No Mo in 2008: Pitt’s Williams becomes an “academic redshirt”

By Darrell Laurant  |   Thursday, June 05, 2008  |  Comments( 0 )

Pittsburgh Panthers
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Now you see him, now you don't.

That's what they said about Maurice "Mo" Williams on the football field. Unfortunately for the Pitt program, that phrase has taken on another meaning.

The 6-foot-1, 190-pound speedster out of Erie became the second high-profile Big East wide receiver named Williams to have his football eligibility yanked because of grades this week, following in the departing footsteps of Syracuse's Mike Williams.

Yet while Mike Williams' plans are unknown, the Pitt program has rallied around Maurice, who caught seven passes for 107 yards in the Blue-Gold Game and flashed his 4.45 speed in limited action as a 2007 freshman (five catches, 100 yards and a touchdown).

"We believe Maurice can achieve a lot at Pitt, both academically and athletically," said head coach Dave Wannstedt, "and our expectation is for him to use this motivation for improvement."

Williams, rated as the No. 13 wide receiver nationally out of high school, plans to remain in school and take a redshirt year while trying to get his grades up.

The Panthers have a number of other productive wideouts, including T.J. Porter, Oderick Turne, Cedric McGee and Derek Kinder, but Williams was considered the primary deep threat. His loss may hasten the development of incoming freshman Jonathan Baldwin, generally considered the top recruit in the conference.

Baldwin, from Aliquippa, Pa., is about as fast as Williams and listed at 6-6, 235. Of course, there is that learning curve to consider.

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