Cal Adomitis ready to perform for NFL scouts at Pitt's Pro Day

The long hair is long gone, replaced by a full beard that Cal Adomitis said might one day be prime for shearing.

For a good cause, of course.

Adomitis was one of the stars of Pitt’s run to an ACC championship last year, on and off the field. He concluded five almost perfect seasons as Pitt’s long snapper, playing in 64 career games while placing the football where kickers such as record-setting Alex Kessman could get a good whack at it.

Off the field, he helped raise $121,000 for cancer programs at Children’s Hospital by allowing young patients to grab scissors and cut off his beloved, flowing hair.

Now, it’s time to do something for himself.

Named an All-American long snapper by the American Football Coaches Association and winner of the Patrick Mannelly Award as the nation’s best at his position last year, Adomitis is pursuing a pro career.

He’ll join 12 teammates at Pitt’s Pro Day on Monday after he was one of two long snappers at the Senior Bowl and the only one invited to the NFL Combine. One afternoon at the Combine, he snapped 60 times for punts, 75 times for field goals.

Adomitis understands how rarely long snappers get drafted — only eight in the past seven years. But Alabama’s Thomas Fletcher and Michigan’s Camaron Cheeseman went in the sixth round last year to the Carolina Panthers and Washington Commanders.

The Pittsburgh Steelers drafted Louisville long snapper Colin Holba in the sixth round in 2017 and cut him before the start of the season. But Holba has collected paychecks from five teams since then, joining the San Francisco 49ers and Los Angeles Rams twice.

Adomitis, a Central Catholic graduate, is eager to see what his many years of work will yield in the coming months.

“It’s exciting,” he said. “But at the same time, keeping it in perspective. This is the start of the journey.

“Obviously, it’s exciting to get signed or get drafted, but the most important part is making that 53-man roster next fall. That’s just as much work as anything leading up to it.”

At the Combine, Adomitis ran the 40-yard dash in 4.97 seconds on a 6-foot-2, 235-pound frame.

“Nothing groundbreaking,” he said. “For the long-snapping position, as long as you run sub 5, that’s enough for them.”

He did open eyes on the 225-pound bench press, doing 18 reps.

Lumped with the defensive linemen, he surprised many of his bigger colleagues with his strength.

“I can’t say many of them really expected me to do that many,” he said, “so that was cool to surprise some of those guys in that way.”

He said his snap time — from his hands to the holder — remains in the low 0.7s and high 0.6s (seconds).

“At this point in time, I don’t really need to throw it much harder than that,” he said. “My primary focus is throwing that hard and making sure it’s a super-tight spiral, clean ball and great location.”

He also practices in rainy, windy weather.

“Definitely what separates the good snappers from the great snappers is being able to perform the same way, no matter what the conditions,” he said.

Aside from snapping, he also learned what every pro should know — the importance of keeping busy and being punctual at the same time.

“Going from practice to interviews and meetings, being up late with interviews and waking up early the next morning for practice, I feel even more prepared for the next level,” he said. “An important part, too, that’s been different so far is a new area I’m becoming more and more comfortable in is being ready at the drop of a hat to perform because that’s kind of the structure.”

Adomitis has spoken with representatives of several teams over the past 2 ½ months, and has private workouts scheduled with the Cincinnati Bengals and Los Angeles Chargers.

In advance of the draft April 28-30, he will continue to work out at Pitt’s training facility, willing to drop everything and snap for any curious scout. He said he must be ready to perform “on a phone call’s notice.”

Meanwhile, he’s thinking about his next fundraiser after surpassing his Children’s Hospital goal by $27,000.

“I’ve been rocking a little bit of winter beard,” he said. “My wheels have been turning. Unless Brett Keisel has a copyright on the Shear the Beard fundraiser, that might be the next step for me.

“By the time next winter comes around, I could have a pretty mean beard going.”

NOTE: Joining Adomitis at Pitt’s Pro Day will be quarterback Kenny Pickett, cornerback Damarri Mathis, offensive lineman Keldrick Wilson, defensive lineman Keyshon Camp, linebackers Chase Pine, Phil Campbell III and John Petrishen, punter Kirk Christodoulou, tight end Lucas Krull, and wide receivers Tre Tipton, Taysir Mack and Melquise Stovall.