Rising Pitt DB Impressing Veterans in Spring Ball
PITTSBURGH -- Javon McIntyre is all of a sudden one of the old men in the Pitt Panthers' defensive secondary but he hasn't lost touch with the next generation coming up behind him.
McIntyre said there is a fast-rising redshirt freshman that has already started earning second-team reps as Pitt opens spring practices at the UPMC Rooney Sports Complex.
“Cruce Brookins, for sure he’s going to be that guy," McIntyre said. "He’s the safety behind [Donovan McMillon], second safety and trust me, he’s going to be a player.”
Pitt's coaches had been impressed with Brookins during fall camp last season, when he arrived as a former three-star safety recruit out of Steel Valley High School in Homestead. Head coach Pat Narduzzi said late in the 2023 season that the Panthers coaching staff was looking for ways to get him some more snaps.
"It’s a great question because there’s one guy that I’ve got to mention, and we’ve got four games left and he has not played," Narduzzi said before Pitt took on Florida State last season. "We’ve got a green light on him right now. His name is in green right now. It’s Cruce Brookins. He’s going to be a phenomenal football player. We like how he plays fast, he just keeps getting smarter every week."
Brookins played in just two games to preserve a redshirt as he sat behind the starting trio of Donovan McMillon, Javon McIntyre and P.J. O'Brien. He made one tackle but the Panthers believe there are bigger things in his future and they are coming soon.
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