Inside The Panthers

Pitt Football Misses Out on WPIAL 2025 LB

The Pitt Panthers worked hard to secure the services of a Class of 2025 linebacker from the WPIAL, but he chose to go elsewhere.

Dominic Campbell

Nov 25, 2023; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi looks on during the first half of the game against Duke Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 25, 2023; Durham, North Carolina, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi looks on during the first half of the game against Duke Blue Devils at Wallace Wade Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-USA TODAY Sports / Jaylynn Nash-USA TODAY Sports

PITTSBURGH -- The Pitt Panthers work hard to keep local, WPIAL recruits in the area and playing for their hometown program, but sometimes, that doesn't always work out.

One Class of 2025 linebacker in Bradley Gompers from Pittsburgh Central Catholic chose to not join the Panthers and instead committed to the Duke Blue Devils, announcing his decision on Twitter.

Gompers had Pitt in his final seven schools at the end of May, which also included rival West Virginia and Big Ten schools in Maryland, Michigan State, Northwestern and Rutgers.

He took his official visit to Duke on June 7, which played a big role in him choosing to commit to the program.

Gompers cut down to those schools from an number of other offers, including Boston College, Indiana, Cincinnati, MAC Schools in Kent State and Toledo, plus UConn and UNLV.

Pitt was his third offer, after UNLV and WVU, and he earned the scholarship after a great performance at Pitt camp last summer. He made visits to Pitt for the Cincinnati game last September and also in March for spring practice.

He missed most of his junior season out with a broken collarbone, only playing in the final four games, including both contests in the playoffs, as Central Catholic made the WPIAL Class 6A Final Game. He made 25 tackles, two pass break ups and a fumble recovery on defense, as he plays outside linebacker and strong safety

Gompers, who stands at 6-foot-5 and 215 pounds, has great awareness and vision on the field, that allows him to excel at any position, as he also plays tight end.

Rivals and On3 both rank him as a three-star, with Rivals placing him at No. 16 in the Pennsylvania and No. 27 athlete, while On3 ranks him at No. 27 in the state and the No. 64 athlete in the Class of 2025.

Pitt has had a number of Central Catholic alumni play for them, most notably, quarterback Dan Marino. Some other names in recent years include defensive backs Damar Hamlin and Bricen Garner, defensive tackle/fullback Rashad Wheeler, long snapper Cal Adomitis, defensive tackle David Green and linebacker John Petrishen. Class of 2024 defensive end Ty Tuhas is the most recent commit from Central Catholic to Pitt.

The Panthers have 12 commitments in the Class of 2025, as they look to build their program going forward.

Five of the commitments made their decision following official visits last weekend, along with tight end Max Hunt, athlete Ja'Kyrian "Boosie" Turner, linebacker Justin Thompson, wide receiver DaMarion Fowlkes and defensive end Julian "Juju" Anderson. 

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

With one more big week of official visits next weekend, expect more "Pat signals" from Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi, leading to more Class of 2025 commitments for the program.

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

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