Stull hasn't been talked about in awhile on here, but I thought some might like to see where he ended up.
Pitt lands Stull, Williams
By
Kevin Gorman
TRIBUNE-REVIEW
Monday, January 31, 2005
When new Pitt coach Dave Wannstedt claimed he wanted to make Western Pennsylvania a top priority for the Panthers, he wasn't kidding.
Now, everyone knows he's dead serious.
The Panthers upped their number of WPIAL recruits from the Class of 2005 to nine this weekend, adding verbal commitments from Seton-La Salle quarterback Bill Stull and Monessen linebacker Ernest "Mick" Williams. A year after losing Penn Hills quarterback Anthony Morelli to Penn State at the 11th hour, Pitt enticed Stull to back out of a verbal commitment to Kentucky three days before the start of the national letter of intent signing period.
"Billy has an extra skip in his step now," said Greg Perry, Seton-La Salle's offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach. "He has a chance to stay here, where his family and friends can come see him play."
The Panthers fended off Akron and West Virginia to lure Williams, a powerful 6-foot-2, 265-pound prospect who could play at fullback, linebacker or on the defensive line.
"I liked all the schools that offered me," said Williams, who also had offers from Indiana and Iowa. "It was basically up to my mom (Robin Stover). She thought Pitt was a fantastic place."
Pitt now has the top two quarterback prospects in the WPIAL, perhaps the state, in Stull and Central Catholic's Shane Murray. The last time Pitt signed two WPIAL quarterbacks in the same class was in 2002, with West Allegheny's Tyler Palko and Steel Valley's Luke Getsy.
The 6-3, 195-pound Stull became the first passer in WPIAL history to eclipse the 3,000-yard mark in a season. He completed 239-of-387 attempts for 3,310 yards and 40 touchdowns in 14 games, leading the Rebels to the WPIAL Class AA championship with a WPIAL finals-record 323 yards - along with five touchdowns - against Aliquippa.
Stull was intrigued by the idea of playing for Wannstedt, a former Miami Dolphins and Chicago Bears head coach, and offensive coordinator Matt Cavanaugh, who led Pitt to the 1976 national championship, spent 12 years playing quarterback in the NFL and spent the past six as offensive coordinator of the Baltimore Ravens.
Like Cavanaugh, Stull grew up in Youngstown, Ohio.
"He's excited about Pitt," Perry said. "He's excited to work with two guys who have an NFL background."
Stull passed for 2,262 yards and 22 touchdowns as a junior, and his 5,572 passing yards and 62 touchdowns rank in the top five among the WPIAL's career passing leaders.
As a senior, Stull was named first-team All-Century Conference by coaches, first-team All-Class AA all-state by the Associated Press and to the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review's Terrific 25 and All-Class AA teams. He shared the Trib's Class AA Player of the Year honors with his favorite target, West Virginia recruit Carmen Connolly.
Williams also drew first-team All-Class A honors by the Trib and was a first-team all-state selection at linebacker.
Williams said Pitt assistant coach Bob Junko recruited him to play defense, where he will be tried at middle linebacker.
"They said at the snap of the ball, I get downhill great," Williams said. "That's what they needed. I wouldn't mind playing defensive end, but I want to be a linebacker."
Williams, however, is ranked the nation's No. 8 fullback prospect by Rivals.com and could end up there. A three-year starter for the Greyhounds, he rushed for 1,109 yards and 13 touchdowns on 131 carries as a senior.
Pitt also has commitments from Moon offensive lineman John Bachman, Duquesne running back Shane Brooks, Burrell offensive lineman John Brown, Aliquippa safety Tommie Campbell, West Allegheny offensive lineman C.J. Davis, Central Catholic's Murray and tight end John Pelusi. Hopewell defensive lineman Craig Bokor, who spent the fall at Valley Forge Military Academy, enrolled in January.
Kevin Gorman can be reached at [email protected] or (412) 320-7812.
http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/tribune-review/sports/highschool/football/s_298586.html
