Inside The Panthers

TE Adam Land Opens Up About Pitt Recruitment

One of the top tight ends on Pitt’s board discussed a range of topics after booking an official visit with the Panthers.
IG: adamlandd

The Pitt Panthers have spent plenty of time and effort recruiting Adam Land. 

That effort is paying off as the rising senior announced on social media on Tuesday that he’s set to take an official visit on June 12-14. (Click here for reporting regarding that trip).

He’s a 6-foot-3.5, 215-pound tight end with very promising receiving skills out of the Florida panhandle. Land is also a 4.3 GPA student with a good head on his shoulders, and a three-sport background (baseball, basketball, football).

Out of Lynn Haven (Fla.) Mosley High School, Land has so far secured over a dozen scholarship offers, including Arizona, Coastal Carolina, Navy, Mississippi State, Pitt, and SMU. 

On Tuesday afternoon, Land shared details with Inside the Panthers.

Did you grow up in the panhandle playing football? Tell me more about your background.

"I actually grew up as a baseball player and I kind of played football just for toughness, really. I played sixth and seventh grade in a rec league kind of thing. And then eighth grade, I played middle school and I just fell in love with the game.

“My uncle walked on a Florida State in the early 2000s, but that's the only football that's been in the family. So, ever since I started playing, I just fell in love with the game and I wanted to play it more and more, and, obviously, it's got me places. I love it."

The tight end position has evolved where in some offenses, it's splintered into two roles - the traditional tight end often attached to a tackle along with some H-Back work, and what's often referred to as a flex tight end or receiving tight end. How would you categorize yourself? I see you're often split out and involved in the passing game but I also see H-Back and inline work.

"Yeah, I would say I am more of a receiving (tight end), kind of, but…I love blocking. It's one of my favorite things to do, just to go manhandle somebody, put some dude in the ground. It makes me feel good about myself when I get to see that on tape. 

“I like to see my teammates score more than me, honestly. I just love the physical part of the game. That's what made me fall in love with football. It's just the physicality to it.

"I categorize myself as a flex tight end, but it's not like I'm against blocking. I love blocking, my favorite part of the whole position."

Pitt is involved in your recruitment. Obviously, Pittsburgh is in the East but it's quite far from the panhandle. Yet you're clearly showing an interest, have booked an official visit. Tell me about Pitt within your recruitment.

"I've been in touch with Coach (Jacob Bronowski) the most, and he's awesome. He came down about probably a month ago now just to see me on his recruitment trips. And I really enjoyed it. 

“He talked to me and my family. We talked about the school, the program, how players get around, all the living situation, everything. So, he went into good depth with that, and I'm really looking forward to getting up to it in June."

What is it about Coach Bronowski that you like? What stands out to you?

"I would say that he's a young guy, obviously, so that can help sometimes…connection-wise. He's super easy to talk to. When he talks, he seems genuine. He seems that he's passionate and that's always something good to look for in a coach, somebody who's passionate about the game and about their players, specifically. To make them better. 

“He gives off that vibe where he is there to make (improvement) not just with himself but also all of his players. I really like that about him."

Have you been to Pittsburgh before?

"No. This (official visit) will be my first time."

"Maybe the farthest would be Tennessee up north. I've never been super far up north, but I'm looking forward to it, to get a different experience. Going to Pittsburgh should be super fun."

What are you looking forward to doing or seeing while you're in Pittsburgh?

"I would say I'm looking forward to seeing how the city life is. I've never been around the city. So, that's something to look forward to, see how the city life is, and also just the program and how it's ran.

“I like to always look at the schedules, and see what the players do recovery-wise, and all the team meetings. I like to see all that kind of stuff.

"That's what I look forward to the most, just learning about how they prepare."

Watching Pitt football, Kaden Bell runs a lot of bunches sets and gets his tight ends moving around a lot, doing a lot of different jobs. Is that something you noticed?

“Definitely, yeah. I watched some of their games and their very, very heavy-tight end."

I'm sure more offers will come your way between now and Signing Day. But for now, are there certain schools standing out or is it more open where you're just taking things as they come?

"As of right now, I would say it's open. I don't know what's really going to happen in the future. Obviously, I still have quite a bit of (time). Spring hasn't even come yet. So, I guess I'm still open as of right now, but I'm definitely starting to narrow it down to these schools that I'm taking visits to. 

“It has to be narrowed down at some point. So, I would say by the time spring ends…I will pick the teams that I'd be most interested in, and Pitt is one of those."

It sounds like Pitt is a contender for you. Can you sum up why you're taking a hard look at Pitt?

"The main reason right now is I love Coach Bro and I love our relationship. It's really, really strong and I would say attention-wise, they always seem on top of their game. Their recruiting, just giving me talks, they'll send me texts all the time. I like when coaches text me from a program. That makes me feel like I am wanted. 

“So, obviously, I always put those schools that make me feel wanted over the ones that don't. That's the biggest reason as of right now just because I haven't been up there yet. But I really just enjoyed the coaches always texting me and stuff, make me feel wanted."

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Kevin Sinclair
KEVIN SINCLAIR

Kevin Sinclair writes coverage of the Pitt Panthers along with the Baltimore Ravens, the New England Patriots, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Tennessee Titans for On SI. Previously, he was a recruiting reporter and managing editor at Irish Illustrated, the privately-owned Notre Dame site within the 247Sports Network, for over seven-and-a-half years. Kevin studied multimedia journalism and has been a sports writer for nearly a decade.