Pitt's Carter Warren stakes claim to starting job at tackle

Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi is constantly searching for good offensive linemen, and he’s not shy about finding them on another school’s roster.

Nothing wrong with that.

Aside from quarterback, it’s probably the toughest position to master, and it’s difficult to find big guys who have the agility to move laterally without getting run over.

• This year, it’s tackle Nolan Ulizio, who will graduate from Michigan, arrive at Pitt sometime after spring drills and compete for a starting job at tackle.

• Last year, it was Kent State graduate Stefano Millin, who started 14 games at left tackle.

• Chase Brown, a junior college transfer from Lackawanna College last year, has a shot to start at guard this season, his senior year.

Sophomore Carter Warren, who joined Pitt the old-fashioned way (he was recruited out of high school), has seen them and learned from them, too.

But he’s not going to stand still and let someone else take the starting job at offensive left tackle. He’s earned it, at least through the first 10 days of spring drills.

There’s no guarantee he will keep it — circumstances, his development and that of others over the next five months will determine who starts Aug. 31 against Virginia — but Warren has an early edge.

“Carter Warren has done a nice job at left tackle,” Narduzzi said. “I wouldn’t say solidified, but that’s good to see. He had no (missed assignments) the other day, which is always good for an offensive lineman. When you’re on the right person, I think you have a chance.”

Warren (6-foot-5, 315 pounds) never got on the field through his first two years on campus. He was redshirted as a freshman after he was a top-10 overall prospect in New Jersey in 2016. Last year, he sat back and learned.

“It just made me strive to work harder,” he said. “It’s understandable. I just needed some things to work on, and I got better at it. I am where I am now, still fighting for it, you know.”

Warren credits much of his improvement to second-year offensive line coach Dave Borbely, who moved him back to tackle — the position where he’s most comfortable — after former line coach John Peterson placed him at guard.

“(Borbely) came in and changed the game for all of us. He made us totally different players,” Warren said. “The physical piece of it, the mental game. He set the standard for us.”

He also learned by watching former Pitt tackle Brian O’Neill, who was a second-round draft choice of the Minnesota Vikings last year.

Plus, he regularly gets an education from junior Rashad Weaver, who had 6 ½ sacks last year as a 6-5, 265-pound defensive end.

“He’s making me better,” Warren said. “Great player. You see it on the film, right? I like (going against him).”

Borbely constantly reminds Warren to be physical and use his long arms to his advantage.

“Every minute,” Warren said.

With five practices left in the spring, a summer in the weight room and training camp in August, much can change along Pitt’s offensive line.

Warren is competing with Gabe Houy (Upper St. Clair) and Carson Van Lynn at left tackle. Houy also can play on the right side — he started the opener there last year — but he faces competition from Jerry Drake Jr. Ulizio could fit on either side.

Brown and Brandon Ford (Upper St. Clair) are the candidates at right guard.

The most solid positions are center and left guard. Jimmy Morrissey is a fixture at center and a team leader as a junior. Bryce Hargrove, who started three games last year, is expected to keep that job at left guard.

With so much competition, several hopeful players will end up on the second team. Warren, however, doesn’t want to be just another face in the crowd.

“I wouldn’t even think like that,” he said. “I want that spot.”

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