Help is on the way for Pitt's wide receivers room.
The loss of Jared Wayne has been remedied with the commitment of wide receiver Daejon Reynolds, a former four-star recruit who spent the last two seasons at Florida. Reynolds arrives at Pitt with three years of eligibility remaining.
#H2P what’s good! pic.twitter.com/w9FBnIO7zk
— DR (@DaejonReynolds) January 20, 2023
The 6-foot-2, 204-pound receiver was a consensus four-star recruit out of Loganville, Ga., and was forced into action in 2022 after the Gators' receivers room sustained injuries. He had a breakout game on Nov. 19 against Vanderbilt, in which he caught eight passes for 165 yards and two touchdowns. He also caught a pair of passes for 74 yards on Oct. 2 against Eastern Washington.
Reynolds held 39 offers out of high school, with all-but a handful coming from Power Five schools. He caught 88 passes for 1,534 yards and 14 touchdowns in his senior year of high school.
He is the second transfer to ship up to Pitt from Florida this offseason, joining safety and Peters Township product Donovan McMillon.
But, more important, Reynolds gives Pat Narduzzi, Frank Cignetti Jr., and incoming quarterback Phil Jurkovec an instant plug-and-play option at receiver to help account for lost production from Wayne, who is headed to the NFL after finishing ninth in Pitt history with 2,308 receiving yards.
This comes after the Panthers were originally thought of as a favorite for Dante Cephas, the Penn Hills product who transferred away from Kent State but committed to Penn State on Sunday. Cephas is the ninth receiver and 54th overall player within Rivals' transfer portal rankings, whereas Reynolds is ranked 646th overall.
Rankings aside, Reynolds' speed and athleticism still stand out, and should serve as a complimentary piece to returning receivers Konata Mumpfield and Bub Means. The trio is still relatively young, which could lead Narduzzi and Cignetti to continue to search for a veteran presence for the room elsewhere in the portal.
Check out his breakout performance against Vanderbilt below. Note the catch at 22 seconds, his 74-yard touchdown at 6:23, and his second touchdown at 8:28.
