Inside The Panthers

Pitt Football Lands 2025 3-Star LB

The Pitt Panthers landed a Class of 2025 three-star linebacker from Ohio, who committed over a few other ACC Schools.

Dominic Campbell

Pitt Football Landed Class of 2025 three-star linebacker Denim Cook
Pitt Football Landed Class of 2025 three-star linebacker Denim Cook / Denim Cook's Instagram

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers have landed a number of fantastic recruits and they added another commitment to their defense in a recruit from Ohio.

Class of 2025 linebacker Denim Cook chose to commit to Pitt over Virginia, announcing his decision on Twitter. He also had four other schools in his final six, including Louisville, Indiana, Purdue and Toledo.

Cook plays for Bishop Hartley High School in Columbus, Ohio. He made 116 tackles, 22 tackles for loss, 15 sacks, one interception, three passes defended and two fumble recoveries as a junior in 2023. For his efforts, he earned First Team All-Conference and First Team All-Metro honors.

He made two official visits in Virginia on June 7 and Pitt on June 20. He made previous visits to Pitt in January 2023, for the Florida State game on November 4 and then the Spring Game back in April. 

247Sports ranks him as a three-star, the No. 32 recruit in Ohio and No. 84 linebacker in the Class of 2025, respectively. Rivals rates him as a three-star.

All three recruiting sites predicted that he would Virginia. Jacquie Franciulli of Wahoos247 put out a "Crystal Ball" for Cook to choose Virginia, with medium confidence, which did not come true as he committed to Pitt.

Pitt has two true linebacker in the Class of 2025 with Cook's commitment along with Justin Thompson, who plays for Our Lady of Good Counsel in Olney, Md. Athlete Emmanuel Taylor, who plays for Green Run in Virginia Beach, Va, is another Pitt Class of 2025 commit and will most likely play linebacker for the program as well.

The Panthers have 20 commitments in the Class of 2025, as they look to land their final recruits before fall training camp begins.

Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi put out a "Pat Signal" to signal this morning and Cook is the one to claim that.

Cook is the second commitment of the day, joining athlete Joshua Guerrier from Ocoee, Fla. near Orlando, who is likely to play defensive back.

The last weekend of official visits, June 20-22, brought in six commitments along with Cook, athletes Synkwan Smith from Roswell, Ga. and Taylor, wide receiver Kha'leal Sterling from Miami, Fla., offensive lineman Torian Chester from Albany, Ga., defensive back Mason Alexander from Fisher, Ind.

Five of the commitments made their decision following the first weekend of official visits June 6-8, including tight end Max Hunt, athlete Ja'Kyrian "Boosie" Turner, Thompson, wide receiver DaMarion Fowlkes and defensive end Julian "Juju" Anderson. 

The rest of the Class of 2025 includes offensive linemen Akram Elnagmi and Shep Turk, quarterback Mason Heintschel, wide receiver Tony Kinsler, athlete Bryce Yates, defensive lineman Trevor Sommers and defensive backs Elijah Dotson and Shawn Lee Jr.

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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