Pitt is set to hire Tiquan Underwood as its new receivers coach, according to a report from Pete Thamel of ESPN on Sunday. The addition of Underwood addresses the departure of Brennan Marion, Pitt’s last receivers coach who accepted the same position at Texas.
Underwood most recently served as the receivers coach on Greg Schiano’s staff at Rutgers from 2020 to 2021. Prior to that he served as the offensive quality control coach for the Miami Dolphins in 2019. And he began his coaching career as the receivers coach for FCS program Lafayette in Pennsylvania.
With the hire, Pitt lured Underwood away from his alma mater, where he played as a wide receiver from 2005 to 2008. His best season with the Scarlet Knights came in 2007, when he amassed 1,100 yards and seven scores. And after another decent year in 2008, he was selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the seventh round of the 2009 NFL draft and spent six seasons in the league before spending the final three seasons of his career in the CFL.
At Pitt, Underwood will coach Jordan Addison and work alongside fellow new hire Frank Cignetti, who took over for Mark Whipple as Pitt’s offensive coordinator after Whipple left for Nebraska. The two will also be working with Jonathan DiBiaso, who was hired as the school’s new assistant quarterbacks coach, according to Thamel. DiBiaso previously served as an offensive analyst at Vanderbilt in 2021 as well as a graduate assistant at Boston College from 2018 to 2020.
Last season, Pitt’s receiving corps was among its most distinguished position groups, as Addison had 100 catches for 1,593 yards and 17 touchdowns and won the Biletnikoff Award. In addition, Taysir Mack and Jared Wayne combined for 1,119 yards and nine touchdowns at the position. And with Addison and Wayne set to return, Underwood will try to guide them to success with Kedon Slovis replacing Heisman finalist Kenny Pickett under center.