Pitt hopes Jordan Addison's first impression is a lasting one - TribLIVE

No one outside his family knows Jordan Addison better than Chris Beatty, his position coach at Pitt.

So when Beatty compares Addison to a former Heisman hopeful and a top-10 pick in the NFL Draft, it sounds like in-the-vicinity bias, but it might have stronger roots than that.

“He’s been about as good as I’ve been around (as a freshman),” said Beatty, a high school or collegiate coach since 1998. “I’ve had a lot of really good ones, and he’s right up there with them.”

Beatty’s relationship with Addison began three years ago when he was an assistant at Maryland and came bearing a life-changing opportunity: a full scholarship. Addison was 15, barely out of ninth grade at Tuscarora (Md.) High School.

“We were the first to offer him,” Beatty said.

When Beatty was hired at Pitt last year, he rolled over his connection to Addison, who signed with the Panthers in December and enrolled in January.

After watching him through the first half of the season, Beatty, a former West Virginia assistant, compared Addison to former WVU star receiver Tavon Austin. Beatty and Austin were together for Austin’s freshman and sophomore seasons.

“His ability to process (information) is far superior to most people,” Beatty said of Addison. “I had Tavon Austin at West Virginia, who was super-talented. He was not as far along mentally (as a freshman) as Jordan is. Tavon did other things that were tremendous, but he didn’t necessarily process defenses and things like that like Jordan does.”

That’s a high bar for Addison, considering Austin had two seasons of more than 100 receptions and 1,000 yards before he finished eighth in the 2012 Heisman voting and was the eighth choice overall in the 2013 NFL Draft.

For now, through six games, Addison has become Pitt’s go-to receiver, leading the Power 5 with 55 targets and all freshmen overall with 38 receptions. Pitt (3-3, 2-3) is one of the few teams that has played six games, and the Panthers are second in the nation in attempts (236), but Addison is still averaging 6.3 catches per game.

Addison missed the second half of the N.C. State game, but when healthy, he has been incredibly consistent. He has caught seven balls (four times) and eight last week at Miami when his 147-yard effort was the best by a Pitt freshman since Tyler Boyd in 2013.

Beatty said Addison has the requisite suddenness, speed, quickness and “soft hands,” but his understanding of defenses sets him apart.

“He still makes some mistakes here and there,” Beatty said, “but he can sit back and see the safety rock one way or the other and understand how the coverage is rotating.

“He understands how to sit in the zone when some people run through it. Those things give him a chance to be special.”

Addison also is good with the pads off.

“He does a great job of transferring what he learns in the classroom to what he does on the field,” Beatty said.

Addison hasn’t changed since his early days at Tuscarora, Beatty said. “His biggest thing is he’s so humble and down to earth. None of this has really fazed him one way or the other.”

The key might be that Addison treats Beatty’s classroom like any other he enters on campus, virtually or face-to-face.

“When I’m in the classroom, I make sure I’m locked in to what’s going on,” he said, “so that it’s easier for me to transfer it when I go onto the field.”

Addison said he was confident he could contribute this season, but he added, “I didn’t think it was going to come this quick.”

“As a young guy coming in, I feel like they trusted me, so it just builds my confidence up every day, knowing my quarterback, my coaches, everybody trusts me to go make that play.”

Addison and his teammates will confront their toughest challenge of the season Saturday when Notre Dame brings the ACC’s second-ranked pass defense (193.3 yards per game) to Heinz Field. Addison will need his separation skills, with the Irish totaling 20 pass breakups, an average of five per game.

Addison’s opportunities to catch passes might not have surfaced at all if he had signed with Notre Dame. He has relatives in South Bend, but the Irish wanted him to play cornerback.

“I’m glad (Notre Dame) recruited me. I think it’s a really nice place,” he said. “I just felt more comfortable with Pitt.”

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Jerry DiPaola is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jerry by email at jdipaola@triblive.com or via Twitter .

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