Inside The Panthers

Pitt Basketball Contacts Class of 2026 Recruits

The Pitt Panthers took advantage this past weekend when it came to recruiting, contacting numerous Class of 2026 recruits.

Dominic Campbell

Mar 2, 2024; Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Jeff Capel reacts to game action against the Boston College Eagles during the second half at Conte Forum. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 2, 2024; Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Jeff Capel reacts to game action against the Boston College Eagles during the second half at Conte Forum. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports / Eric Canha-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers started their recruiting of recruits in the Class of 2026, building the program for the future.

The reason for this recent recruiting upswing is that June 15 marks the first day that NCAA allows college coaches to contact recruits in the Class of 2026. Some coaches start their recruiting at midnight, but every coaching staff will get to work throuhgout the day, sending out text messages and calling recruits.

Pitt contacted six known players from the Class of 2026 this past weekend in Tarris Bouie, Qayden Samuels, Chase Foster, Katrelle Harmon, Markus Kerr and Parker Robinson.

Tarris Bouie

Bouie is a 6-foot-4 guard who plays for Julius L. Chambers High School in Charlotte, N.C. and heard from Panthers assistant coach Jason Capel right after midnight, according to George Michalowski of Pittsburgh Sports Now.

He played in 30 games last season as a sophomore, averaging 23.8 minutes, scoring 14.9 points, grabbing 4.6 rebounds, dishing out 2.7 assists, making 1.7 steals and blocking 1.1 shots per game, respectively. He also shot 58% from the field, 33% from 3-point range and 77% from the foul line.

Bouie also plays for Team Thad on the Nike EYBL 16U Circuit this summer. He is scoring 20.5 points, fifth best, while also grabbing 5.9 rebounds, making 1.0 assist and averaging 26.0 minutes per game, respectively.

He holds offers from ACC foe Wake Forest, as well as Appalachian State and Samford. Other teams that reached out to him include LSU, Michigan and Charlotte.

Qayden Samuels

Samuels is a 6-foot-5 shooting guard who plays for Bishop McNamara in District Heights, Md., just outside of Washington D.C.

He had a great sophomore season, as he garnered Washington Catholic Athletic Conference (WCAC) First Team honors.

247Sports and On3 ranks him as the No. 1 recruit in Maryland, while 247Sports has him as the No. 8 shooting guard and No. 33 in the nation and On3 rates him a little lower, No. 12 shooting guard and No. 47 in the country. Rivals has him as the No. 29 player in his class.

Samuels also stars for Team Takeover on the Nike EYBL U16 Circuit, averaging 21.9 points, fourth best, 5.8 rebounds and 25.0 minutes per game.

He holds offers from Illinois, Maryland, Providence VCU, Virginia Tech and rival West Virginia. He also heard from ACC schools in Louisville and Syracuse, Georgetown, George Washington and Old Dominion.

Chase Foster

Foster stands at 6-foot-8 and plays power forward for Edmondson-Westside High School in Baltimore.

He helped his team win the Baltimore City Title this past season and the past two Maryland Class 1A state titles, with a 26-2 record in 2023-24.

Foster also plays for Team Melo on the Nike EYBL U16 Circuit, where he averaged 26.7 minutes, 12.4 points, 5.8 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game, respectively.

247Sports and On3 rank him as the second best recruit in Maryland, while 247Sports ranks him the No. 5 power forward and No. 35 in the nation, while On3 has him at No. 4 at his position and No. 49 in the country. Rivals has him at No. 52 in the Class of 2026. All three sites rate him as a four-star.

He holds offers from rivals Penn State and West Virginia, Maryland, Mississippi State, Washington, Providence, College of Charleston, Virginia Tech, Illinois, Florida State, Old Dominion, Radford and Texas A&M.

Other schools that reached out include Georgetown, Notre Dame, Virginia, Oklahoma State and Villanova.

Katrelle Harmon

Harmon is a 6-foot-4 combo guard that played for BFL Prep Academy in the Seattle, Wash. area., but is transferring to Wasatch Academy ahead of his junior season. Jason Capel reached out to Harmon, according to Michalowski.

He averaged 29.3 minutes, 14.3 points, 3.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists for NW Rotary Rebels in the Nike EYBL U16 Circuit.

247Sports rates him No. 1 recruit in Washington, No. 2 combo guard and No. 56 recruit in the nation, On3 has him as the No. 13 shooting guard No. 61 in the country, while Rivals ranks him as the No. 83 recruit in the Class of 2026.

He holds offers from Arizona State, Auburn, Bryant, Illinois, Old Dominion, Oregon State, Pacific, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, Stetson, USC, UNLV, Washington and Washington State.

Michalowski also reported that others schools recently contacted him like Stanford and Louisville in the ACC, Texas A&M and USF.

Markus Kerr

Kerr, who is a 6-foot-5 guard, plays with Bouie at Julius L. Chambers High School in Charlotte, N.C. He also plays for Team United on the Nike EYBL Circuit.

He played in 31 games, averaging 25.0 minutes, scoring 13.4 points, grabbing 4.0 rebounds, dishing out 2.9 assists, making 2.0 steals and blocking 0.8 shots per game. He also shot 47% from the field, 29% from behind the arc and 73% from the foul line his sophomore season.

Kerr holds offers from West Virginia, Wake Forest, Mississippi State, VCU, High Point, Mount St. Mary's, College of Charleston, North Carolina A&T, Charlotte, Hampton, Radford and Appalachian State. He made unofficial visits to NC State, Wake Forest and College of Charleston.

Schools that contacted Kerr, but didn't offer yet include Louisville, NC State, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, Michigan, South Carolina and Samford.

On3 rates him as a three-star, No. 3 in North Carolina, No. 15 shooting guard and No. 78 in the Class of 2026, respectively. Rivals rates him as a four-star and No. 78 in the nation.

Parker Robinson

Robinson, a 6-foot-4 shooting guard, started out with Our Lady of Good Counsel in Olney, Md., but played last season for the City Reapers in Overtime Elite in Atlanta.

He averaged 15.6 minutes 7.4 points and 2.1 rebounds per game, respectively, while shooting 40.2% from the field and 33.3% from deep.

Robinson holds offers from rival West Virginia, Maryland, Providence, Iowa, Illinois, Towson, East Carolina and Old Dominion. Other schools that contacted him recently are Maryland, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, VCU, Syracuse, George Washington and rival Penn State.

Rivals rated him as a four-star and the No. 105 recruit in the Class of 2026.

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Dominic Campbell
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