Inside The Panthers

Pitt Adds WPIAL Walk-On OL, Brother of Star Wrestler

The Pitt Panthers have received a walk-on commitment from a local offensive lineman, who is also the younger brother of the school's star heavyweight wrestler.
Mitchell Corcoran|
Oct 11, 2025; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi during the second half against the Florida State Seminoles at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images
Oct 11, 2025; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Pittsburgh Panthers head coach Pat Narduzzi during the second half against the Florida State Seminoles at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images | Melina Myers-Imagn Images

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Pittsburgh Panthers

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers have received a commitment from Derry Area High School offensive lineman Dylan Pitzer, he announced on Feb. 2.

Pitzer announced that he received an offer from Pitt on Jan. 29.

"I’m blessed to announce my Football and Academic commitment to the University of Pittsburgh," Pitzer wrote on X. "Thank you to my family, my teammates, Derry community and my Derry coaches. I appreciate all the support and guidance in this journey. Incredibly grateful for this opportunity and I’m ready to get to work! H2P."

Pitzer is the brother of star Pitt heavyweight wrestler Dayton Pitzer, who was an ACC Champion, an NCAA qualifier, an ACC medalist, the ACC Most Valuable Wrestler and was All-ACC last season for the Panthers.

The younger Pitzer isn't so little, standing at a towering 6-foot-7, 270 pounds. Last season, Pitzer totaled 67 tackles, 15 hurries, 10 sacks, a safety and blocked a field goal. Pitzer's performance led him to be named First-Team All-Conference defensive end, First-Team All-Conference offensive tackle and Defensive Lineman of the Year, according to his post on X.

Pitzer is the second offensive lineman walk-on offensive lineman to commit to Pitt this past week. The first was Mars offensive tackle Sean Franklin on Jan. 29.

Pitt Continues to Fill Out OL

Pitzer and Franklin join a Pitt 2026 class that features incoming freshman signees Mike van der Oord, Nick Howard and John Curran, and transfer portal signees Netinho Olivieri from Penn and Keylen Davis from Akron.

Pitt will look to develop this group of incoming offense linemen into more proficient pass protectors after last year's group allowed the fifth-most sacks in the nation, with 44. True freshman quarterback Mason Heintschel was the victim of 34 of those sacks, which ranked him seventh among the most sacked signal callers in the nation in 2025, despite starting only nine games.

Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback Mason Heintschel
Oct 4, 2025; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Boston College Eagles defensive lineman Makai Byerson (91) sacks Pittsburgh Panthers quarterback Mason Heintschel (6) during the second quarter at Acrisure Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

It wasn't just the sacks either. Heintschel was also pressured a whopping 150 times last season, according to Pro Football Focus. The offensive line also allowed 80 total tackles for loss, which finished tied for 117th-worst in the country, and averaged out to 6.15 tackles for loss per game.

Some key departures from 2025's group of starters were tackle Jeff Persi and center Lyndon Cooper, while the line retained Keith Gouveia, BJ Williams, Ryan Carretta, Kendall Stanley and Ryan Baer, all of whom started at least one game a season ago.

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Mitchell Corcoran
MITCHELL CORCORAN

Mitch is a passionate storyteller and college sports fanatic. Growing up 70 miles away in Johnstown, Pa., Mitch has followed Pittsburgh sports all his life. Mitch started his sports journalism career as an undergraduate at Penn State, covering several programs for the student-run blog, Onward State. He previously worked for NBC Sports, The Tribune-Democrat and the Altoona Mirror as a freelancer. Give him a follow on X @MitchCorc18.

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