Seniors opt out, then team does
Panthers will forgo possible bowl game
Seniors Patrick Jones II and Rashad Weaver, Pitt’s high-profile tandem at defensive end, announced Friday that they’re forgoing the Panthers’ possible bowl game to focus on their NFL futures.
While he hasn’t announced anything on social media, senior safety Damar Hamlin will do the same, a source told the PostGazette. Hamlin and Weaver did not travel to Georgia Tech Thursday night for Pitt’s regular-season finale, opting to focus on preparing for the draft.
Later Friday, Pitt head coach Pat Narduzzi announced the Panthers would be opting out of a potential bowl game. The decision to decline a postseason invitation was “made by the team and fully supported by the university,” according to the release. Pitt joins Boston College as the second team in as many days to end its season early.
Jones and Weaver, the fourth- and fifthranked defensive ends in the 2021 NFL draft class by ESPN analyst Mel Kiper Jr., both have a chance to land in the first round come April. Hamlin, meanwhile, is a projected mid-round pick.
Semifinalists for the Bednarik Award, given to college football’s top defensive player, Jones and Weaver combined for 16.5 sacks this season, more than any duo in Football Bowl Subdivision. Prior to Pitt’s game at Georgia Tech, Jones ranked first in the ACC and second in FBS in sacks (9), while Weaver led all players in quarterback pressures (48), according to Pro Football Focus.
Weaver would have added to that total if he played Thursday night against the Yellow Jackets. Instead, he signed with an agent and left Pittsburgh to start training in Phoenix.
That was Weaver’s plan for a while, to move on after Pitt’s originally scheduled regular-season finale Nov. 28 at Clemson. The Georgia Tech game being postponed from Nov. 14 to Thursday night due to COVID-19 issues within both programs almost caused Weaver to switch his itinerary around. But Weaver, who tore his ACL in August 2019 and missed that season, didn’t want to take any chances.
“It was a very difficult decision, but knowing what it’s like to potentially lose all
your dreams due to a knee injury in practice, I ultimately decided to stick to my original plans to best prepare myself for the combine,” Weaver said in a statement on Twitter.
That was Hamlin’s reasoning, too. His father, Mario, told the Post-Gazette that the Central Catholic graduate’s goal coming back to Pitt for a fifth year was to reach the ACC championship. Once that was no longer an option, Hamlin prepared for the Clemson game to be his last in a Pitt uniform — and it was, even with the Georgia Tech game moved to December.
Hamlin, the team’s leading tackler with 66 stops, stayed with the program this week and helped Pitt’s secondary prepare for the Yellow Jackets. Hamlin’s father said his son was told by Pat Narduzzi that he couldn’t travel with the team to Atlanta due to COVID-19 limitations.
So, Hamlin and Weaver watched from afar Thursday night as Pitt beat the Yellow Jackets, 34-20.
Jones, who played at Georgia Tech and
logged a team-high seven tackles, said he wanted to “be there for my boys” one last time in ACC play. But after the game, the captain said he understood Weaver and Hamlin’s respective decisions.
Narduzzi said playing the likes of John Morgan, Deslin Alexandre and Erick Hallett in their place at Georgia Tech was “an opportunity to move on to 2021.”
Pitt’s other NFL prospects — namely quarterback Kenny Pickett and center Jimmy Morrissey — have not announced plans to move on from the program yet. Both have the opportunity to return next season with the NCAA’s blanket waiver. But Pickett and Morrissey, after last month’s senior day, are expected to move on from Pitt and enter the 2021 draft.
All told, Pitt safely could have seven players picked if you include Jaylen Twyman and Paris Ford, who opted out in July and at midseason, respectively. Twyman is Kiper’s seventh-ranked defensive tackle, while Ford is seen as a “safe Day 3 pick” by NFL Network draft analyst Ben Fennell.
Fennell told the Post-Gazette last month that Hamlin “might have more upside and excite scouts a little bit more” than Ford. As for Weaver and Jones, he sees them as “bonafide Round 2 picks” despite some projecting first-round upside.
“I don’t think they’re going to be the darlings of the draft once we get to the offseason. ... But they’re solid football players,” Fennell said. “They’re not these Von Millers that are going to win with quickness and speed rushes all the time. But that’s all fan stuff. Scouts want good football players.”
If Jones, Weaver and Hamlin proved anything over their collegiate careers, it’s that they’re more than capable of making it in the league. Jones tallied 22 sacks with the Panthers. Weaver recorded 34.5 tackles for a loss. Hamlin racked up 290 tackles in 48 appearances. Pitt’s loss will be the NFL’s gain. Now that their time at Pitt is up, it’s just a matter of figuring out where they go next.