Playing at Pitt 'dream come true' for Pitt safety Paris Ford

Pat Narduzzi seldom brags in public about a victory, whether it occurs on the football field or in the living room of a recruit.

But he was feeling good in 2017 on signing day.

Three months earlier, Pitt had defeated Clemson, the eventual national champion, in Death Valley (an unlikely accomplishment for an unranked visiting team).

Then, in February, when Narduzzi’s email started filling up with signed letters of intent, he couldn’t help himself. His inner competitor got the best of him.

“If we can beat the national champion, we can beat anybody in recruiting,” he said. “It’s just putting the pieces together.”

And the pieces of that 24-man recruiting class — only the second he had assembled at Pitt on his own — are falling into place this season.

Nearly three years later, 13 members of that class are making significant contributions to a Pitt team that won the ACC Coastal last season and could move into first place Saturday (if it defeats Miami at Heinz Field and Virginia loses at Louisville).

That 2017 class brought 11 current starters or regulars to Pitt, including quarterback Kenny Pickett, running back A.J. Davis, offensive left tackle Carter Warren, cornerbacks Damarri Mathis and Jason Pinnock and, perhaps the gem of the group, sophomore strong safety Paris Ford of Steel Valley.

Recruiting Ford was one of Narduzzi’s easiest selling jobs. Ford committed 16 months before signing day and never seriously considered another school, even though Alabama and Ohio State led the list of suitors.

“This is just a dream come true,” Ford said Wednesday after practice. “Just being a Pittsburgh kid, playing for my hometown, couldn’t ask for anything more.”

Ford, 21, said thought about playing for Pitt when he was “a little boy.”

“When I used to see LeSean McCoy here, guys like him, Jonathan Baldwin, I was thinking maybe I can be one of those guys,” he said.

In his first season as a starter, Ford leads Pitt with 51 tackles and two interceptions. He played well enough for a half against Syracuse to be named (along with wide receiver Maurice Ffrench) to the Pro Football Focus ACC Team of the Week. He sat out the first half as part of his punishment for being ejected for targeting the previous week.

“Paris has got one of the most unbelievable instincts I’ve seen. It’s tough to match that,” said Pitt secondary coach Archie Collins when asked if Ford reminds him of anyone. “He’s a different guy as far as stuff that he feels during the game, stuff that he sees.”

Ford played well in the second half against Syracuse, but he did drop a pass that seemed to be aimed toward his belly. His coaches didn’t let him forget it.

“They were all over me,” Ford said. “They put it on the film. It was so hard to watch, hopefully, I can get one this week.”

Collins said Ford has been a playmaker — in practice or in games – since the spring of 2018.

He didn’t play much last year – nine games with no starts as a cornerback and special teams player – but as he learned the defense, his athletic ability and instincts surfaced.

Ford credits senior secondary mates Damar Hamlin and Dane Jackson for helping him wait his turn.

“Those past two years (including his redshirt freshman season in 2017), those guys kept me under their wing and always told me to look at the brighter side,” Ford said. “It feels so good to finally be playing with those two guys. It’s a lifelong dream.”

When he was in high school, Ford said a Pitt secondary that included himself, Central Catholic’s Hamlin and Clairton’s Lamont Wade (who ended up at Penn State) would create “a no-fly zone.”

Steel Valley's Paris Ford will get his Under Armour jersey at 2, said Pitt secondary of Hamlin, Wade, himself would be "DB U. No-Fly Zone."

— Jerry DiPaola (@JDiPaola_Trib) November 18, 2016

Pitt’s secondary ranks sixth in the ACC in passing yards allowed (212.4), but only eighth in interceptions (five, including one against Duke that Ford returned for a touchdown).

Worth noting: Pitt and Clemson are the only schools in the conference whose opposing quarterbacks are completing less than half their passes (49 percent).

“I said early in the year, he’s got a high ceiling,” Collins said of Ford. “He still hasn’t reached his ceiling. It’s going to be unbelievable the player he’s going to become in the future because he’s getting better and better each week through more experience.

“It’s been fun watching him mature, fun watching him communicate (on the field, making calls), fun watching him play the game of football. The sky’s the limit. It’s basically on him how much he wants to get better, how much more time he spends in film work, which he has done an incredible job doing that.”

“I haven’t done anything yet,” Ford said, “but it’s definitely fun to be back on the field.”

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