Toledo loves Pittsburgh - for recruits
Toledo loves Pittsburgh - for recruits
Toledo loves Pittsburgh - for recruits
By MATT MARKEY
BLADE SPORTS WRITER
Tom Amstutz has combed through the hills of southwestern Pennsylvania like a prospector searching for gold. Once the big mining operations from the major conferences have had their take from the deep vein of local talent, Amstutz has found a nugget or two they missed, and quickly banked it 240 miles away in Toledo.
The head coach of the Rockets, who has doggedly recruited the Pittsburgh area for years, knows the wealth of football riches stashed there. Three of those Pittsburgh recruits - safety Patrick Body, cornerback Brandon Hefflin and quarterback Bruce Gradkowski - will play vital roles when the Rockets face No. 9-ranked Pittsburgh (2-0) Saturday night in the Glass Bowl.
Amstutz knows Mt. Lebanon, Penn Hills and Monroeville. He?s been to McKeesport and Upper St. Clair, and has passed through the Squirrel Hill Tunnel. A number of times, Amstutz drove back to Toledo after those recruiting forays thinking he had landed a prize or two
"We like to go over there and recruit because there is great football tradition in that area - everywhere you look," Amstutz said. "Football is real important to those kids in high school around there - and when football is important and there are a lot of good athletes, it is good to pick up a few and bring them over here."
Amstutz also knows the renowned Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League is more than a mouthful: It is one of the traditional hotbeds of high school football on this side of the Mississippi.
"All the big schools recruit Pittsburgh because it has produced so many great football players over the years, but we?ve managed to slip in there and come back with some fine players, too," he said. "And now those kids will get a chance to play against Pittsburgh here in Toledo, and that has to be a thrill. This probably adds a little fuel to their fire since they?re Pittsburgh-area guys. I know how kids think, and they probably want to prove themselves and show that they can play with a team like Pittsburgh."
The Rockets (2-1) have eight players on their roster from Pennsylvania, including the three starters, and all of them are from the greater Pittsburgh area. Freshmen Marques Council and Travis Williams are from Aliquippa, senior Ray Turner is from Clairton, junior Mike Sacco is from Sewickley, and freshman Kareem Ferguson is another Pittsburgh product.
"We have a bunch of Pittsburgh guys and Pennsylvania people, and I know they?ll all be pumped up and ready to play this one," Gradkowski said. "We?ll play just as hard as we do in any other game, but a lot of us will have more family and friends here, so that has to serve as some sort of additional motivation."
Gradkowski said that as a kid he was a Penn State fan foremost, but also had some allegiance to Pitt, which is near his home.
"I always liked Pitt - that?s your hometown team," Gradkowski said. "But I was always a big Penn State fan more than that. Pitt is five minutes from my house, so I went to games growing up and always liked it, but now I have the chance to play against them and that?s a wonderful opportunity and I?m just going to try and take advantage of it."
When Gradkowski was rewriting the WPIAL passing record book as a senior at Senton-La Salle, Pitt showed some interest in him.
"But it seemed like they were waiting for another guy to decide, so they didn?t really recruit me hard," Gradkowski said. "We talked a little bit, but not that much. It?s a tough job recruiting - I understand that - and it?s a game - coaches are always guessing what your potential will be in a few years. They can?t base it all on ability in high school; they have to consider if you will adapt to college and develop into a great player."
Hefflin, a senior who has started every game in his UT career, said he relishes the opportunity to face Pitt in the Glass Bowl. Toledo lost 37-19 at Pittsburgh last season in the first meeting between the two programs.
"I couldn?t have had a better opportunity than this - going up against the main school from my hometown," said Hefflin, who is from Penn Hills. "At times while I was in high school, I thought I would like to play there, but I didn?t get recruited as hard so I just looked to other places. Things have worked out great, and it?s exciting to be playing them in our place my senior year."
Body, who is from Pittsburgh?s Schenley High School, said there are a number of Pittsburgh-area players on the Pitt roster.
"We probably know some of them and we played against some of them in high school, so that adds a little bit extra to this game," he said. "This is a big game for every guy on this team, and for the guys we have from Pittsburgh, it?s a little something more."
Gradkowski, who will make the fourth start of his college career against the Panthers, said he?s not surprised so many Pittsburgh-area players have ended up at UT.
"It?s a football town - with the Steelers and the history and all - and a lot of great players have come out of the Pittsburgh area," Gradkowski said. "Football is big a lot of places, but it seems to be extra important in the Pittsburgh area. That is probably the main reason you see so many college and pro players come from that one area."
