Preferred walk-ons chasing big dreams
dates to at least the 1990s. But the idea continues to grow, and one NCAA rule change that went mostly unnoticed this offseason was the number of players allowed on the training camp roster increased from 105 to 110. Maybe it makes sense that it flew under the radar, given that it only affects the under-the-radar players, but to Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi, that’s five more spots for walk-ons who could turn into starters.
“I love those stories,” said Narduzzi, pointing to three of his own in George Aston, Oluwaseun Idowu and Jimmy Morrissey. “That’s why the more great walkons you can get, the better off you’re gonna be as a football program. I learned that a long time ago from the late Randy Walker. That was his philosophy.”
So between the preseason roster expansion and the success walk-ons have had under Narduzzi, don’t be surprised to see plenty of new names pop up that weren’t part of Pitt’s 2017 team or 2018 signing class. Some come from the WPIAL and others from out of state, all with the same goal.
Narduzzi doesn’t remember calling them “preferred” walk-ons when he coached under Walker from 1990-92 at Miami of Ohio, but there were always a few who earned scholarships. What has become more of an emphasis is the process of courting those players — many of Pitt’s new preferred walk-ons (PWOs, for short) visited campus and received recruiting pitches from the coaches, just like the scholarship guys.
“There’s some great walkons out there that don’t get scholarships, and to me, those are as hard to recruit as any player. … We can bring in five extra guys, so we’ve made a concerted effort to get more guys,” Narduzzi said.
“So when you talk recruiting, we say, ‘OK, here’s our scholarships. This is what we’re taking, but we’re also going to recruit those other guys.’
“Those guys didn’t just come because we called them up one day and said, ‘Hey, you wanna come?’ We’ve recruited those guys, as well.”
Alecxih remembers choosing his walk-on option at Pitt over a half-scholarship from Albany, a level below. As he recalls, Connecticut and Towson were supposed to offer him full rides but backed out at the last minute.
Just about every new Pitt walk-on likely has a similar story and had the opportunity to get some money from a smaller program but instead bet on himself.
North Allegheny wide receiver John Vardzel and Bluefield, W.Va., fullback Jason “Truck” Edwards are your classic fringe prospects. Both were good enough in high school to be coveted by Football Championship Subdivision or Division II schools, but the bigtime offers never came. Make no mistake, though, they were on the radars of major-conference programs.
“John Vardzel, he’s an incredible kid,” said Pine-Richland coach Eric Kasperowicz, who had to game-plan against him. “Awesome athlete, good player. I was able to coach him in an all-star game, and if he doesn’t have a scholarship by his junior year, I’ll be very surprised.”
For players such as Edwards and Vardzel — whose older brother Michael is a redshirt sophomore walk-on at Pitt himself — their recruitments picked up around signing day. Many of Pitt’s PWOs announced their decisions in late January or early February, about the time most scholarships are accounted for.
And in Pitt’s case, they aren’t just high school players aiming to make the transition to college ball. There are junior-college transfers in quarterback Tyler Zelinski and offensive lineman Devon Davis, who both joined the team for spring camp. There’s also a couple of local graduate transfers in Cole Blake, a Robert Morris tailback by way of Moon High School, and Colin Jonov, a Bucknell cornerback via Franklin Regional.
Pitt’s 2018 walk-on class also includes three quarterbacks (Zelinski plus Peters Township’s Jake Cortes and Hempfield’s Justin Sliwoski), three kickers/punters (Beaver’s Will Connelly, Maryland’s Cooper McGeehan and Harrisburg’s Ethan Van Buskirk), and one more WPIAL product (Fox Chapel linebacker Chase Villani). That goes a long way toward checking the boxes of positional depth, special-teams help and local connections.
“And all those guys are quality people off the field. I think that makes a difference, as well,” North Allegheny coach Art Walker said. “They’re not a risk because they’re gonna get it done in the classroom and off the field, and, if they get it done on the field, they have potential to make it better. So I think taking those preferred walk-ons from area schools will definitely help strengthen those relationships.”
One other relatively recent perk that levels the playing field? Walk-ons now get the same complimentary meals as scholarship players, a benefit the NCAA didn’t allow until 2014. So, yeah, Alecxih, who parlayed his opportunity into a scholarship and eventually a cup of coffee in the NFL, didn’t eat for free when he first arrived at Pitt. Not that he needed extra motivation.
“I would tell a kid to 100 percent play at the highest level you feel you’re capable of,” Alecxih said. “And if you go to a school like Pitt and it doesn’t work out, you can always transfer down. … There were times I would see kids who were on scholarship and think, ‘Man, that’s horse manure that kid’s getting his college paid for and I’m not.’ But I knew in the long run the cream would rise to the top, and it did. It always does.”
“There’s some great walk-ons out there that don’t get scholarships, and to me, those are as hard to recruit as any player.”
— Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi