In-State Pitt Football Recruit Among Most Valuable This Cycle

We’ve seen the impact of the Pitt Panthers steering more resources toward prospects with dynamic speed in Florida. Clearly, it was a deliberate game plan, and the staff’s execution on the trail had important results.

Between the 2025, 2026, and 2027 cycles, three Florida running backs with verified sub-4.5 speed chose Pitt - 2025 classmates Ja’Kyrian Turner and Jaylin Brown, and 2027 commit Tyler Reid.

Two receivers, a safety, a tight end, and a linebacker join the running back duo (Turner, Brown) as the seven incoming freshmen from Florida.

Aside from Florida, where should the Panthers apply a more aggressive recruiting approach?

Poring over the last five cycles, it sure seems the Pitt staff would be wise to collaborate on improving recruiting outcomes at home in Pennsylvania.

Starring nearby at Peters Township, the program that produced Donovan McMillon, 2026 linebacker/edge hybrid Reston Lehman is a perfect example of the potential multi-year contributor who often slips through the cracks.

In this case, though, although some networks have tabbed the 6-foot-4, 230-pound playmaker a four-star talent, Boston College, Maryland, Michigan State, Nebraska, Purdue, UCLA, Virginia Tech, and Wisconsin representing only a sample of his larger group of Power Four offers, it seems Lehman is legitimately interested in Pitt.

Through doing our homework on Lehman, it turns out his dad attended Pitt, so he’s been to campus, attended various sporting events over the years before the Panthers offered, and he’s always been very fond of the university and its football program, according to our source.

To overcome the tough competition for a high-level prospect, it’s often about selling something uniquely appealing, an approach that leaves a lasting impression and serves as a pathway to an eventual commitment.

In 2025, perhaps the selling point will be televised each Saturday this fall - All-American linebacker Kyle Louis leading the linebacker unit alongside Rasheem Biles, Braylon Lovelace, and others.

If there’s something the Pitt staff can sell to Lehman, it’s the development, production, and collective success of those linebackers.

That boy @Reston_Lehman is huge in person! pic.twitter.com/RpddqUDKcG
— PA Today (@PA_TodaySports) November 10, 2023

On that note, when it comes to Lehman’s size, a transition to the edge is often discussed.

However, unlike most high school ‘backers with Lehman’s size, his specific blend of athleticism and speed suggest the linebacker position could be permanent.

“There’s been a couple of schools that…came in, we worked him out, they want to see his hips,” Peters Township head coach TJ Plack said last month. “It’s like, ‘Can he play Mike? Does he have that ability?’

“(Coaches) have seen him move and they've offered immediately, guys that were looking at him to play mike linebacker. Also, on the edge, I think he has that versatility."

“What we do on defense is a little bit different. He does play on the edge, but he does drop and he does rush and he does play against the run. So, the young man is tremendous."

“I think whatever you want him to do, he can do.”

That’s high praise from Plack who is nearing two decades as a varsity football coach.

“I'm being honest, I've never seen a kid like him before.”

Louis and Biles won’t be around much longer. It’s unclear if Pitt has significant future talent on the weak-side edge or if the staff will need to tap into the portal on an annual basis until high school recruiting proves adequate.

That’s part of why a potential future underclassman contributor in the box is particularly valuable. It’s also worth considering that Pittsburgh’s staff loves what they see in Lehman’s teammate, classmate, and friend, tight end recruit Lucas Shanafelt.

If you get one, you probably get the other.

In turn, if the tandem known statewide suddenly filled headlines due to choosing the Pitt Panthers, it could go a long way as the Pitt staff looks to buckled momentum at home in Pennsylvania.

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