Pitt football runs in the family
Elliot Donald commits to Panthers
Just like his famous uncle, Elliot Donald is staying home to play college football.
Donald, a senior defensive tackle at Central Catholic and one of the most heavily recruited players in Pennsylvania, announced Friday on Twitter that he has verbally committed to Pitt.
It’s a huge recruiting coup for the Panthers, who beat out the likes of defending national champion LSU, Penn State, Ohio State and Notre Dame to land Donald, nephew of NFL superstar Aaron Donald, who starred at Pitt after playing at Penn Hills. Elliot, who lives in North Versailles, is ranked among the top 100 seniors nationally by ESPN (80) and Rivals (82). He’s the first top 100 player to pick Pitt since Steel Valley’s Paris Ford, a member of the Panthers’ 2017 class. Rivals ranks Donald the No. 5 player in the state and No. 7 defensive tackle in the country.
Donald, who is 6 feet 3, 255 pounds, is the 18th commitment in Pitt’s 2021 class. He also is the third WPIAL player to commit to the Panthers, joining West Mifflin defensive end Nahki Johnson and Central Valley safety Stephon Hall.
“I think it’s a very good fit, especially with Pitt doing what they have done defensively the last few years in recruiting,” Central Catholic defensive coordinator Dave Fleming said. “Elliot Donald is a snap to whistle player. Not only that, he puts the time in off the field to work on his craft. What they’re getting is a high-level player.”
He alsois highly productive and disruptive. As a junior, Donald collected 55 tackles, 13 for a loss, 11 sacks and 2 forced fumbles. He helped Central Catholic win the WPIAL Class 6A title and reach the PIAA final, and earned Post-Gazette Fabulous 22 and All-State recognition.
“I think it’s tremendous for the local university to get a top local talent. Elliot is obviously one of the biggest recruits in the state, so for him to stay around here, that’s an awesome get for Pitt,” said Pine-Richland coach Eric Kasperowicz, a Parade AllAmerican quarterback at North Hills in his playing days who also chose Pitt over a long list of other offers.
Since last season, Donald has added 30 pounds to his frame and has trained frequently with his uncle, a two-time NFL defensive player of the year. Some of Elliot’s workouts have come in the basement of his grandfather’s house which is nicknamed “The Dungeon” and was made famous through Aaron’s many workouts there growing up.
“I just want to be more dominant,” Elliot said earlier this month. “More tackles for loss. Bigger hits. I want to let everybody know that I’m not this 225-pound kid anymore.”
Donald joins Johnson as four-star recruits in Pitt’s class. Johnson was the first commitment in Pitt’s class after making his pledge in June 2019. Count him among those most happy to hear Donald’s decision. The two are close friends.
“We wanted to keep the hometown guys home,” Johnson said. “I’ve been talking to him about it for a while. Every time I talk to him, I bring it up.”
“It’s very special. It’s like creating a culture for other Pittsburgh players, a culture of staying at home.”
Donald is the latest star defensive lineman from Western Pennsylvania brought in by Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi. Westinghouse defensive end Dayon Hayes was one of the centerpieces of the 2020 class. With Donald committed, Johnson said he will turn up the heat on Baldwin defensive tackle Dorien Ford, another close friend of his being recruited by Pitt. Additionally, two current Pitt defensive lineman, Jalen Twyman and Patrick Jones, have been named to various preseason All-America teams.
“Pitt has done a great job the last couple of years with defensive linemen,” said Fleming. “And there are some younger guys behind those All-Americans who they are excited about. It’s a good time in Western Pennsylvania for defensive linemen.”
Fleming said Narduzzi’s staff was active and “did everything they could have done” in recruiting Donald. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Donald was unable to take any official visits. That likely only helped Pitt’s chances. It certainly didn’t hurt them considering Donald’s close proximity to the school and familiarity with the program. His uncle’s name is all over it. In 2019, the ground floor of Pitt’s practice facility on the South Side was renamed the Aaron Donald Football Performance Center.
Once at Pitt, Elliot will try to continue following in his uncle’s footsteps, but their recruitment up until their commitments went much differently. Elliot had a who’swho list of Power Five conference programs courting him, while Aaron’s only other offers were from Rutgers, Toledo and Akron.
The latest Donald to commit to Pitt has a long way to go to match some of his uncle’s achievements, but Fleming said he sees a lot of the same drive and work ethic in Elliot that he saw when he coached against Aaron in high school.
“The quick twitch and getting off the ball, those are things you’re born with,” Fleming said. “The things you work on are pad level and hand movements. Those are the things he works tirelessly on. The thing with him, he had the God-given ability. He could play in college based on just that. But it’s the extra things he’s doing that make him really special.”