Pitt football adds two new recruits to 2017 class

With only a week left before the start of training camp, Pitt head football coach Pat Narduzzi and his staff continue to build for both the present and the future.

The Panthers added the 11th and 12th pledges to their 2017 recruiting class in the last two days, as three-star wide receiver Dontavius Butler committed to Pitt Sunday, while three-star offensive tackle Gabe Houy announced his commitment to the Panthers Monday.

A 6-foot-2, 197-pound receiver from Plantation, Florida, Butler is Pitt’s second wide receiver commit in the 2017 class. He revealed his decision in an announcement on Twitter over offers from North Carolina State, Temple, Toledo, Bowling Green and others.

Houy gives the Panthers their second homegrown recruit in the 2017 class and 12th commit overall, joining four-star Steel Valley defensive back Paris Ford as the second WPIAL player to commit to Pitt for 2017.

A 6-foot-6, 270-pound offensive tackle from Upper St. Clair High School in Pittsburgh, Houy announced his commitment Monday via Twitter. He chose the Panthers over offers from Maryland and Wake Forest, among others.

Pitt now has 12 verbal commitments lined up for 2017, although recruits have a full half-year left to change their minds. Recruits in the 2017 class can officially sign their National Letters of Intent Feb. 1.