Inside The Panthers

WPIAL Football Star Announces Pitt Official Visit

The Pitt Panthers will host a WPIAL football star on a visit.
Dominic Campbell|
Pitt Football offensive coordinator Kade Bell offers Class of 2026 Peters Township WR/DE Lucas Shanafelt
Pitt Football offensive coordinator Kade Bell offers Class of 2026 Peters Township WR/DE Lucas Shanafelt | Courtesy of Lucas Shanafel

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Pittsburgh Panthers

PITTSBURGH — The Pitt Panthers work hard when they're recruiting the local area and will host one of the top players on an official visit this summer.

Lucas Shanafelt, a recruit in the Class of 2026 from Peters Township High School in McMurray, Pa., announced that he will make an official visit to Pitt June 5-7, the first weekend of the month.

Pitt offered Shanafelt back on Jan. 24, with offensive coordinator Kade Bell making a visit to his home.

He also holds offers from rival West Virginia, MAC schools in Akron, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Miami (Ohio) and Toledo, two other FBS schools in Liberty and UConn, Ivy League schools in Harvard and Penn, plus two other FCS schools in Fordham and Lehigh.

Shanafelt plays both wide receiver and as a defensive end/edge rusher for Peters Township. His play led to conference honor at defensive end and his team to a 11-2 record and the WPIAL Class 5A Championship Game.

Shanafelt also played a role in Peters Township winning the 2023 WPIAL Class 5A Championship over Pine-Richland and making the PIAA 5A Championship Game, where they lost to Imhotep Charter, finishing the season 15-1.

He is teammates with Reston Lehman, an edge/outside linebacker, who is in the Class of 2026 and holds a Pitt offer.

Shanafelt stands at 6-foot-4 and 225 pounds and has great quickness on the snap, allowing him to gain an edge on offensive linemen trying to block him. He also posseses the strength to move through blockers and get to the quarterback or running back and causes chaos whenever he is on the move.

He is the first WPIAL and Pennsylvania recruit in the Class of 2026 that announced their official visit to Pitt this summer.

Pitt will also host many other recruits on official visits in June from across the country.

This includes wide receivers in Dylan Wester from Booker High School in Sarasota, Fla. and Blake Hamilton, who plays for Fort Bend Christian Academy in Sugar Land, Texas.

The Panthers will also host two other players from Texas on official visits, including three-star quarterback commit Angelo Renda from Carroll High School in Southlake and four-star offensive lineman Day'jon Moore from Willis High School in Willis.

The other recruits coming on official visits includes three-star linebacker Markel Dabney, who plays Hugenot High School in Richmond, Va., four-star athlete Damon Ferguson from Milford Mill Academy in Baltimore and running backs in four-star Favour Akih, who plays for Rutherford B. Hayes High School in Delaware, Ohio, and three-star Christian Lawrence from Thomas County Central High School in Thomasville, Ga.

WPIAL Class of 2026 with Pitt Offers

Davieon Taylor-Aliquippa, LB
Colsen Gatten-Central Catholic, LB/ATH
Ashton Blatt-Central Catholic, DE
Brendan Alexander-Central Valley, OL/DL
Matt Sieg-Fort Cherry, QB/S (Penn State Commit)
David Davis-Imani Christian, DB/RB (Top 6)
Lincoln Hoke-North Allegheny, DT
Reston Lehman-Peters Township, EDGE/OLB
Lucas Shanafelt-Peters Township, WR/DE 
Lawrence Timmons-Pine Richland, DB
Da'Ron Barksdale-Steel Valley, ATH
Kyshawn Robinson-Westinghouse (City League) (Top Six)

WPIAL Class of 2027 with Pitt Offers

Sa'Nir Brooks-Aliquippa, RB/SS/ATH (Now Saint Frances Academy)
Larry Moon III-Aliquippa, DB (Now IMG Academy)
Zachary Gleason Jr.-Central Catholic, DB/ATH
Jimmy Kalis-Central Catholic, OT
Jance Henry-Central Valley, RB
Gabriel Jenkins-Imani Christian Academy, ATH (Top Eight)
Kemon Spell-McKeesport, RB (Penn State Commit)
Carter Bonner-Penn Hills, CB
Khalil Taylor-Seton La-Salle, ATH
Armand Hill-West Mifflin, ATH

WPIAL Class of 2028 with Pitt Offers

Brandon Murphy-Clairton, ATH/DB
James "BooBoo" Armsrong-Hopewell, QB

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Dominic Campbell
DOMINIC CAMPBELL

Dominic writes for Pittsburgh Pirates On SI, Pittsburgh Panthers Pn SI and also, Pittsburgh Steelers On SI. A Pittsburgh native, Dominic grew up watching Pittsburgh Sports and wrote for The Pitt News as an undergraduate at the University of Pittsburgh, covering Pitt Athletics. He would write for Pittsburgh Sports Now after college and has years of experience covering sports across Pittsburgh.

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