RAYMOND GRAHAM: PITT RUNNING BACK OF THE FUTURE?

March 5, 2009

By Matt Whitfield


Raymond Graham was Northern New Jersey’s most recruited Running Back this past season. Despite being a dual sport athlete, having played basketball since he was 4, Graham chose Pittsburgh over several other big time schools including Michigan State, North Carolina State and Maryland.

“When I went there I just felt at home, I felt comfortable, I felt comfortable there. Not to say other schools weren’t great or nothing. I visited Maryland, Connecticut, [and] Rutgers, [and] all those schools were great but I felt Pitt is where I needed to be at,” Graham told NBE while competing at the recently 2009 Primetime Shootout basketball tournament in Trenton (NJ) with his Elizabeth HS teammates.

Graham plans to arrive on campus in early July, the weekend after high school graduation. Graham stated to the NBE Basketball Report that he is going to be ready because there is early playing time available.

“With Lesean Mccoy leaving it opens up a lot of doors for a lot of freshman, there’s good running backs there [in] me, Dion Lewis and Jason Hendricks, and we all got to work hard because somebody’s got to take that spot,“ Graham said.

While Graham is still in basketball mode right now, Pitt fans can expect a full strength RB with 4.5 speed come July.

“After basketball season I’m going to get in the weight room real heavy with my old high school team, and get in the weight room and work hard, then get on the program[Pittsburgh] gave me and go hard, [and] summer time get there [and] go all out," said Graham.

Though he has yet to step foot in his dorm room, Graham hope to bring championships and lots of touchdowns to the Pittsburgh program. As Graham put it, “[I’m a] very humble, hard working person, just a person that would like to get things done.”