National signing day: Pitt lands four-star running back A.J. Davis

When four-star running back A.J. Davis reached in a bag, pulled out a Pitt hat and placed it purposefully on his head, it signaled perhaps the Panthers' most significant recruiting victory since the school's coaching upheaval that began more than five years ago.

Watching Davis on ESPNU with his coaches, Pitt's Pat Narduzzi was Jim Valvano of N.C. State after he won basketball's national championship more than three decades ago. He just wanted to hug, high-five or clap on the back anyone near him.

Only this wasn't a game. It doesn't count in the standings. Davis' decision to attend Pitt after he graduates from Lakeland (Fla.) High School later this year -- along with Steel Valley safety Paris Ford, who signed a letter of intent on national signing day -- just raised the possibility of success.

While boosting expectations to heights Narduzzi eagerly embraces.

"We can compete with anybody," he said in the midst of signing a 24-man class that ranked 37th in the nation Thursday morning, according to Rivals.com. "If we can beat the national champion (Clemson), we can beat anybody in recruiting. It's just putting the pieces together."

Pitt won recruiting battles with several national powers while filling desperate needs in the secondary and defensive line and providing even more depth at a previously well-stocked running back position. Pitt even nabbed 280-pound four-star tight end Charles Reeves of Steubenville, Ohio.

Davis, who is Pitt's highest-ranked running back recruit since Rushel Shell in 2012, had 35 offers (including Pitt's ACC rivals Louisville and North Carolina). Ford ended up turning away coaches at more high-profile programs and quarterback Kenny Pickett also said no to North Carolina."

"North Carolina was messing hard with Kenny Pickett, real hard, like bad hard," Narduzzi said. "Kenny is calling, 'Coach, it's kind of like my dream school growing up.' "

But Pickett stuck with is Pitt commitment, even enrolling last month to get a jump on his collegiate career.

Likewise, Pitt had to fight off challenges for:

• Defensive tackle Kam Carter, a former Penn State prospect who was at East Mississippi Community College last year.

• Damarri Mathis, also of Lakeland, who was ranked the 37th cornerback in the nation by Rivals.com.

• Wide receiver Michael Smith of Vero Beach, Fla., who went from six catches as a junior to 24 touchdowns and 1,500 yards as a senior.

• Defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman, who committed weeks ago without telling anybody else. Narduzzi called him "a man of his word."

Twyman believed he was just paying back the Pitt coaches.

"Coach Narduzzi is the most loyal, down-to-earth coach I've ever met," he said.

Twyman added that when his brother Tayvon Cummings was shot to death in May in Washington D.C., Pitt's coaches provided support.

"When I lost my brother in a tragic shooting, they flew in and checked on me almost every day of the week," he said.

Pitt defensive coordinator Josh Conklin is eager to see if Ford and Carter, Twyman and others can fill clear voids on a defense that allowed an average of nearly 453 yards per game last season.

"(Safety) was a major concern this year, along with the corner position," Conklin said. "I told Paris all along he has to come in and expect to play. You watch him fly around. You watch him make some plays against some of the best talent in the country (in the Under Armour All-American Bowl), you think you got a shot (for Ford) to come right away and be a contributor."

On the other side of the ball, Narduzzi was only slightly exaggerating when he said running backs coach Andre Powell "was skipping through the hallways" after getting Davis and Todd Sibley, a former Ohio State commit from Akron.

"We needed both of those guys," Narduzzi said. "We had another (back) who wanted to come that had to go a little further away from home.

"It's nice to be picky."

NOTES: Narduzzi said there are several players leaving the program with eligibility remaining, including offensive linemen Mike Grimm of Bethel Park (hip surgery), Alex Paulina of Canon-McMillan, Carson Baker and Aaron Reese, running back Rachid Ibrahim, wide receiver Zach Challingsworth of South Fayette and tight end Zach Poker.

Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at jdipaola@tribweb.com or via Twitter @JDiPaola_Trib.