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Pittsburgh Central Catholic a Key Target for Pitt Football

Originally posted on Pittsburgh Panthers on SI
By Kevin Sinclair | Last updated Apr 4, 2025 1:00 PM ET

IG: colsen.gatten

It’s fair to say coach Ryan Lehmeier is a key figure in the Pittsburgh football community, in part by serving as offensive coordinator at Pine-Richland before becoming the head coach at Pittsburgh Central Catholic, two important, local recruiting destinations for the Pitt Panthers.

“That still is the rivalry game. So, I've been on both sides of it, you know what I mean? And now being the head coach over here, I've seen both sides of the rivalry,” Lehmeier said. “It's pretty cool. It's been a cool thing to be a part of the last decade, that's for sure.”

Pine-Richland and Pittsburgh Central Catholic are just two, albeit significant, stints on his football resume, though. After playing running back for four years at Slippery Rock, he coached the position at Findlay and Duquesne, and he served as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach at Seneca Valley between his tenures at Pine-Richland and now Pittsburgh Central Catholic.

On SI connected with Coach Lehmeier to discuss a handful of his Pittsburgh Central Catholic players after each has visited Pitt in recent weeks.

Linebacker Colsen Gatten (2026)

Coach Lehmeier: “The thing about Colsen is he's a low maintenance type of player as far he does everything the right way. You talk about all the stuff he can do, it's more about how he does it. How he goes about his business, just the intensity, the attention to detail, he really wants to be a great player, and I think he works toward that.

“So...he's got a lot of reps under his belt the last two years, he played more outside linebacker, nickel-type stuff. The fact that he's every bit of about 6-1 3/4", he's about a 4.52 in the 40, so he can really run and open it up. I think you're going to see more of them on the offensive side of the ball this year, too. He has great ability to catch up ball and use his hands. He caught the ball a little bit for us last year. But I think just as a recruit, he's only going to continue to blossom and flourish as he gets older and more mature. “

Notes: Duke, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan State, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Penn State, Pitt, Tennessee, Virginia Tech, and others have offered Gatten. He visited Pitt recently and will return for a June 5-7 official visit.

IG: colsen.gatte

Edge Ashton Blatt (2026)

Entering the program as a quarterback but with experience at linebacker, Ashton Blatt was beginning to show big-time potential when an ankle injury ended his sophomore year. By then, Lehmeier knew he had something substantial in Blatt.

Coach Lehmeier: “He's another kid where the body kind of took off. He's every bit of 6-3.5, 6-4, tremendously long arms, and just a rangy, quick-twitch, physical kid. We had a lot of discussions...going into his junior year...He was showing the one thing (that leads to) edge players getting recruited.

“He can come out of the two-point, he can play in the three (tech). We kind of sat down and told him, 'We really think this is where you fit,' as one of those edge players, and just being able to use his combination of size and speed. I think anytime you have a guy that played quarterback, they have a big picture of what's going on, the down and distance and pass tendencies.”

“He does a really good job of playing the run on the way to the quarterback, too. That's a trait that's tough for some of these young kids. The guy kind of just really blew up. You see these players like TJ Watt and Maxx Crosby, some of these guys that come off the edge. That's kind of what we were trying to sell him at first, and he gravitated towards it, and he had one of the best seasons of any of our guys last year.”

Notes: Yesterday, Boston College offered Blatt, joining Duke, Penn State, Pitt, Wisconsin, UCLA, West Virginia, and many others.

TE James Halter (2027)

Coach Lehmeier: “Right now, we've got three 2027 offensive linemen that (are) over 6-6, and he's one of them. Jordan Halter, his father, played at Notre Dame. James, we have not played him at offensive line yet. He played tight end for us last year.

“I think it was just really apparent that he had a motor and he's a physical kid. That really, I think, took off for him. He's really coming into his own and growing into his body. I think right now, he's about 6-6, 280, and he's going to develop into an offensive tackle for us.”

“Tremendous upside. I think the best football is in front of him. Just an innate ability to hit and be able to play with leverage and move his feet.He's a special talent, man. We are super excited about him.”

Notes: Coincidentally, the morning after On SI spoke with Coach Lehmeier, Halter announced an offer from the Pitt Panthers.

IG: james.halter7

OT Jimmy Kalis (2027)

Segueing from an up-and-coming tackle in Halter to a bookend with 37 offer, including Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Pitt, Texas A&M, and many other high-end schools, Jimmy Kalis sets an excellent example for emerging players like Halter.

Coach Lehmeier: “The one thing that Jimmy's been able to do, obviously, is have a lot of success early on the offensive line. It doesn't matter whether it's high school or college, I think the one thing that we're always striving for is to get that unit to gel, and work amongst one another. To have not only two but three guys that are top-tier players that play that position together is something we're really looking forward to.”

Notes: Kalis ranks four-stars with Rivals and On3.

LB Roman Thompson (2027)

Coach Lehmeier: “He can play the position innately, just has an unbelievable feel for football. Probably one of the most instinctual kids I've ever had. He's a big-time wrestler. He went 28-0, I think, as a freshman at the 189 (class), and then this year as a sophomore, he went to the state tournament again at 215 (class), and he was only weighing around 192.

"Just an incredible talent, can do everything that you want out of that mike. He can run, he can cover, and I think he just has football. He gets us all lined up. I think without a doubt, he was the vocal, emotional leader of that defense as a 10th grader. He's going to be special.”

Notes: Akron, Miami of Ohio, and Toledo are among Thompson’s early offers with many more to come, surely.