University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Bryant Proving A Great Catch As Pitt Enjoys Comeback Season
11/2/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Bryant Proving A Great Catch As Pitt Enjoys Comeback Season
11/2/2000
PITTSBURGH - Talk about catching a break.
Pitt coach Walt Harris' freshman class was wrapped up two years ago when a recruit abruptly changed his mind. So, hours before the signing deadline, Harris offered his 24th and final scholarship to a spindly Florida receiver named Antonio Bryant, who had been passed over by his home-state schools.
Bryant wanted badly to play for hometown Miami, but wasn't recruited. Now, just as he was about to sign with Louisville, here was a chance to play in the same conference as Miami, against the same competition and, yes, against the Hurricanes themselves.
One scrawl of the pen later, and Pittsburgh had the catch of the year.
"Recruiting," Harris would say later, "is not an exact science. People get overlooked."
Bryant proves that. Smart, fast and instinctive - he began his high school career as a linebacker - he quickly fell in love with Harris' prostyle offense, one of most sophisticated in college ball. It gives him the freedom to adjust his routes to what he reads and sees in the defense. It also has allowed him to take off.
Last year, the 6-foot-2, 185-pound Bryant had a Pitt freshman-record 51 receptions and six touchdowns. This season, Bryant has been one of the best players in college football, with 44 catches, eight touchdowns and a major college-leading 138.3 yards per game average that is nearly 25 yards per game better than runner-up Freddie Mitchell of UCLA.
Bryant has been nearly unstoppable the last two weeks, teaming with quarterback John Turman for 17 receptions, 349 yards and five touchdowns against Boston College and Virginia Tech.
The Hokies played for the national title last year and are No. 2 this season, but have been powerless to stop Bryant, who has 22 catches and four touchdowns in two games against them.
This is a receiver who was passed over by Miami and Florida, Florida State and Nebraska, Oklahoma and, yes, by Virginia Tech?
"We're real proud of how he has dominated games, and I love how he competes," said Harris, who has coached seven receivers who became first-round NFL draft choices. "He wants the ball. We have a system that allows him some flexibility in his route-running and he's bought into it and he's taken his game to another level."
Bryant has helped revive a Pitt program that was on the decline for years, with one winning season since 1991. Now, the Panthers (5-2), who play at home Saturday against North Carolina (3-5), are one victory away from a second such season and, possibly, only their second bowl game in 11 years.
"I learned back in high school, when you play for the team, you receive honors and accolades," Bryant said. "But when you play for yourself, you get nothing, you get shut out. A lot of guys probably suffer from that when they go out there and play for stats."
Not that Bryant doesn't play a little for revenge, too. Choosing Pitt has given him the motivation and drive he may have lacked at a talent-deep school where his skills might not have been as fully exploited.
"A lot of guys when they get recruited, they go for the name," Bryant said. "That's Florida State, yeah, I'm going to go to Florida State. I wanted to do that, too, but when it all came down to it, reality struck me. I was like, hold on, if I go to Pitt I can start here."
The 19-year-old Bryant also thinks leaving home helped him grow up, even if he still is impetuous and impatience at times. He scowled at Turman for not getting him the ball in an overtime loss at Syracuse, and he argued on the sideline that day with Harris. He also was among several players suspended for Pitt's season opener after some students improperly used university access codes to make long-distance calls.
Bryant also misses the up-tempo lifestyle of Miami that is lacking in Pittsburgh, yet still talks as if he will return to Pitt next season and not leave for the NFL.
Next week, he returns to Miami for his first game there since helping Northwestern High to the Florida Class 6A championship in 1998. Overlooked then, he will be the center of attention on Nov. 11.
"I'm not ignorant to the fact I'm establishing a lot of great things and allowing myself to build up stats, but my focus is to take it play by play, game by game," Bryant said. "I'm just blessed I had the opportunity to play in college because a lot of people, unfortunately, didn't make it this far. I don't try to boast or be too proud.
"I don't ever think I'm the best."
