Pitt Football Places in Top 3 for WPIAL 4-Star LB

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers are one of the final options for one of the best football players in the area.

Reston Lehman, a Class of 2026 recruit, announced his final three schools in Pitt, Penn State and Rutgers, in a recent interview with Mike Vukovcan of Pittsburgh Sports Now.

Vukovcan eventually took down that article, citing that Lehman had no reached a final three schools and apologized for posting it.

I took down the @Reston_Lehman story as there was misunderstanding/miscommunication on my part. Those 3 schools aren't Lehman's Final 3. My fault and sincere apology.
— Pittsburgh Sports Now (@PghSportsNow) May 27, 2025

He has an official visit to Rutgers this upcoming weekend, May 28-30, then another one to Pitt the following weekend, June 5-7, and then will visit Penn State.

Pitt offered Lehman on Sept. 29 and he visited Pitt for three game days last season. This includes the 55-24 blowout of Kent State in the season opener, then the Backyard Brawl, a comeback 38-34 victory over West Virginia in Week 3 and the 41-13 defensive domination of rival Syracuse in Week 9, where he met Pitt great Larry Fitzgerald.

Had a great time at the @Pitt_FB game last night! Especially meeting and talking to Hall of Fame wide receiver @LarryFitzgerald . pic.twitter.com/pEP990EvV1
— Reston Lehman 4⭐️ (@Reston_Lehman) October 25, 2024

Lehman has featured mostly at edge and excelled for Peters Township these past two seasons. They won the 2023 WPIAL 5A Title, 43-17 over Pine-Richland, and made the PIAA 5A Title game, losing to Imhotep Charter 38-13, finishing the season 15-1. They were 11-2 this past season and finished as WPIAL finalists.

He uses his quickness to beat his blockers, tackling running backs in the backfield or sacking the quarterback, while also doing well in the pass defense, breaking up quarterback passes and also making an interception or two, as he can play at outside linebacker too.

His 6-foot-4, 230-pound frame allows him to excel at both edge rusher and linebacker, making him difficult for opponents to plan around.

Junior year regular season highlights!! https://t.co/lCmlXH6FLY
9-1 record onto playoffs! pic.twitter.com/3ohf15O1o6
— Reston Lehman 4⭐️ (@Reston_Lehman) November 6, 2024

ESPN rates Lehman as a four-star, No. 185 in the nation, No. 14 at outside linebacker and No. 7 in Pennsylvania.

The other recruiting sites have him as a three-star, with 247Sports ranking him No. 32 at his position and No. 18 in the state, Rivals ranking him the No. 34 edge defender and No. 12 in Pennsylvania andOn3 ranking him No. 73 at his position and No. 25 in the state.

Lehman also received offers from Power 4 programs in ACC schools in Boston College, Syracuse, Virginia Tech and Wake Forest, Big Ten schools in Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Purdue, UCLA and Wisconsin, Big 12 schools in Arizona and West Virginia and SEC schools in Missouri and Oklahoma.

He also earned offers from MAC schools in Akron, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Miami (Ohio), Ohio and Toledo, plus other FBS offers from Delaware, James Madison and Tulane.

Lehman is one of four WPIAL Class of 2026 recruits making their official visit to Pitt this summer, along with North Allegheny defensive tackle Lincoln Hoke, Pittsburgh Central Catholic linebacker Colsen Gatten and Fox Chapel kicker Harran Zureikat.

Make sure you bookmark Inside the Panthers for the latest news, exclusive interviews, recruiting coverage, and more!

Follow Inside the Panthers on Twitter: @InsidePitt