Freshman RB D'Antae Sheffey Holds Pitt in Top Five

The Pitt Panthers have made a strong impression on D'Ante Sheffey.

PITTSBURGH -- 2026 running back D'Antae Sheffey is one of the most productive freshmen backs in the state of Pennsylvania and he has made the Pitt Panthers a priority early on in a recruitment process that is on the verge of taking off. 

Sheffey had intended to take a visit to Pitt in March, but a scheduling conflict meant he couldn't make it out to Pittsburgh this week. He already knows the city well and has like what he's heard from the Panthers coaching staff. 

"I have family from the area and I've been down in Pittsburgh multiple times and I just like the surrounding city," Sheffey told Inside the Panthers. "I don’t really have a list but I would say Pitt is up there in my top 5."

Following a stellar freshman season in which he rushed for 1,725 yards and 22 touchdowns for State College High School, Sheffey is primed for a big summer. Before he's even picked up ratings from any of the major recruiting services, he's added Power 5 offers from Pitt, Cincinnati, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Rutgers and taken visits to Oklahoma and Texas A&M, plus a handful of other schools as well. 

Sheffey didn't imagine his recruitment would pick up this quickly.

"I never thought it would pick up this fast," he said. "I would have thought by my sophomore season I woulda had a couple."

But for right now, Sheffey is letting the recruitment process work at its own pace. He's got bigger goals for his sophomore year, when he'll hope to become a truly "complete back." He's idolized players like Alvin Kamara and Jahmyr Gibbs, who can both run and catch with the best of them. 

"I think I had a strong year having 2,000+ all-purpose yards and 1,700 rushing [yards] but there’s still a lot I need to work on," Sheffey said. "I would define me as a complete back because I have good vision I can revive the ball well and run routes and I’m good at staying patient and let stuff develop."

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