Will June be busy or quiet for 2021 WPIAL football recruits?

By: Chris Harlan
Sunday, May 31, 2020 | 6:16 PM

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June can be a busy month for college football commitments, but will this year be different?

A year ago, 14 of the state’s Top 25 recruits made their decision in June, according to Rivals.com rankings.

That 2019 list of June commitments included WPIAL stars Michael Carmody of Mars, A.J. Beatty of Central Catholic, Josh Rawlings of Woodland Hills, Josh Kaltenberger of Seneca Valley and Jake Lugg of North Allegheny, along with City League standout Dayon Hayes of Westinghouse.

All six committed in the first month of summer.

This year, more than a dozen of the state’s Top 25 recruits remain uncommitted with a handful of highly ranked WPIAL players among them. In any other year, that might mean the next four weeks will be busy, but the coronavirus pandemic could slow down the commitment process.

That’s especially true since the NCAA once again extended the current “dead period” on the recruiting calendar through July 31. That means there’ll be no official campus visits this spring.

Coaches aren’t allowed to have face-to-face contact with recruits or their parents during a dead period.

However, coaches can communicate electronically, so the process continues.

The NCAA put the dead period into place immediately after cancelling its winter and spring championships. The latest extension came Wednesday.

Here are the top uncommitted WPIAL 2021 recruits, according to Rivals rankings:

Derrick Davis

Gateway

6-0, 193, outside linebacker/safety

State ranking: fourth

Offers: Pitt Penn State, West Virginia, Alabama, Baylor, Boston College, Cincinnati, Clemson, Duke, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Kentucky, Kent State, LSU, Louisville, Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, Texas A&M, Toledo, USC, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin

Watch Derrick Davis highlights

Elliot Donald

Central Catholic

6-3, 255, defensive tackle

State ranking: fifth

Offers: Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Kentucky, Kent State, LSU, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Rutgers, Syracuse, Texas A&M, Toledo, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin

Watch Elliot Donald highlights

Dorien Ford

Baldwin

6-6, 290, defensive tackle

State ranking: 10th

Offers: Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Arizona, Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa State, Kentucky, Kent State, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Syracuse, Temple, Texas A&M, UCF, Toledo, Virginia Tech

Watch Dorien Ford highlights

Donovan McMillon

Peters Township

6-2, 193, safety

State ranking: 19th

Offers: Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Air Force, Akron, Arizona State, Army, Boston College, Bowling Green, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Cincinnati, Coastal Carolina, Duke, Eastern Michigan, Florida, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Indiana, Iowa, Kent State, Louisville, LSU, Marshall, Maryland, Miami (Fla.), Miami (Ohio), Michigan, Michigan State, Mississippi, Northwestern, Notre Dame, Old Dominion, Oklahoma, Oregon, Purdue, Rutgers, Texas A&M, Stanford, Syracuse, Temple, Tennessee, Toledo, Vanderbilt, Virginia, Virginia Tech, Wisconsin

Note: McMillon announced a Top 10 on May 1 that included Penn State, Arizona State, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Michigan, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas A&M and Virginia Tech.

Watch Donovan McMillon highlights

Khalil Dinkins

North Allegheny

6-4, 203, linebacker/wide receiver

State ranking: 23rd

Offers: Pitt, Penn State, West Virginia, Akron, Boston College, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Georgia Tech, Kent State, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Syracuse, Toledo, Tulane, Virginia, Virginia Tech

Watch Khalil Dinkins highlights

Chris Harlan is a TribLive reporter covering sports. He joined the Trib in 2009 after seven years as a reporter at the Beaver County Times. He can be reached at charlan@triblive.com.

Tags: Baldwin, Central Catholic, Gateway, North Allegheny, Peters Township