Pitt's Jordan Addison tells proud mom, 'I ain't got it yet'

When Jordan Addison went home to Frederick, Md., in the offseason, he carried with him reminders of a memorable freshman season at Pitt.

With 60 catches for 666 yards, four touchdowns and the longest play of Pitt’s season (75 yards), few failed to notice.

He was a Freshman All-American, honorable mention All-ACC and runner-up conference rookie of the year. Then, before this season, he was named to the Biletnikoff Award watch list, telling the college football world to keep an eye on the young (not yet 20) wide receiver during the 2021 season.

Later, when he accompanied teammates Kenny Pickett and Deslin Alexandre and coach Pat Narduzzi to Charlotte, N.C., to meet the press, reporters from all across the ACC footprint hung on his every word.

So when he went home to his mother, Keisha, six brothers and three sisters, of course, they told him they were proud.

But let’s not get carried away, he reminded them.

“When I saw (the recognition), I took it in to show my mom, my family,” he said Friday after Pitt’s first day of drills, “and, then, once I came here, now it’s time to go work for it.

“My mom was very proud. I told her, ‘I ain’t got it yet.’ ”

“It,” in Addison’s mind, is nothing short of jumping ahead of any player who might catch a pass over the next two seasons and, ultimately, getting picked in the first round of the NFL Draft, possibly as early as 2023.

“First-round draft pick is definitely on top of my list,” he said. “I don’t want to settle for anything less.”

There’s just one other goal, and it’s just as important:

“Get to the NFL and provide for my family,” he said. “Get my whole family in one neighborhood. I’m a big family person.”

Pitt wide receivers coach Brennan Marion has been with the team for only six months, but he has made it point to get to know each player.

He calls himself “the bad cop.”

“I tell them everything they did wrong,” he said.

But he also spends time with his group off the field.

“I made the guys stand up and say their goals to each other,” Marion said, “and say why they play, the worst things that happened to them.

“For Jordan, his goals are so high, all I need to say is, ‘C’mon, man. You want to be a first-round pick. You want that pressure. You want to be that guy.’ He’ll turn it up that way.

“Jordan is more of a whisper in his ear, tell him exactly what he did, and he’ll fix it right there. “Some of the guys, (junior wide receiver) Jared Wayne, for example, he responds better if I yell at him.”

Marion charts almost every movement his players make on the practice field, especially drops — a particular problem last year.

He has developed a zero-tolerance policy.

“It’s not OK to drop the ball,” he said. “In spring, we caught the ball at a 93% rate. The guys really don’t put the ball on the turf as much.”

Addison was Pitt’s most productive pass catcher last season, but offensive coordinator Mark Whipple played him mainly in the slot.

No more.

Defenses might find Addison inside or outside — even as part of a five-wide receiver package that Whipple might reveal occasionally.

“We’ve got to be able to move him around, motion him and do different things so they can’t find them,” Narduzzi said. “I don’t know if there’s a better guy to do that than Mark Whipple.”

“He’s really, really smart, really talented,” Whipple said of Addison. “His football acumen is really high. He knows protection. He’s a guy you can gameplan with, move him around.”

Whipple and Marion won’t be afraid to put a variety of pass catchers on the field, with experienced depth at wide receiver (Wayne, Shocky Jacques-Louis, Tre Tipton, Jaylon Barden, Taysir Mack and Melquise Stovall). Plus, the tight end group (Lucas Krull, Kyi Wright and Gavin Bartholomew) might be more talented than any Pitt has had in a long time.

“If you lose one guy, then you have a guy who can back up certain things,” Whipple said. “Try to make defenses defend a bunch of different things, defend all the field.”

Note: Daniel Moraga, the only Pitt tight end to catch a touchdown pass last season, has entered the NCAA transfer portal. … Former Pitt defensive tackle Jaylen Twyman, who is on the Minnesota Vikings’ non-football injury list after an off-season shooting incident, visited practice and worked out briefly with the team. … Narduzzi estimated the team’s vaccination rate at 94%. … Asked about the quarterback depth chart, he said Joey Yellen and Davis Beville are fighting for the No. 3 job behind Kenny Pickett and Nick Patti.