Hampshire Wildcats during the first quarter at Heinz Field. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports / Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers didn't receive much praise after a 3-9 record last season, but there is one player that has a chance to stand out this season.

Panthers redshirt sophomore defensive end Jimmy Scott is a player that coaches and teammates have talked about as someone who has a great opportunity to prove themselves this upcoming season, with a new defensive line.

Scott played for St. Francis High School in Hamburg, N.Y., near Buffalo, where he had an excellent senior season in 2021. He made 43 tackles, five sacks and forced a fumble as a defensive end and scored seven touchdowns on offense as a running back. He was a finalist for the Trench Trophy, presented to Western New York’s Lineman of the Year, and received first team All-Western New York honors for his play.

On3 and 247Sports both rated Scott as four-star in the Class of 2022, while Rivals had him as a three-star. All three sites had him as the third best recruit in New York.

Scott would commit to Pitt over other schools in Boston College and Rutgers, who he also took official visits to.

He redshirted his freshman season in 2022, playing no games, but made an impact in 2023. He played in 11 games, serving as a reserve defensive end, and made eight tackles (two solo) and one tackle for loss.

Bill Connelly of ESPN picked Jimmy Scott as his favorite player for Pitt going into 2024 and looks at him as a future star.

"Pitt doesn't have much in the "proven stars" department, so let's go with a small-sample all-star," Connelly wrote about Scott. "As a redshirt freshman, Scott saw increased playing time in November and immediately started making plays. He ended up with 2.5 TFLs, four run stops and three pass pressures in just 102 snaps. Project that over a larger sample, and you've got a potential star. Pitt needs a few of them."

Pitt lost a few defensive ends to the transfer portal, in both Dayon Hayes and Samuel Okunlola to Colorado, plus Antonio Camon to Florida A&M. Nate Temple, who started nine games last season, is also out for the season with an injury.

Scott will likely get far more snaps at defensive end this season, joining the likes of transfers in redshirt senior Nate Matlack from Kansas State and redshirt freshman David Ojiegbe of Clemson as prime candidates to start next season. The other defensive ends on the roster include redshirt freshman Maverick Gracio, plus incoming freshmen Sincere Edwards, Zachary Crothers and Ty Yuhas.

Players like redshirt junior Nakhi Johnson and redshirt senior Bam Brima both played at defensive tackle in the spring, but could potentially go back adn play defensive end in 2024.

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