PITTSBURGH - Pitt football coach Dave Wannstedt didn't have much time to travel after taking over last month. Maybe it was a good thing he didn't.

A year after Pitt lost two prime Pittsburgh-area recruits on letter-of-intent signing day, Wannstedt firmed up the Panthers' recruiting base by signing 11 Western Pennsylvania players Wednesday - or nearly half of his initial 24-man class.

"I think we're going to be very happy with these guys in a few years," Wannstedt said.

Many recruits were lined up before former coach Walt Harris left for Stanford following Pitt's 35-7 loss to Utah in the Fiesta Bowl. But Wannstedt landed commitments from a half-dozen Western Pennsylvania players during his barely five weeks on the job, including quarterback Bill Stull of Seton-La Salle High.

The former Miami Dolphins coach also went back to Florida to round out his class by signing wide receiver Cedric McGee of Plantation (Fla.) High on Wednesday. McGee, timed at 4.5 seconds in the 40-yard dash, is from Pitt linebacker H.B. Blades' former high school.

Among his other recruits, Wannstedt brought in running back Conredge Collins of Monsignor Pace High in Florida for his pro-style offense, plus tight end John Pelusi of Pittsburgh Central Catholic and 260-pound linebacker Ernest "Mick" Williams of Monessen.

Most schools recruited Collins as a fullback but, with Pitt short of tailbacks, he will get a chance to play there.

"Dave didn't have a lot of time, but he was able to go back to Florida and get some players and he made sure he got that quarterback from Western Pennsylvania," said recruiting analyst Bobby Burton of Rivals.com. "He got some things accomplished in a short period of time."

Stull initially committed to Kentucky because Harris didn't recruit him, but changed his mind after Wannstedt took over. Stull, who threw for more than 3,000 yards last season, is listed by Rivals.com as the No. 11 pro-style quarterback nationally.

"I wasn't comfortable with just two quarterbacks on scholarship," Wannstedt said, referring to starter Tyler Palko and backup Joe Flacco.

Pitt did not recruit any of Rivals.com's Top 100 players and its class is ranked only 38th by that service, 42nd by scout.com and 44th by recruiting analyst Max Emfinger. But Burton thinks Pitt will upgrade its future classes with Wannstedt, whose uptempo personality and sideline enthusiasm are regarded as recruiting plusses.

By comparison, Harris is viewed as an average recruiter who connects well with quarterbacks - he is a former NFL quarterbacks coach - but sometimes struggles to reel in players that his assistants are recruiting.

Last year, Pitt lost its two top national recruits on signing day - quarterback Anthony Morelli (Penn State) and running back Andrew Johnson (Miami), both of the Pittsburgh area. The twin losses added to the perception that Harris didn't protect his home base well.

"Walt Harris was never known for being a great recruiter, and I think Dave Wannstedt will be better than him," Burton said. "To be successful at Pitt you've got to emphasize Western Pennsylvania recruiting, and he'll do that."

To maintain continuity, Wannstedt kept some of Harris' top recruiters, including Bob Junko, Paul Rhoads, Charlie Partridge and Curtis Bray.

"Our assistant coaches did a great job of hanging in with guys during the coaching change, and we were able to pick up a couple of extra guys," Wannstedt said.

Rivals.com rates Stanford's class No. 41, three spots behind Pitt. Scout.com almost reverses that, ranking Stanford No. 38 and Pitt No. 42. Emfinger has Pitt No. 44 and doesn't rank Stanford among his top 50 classes.

Two Pitt recruits - defensive lineman Craig Bokor of Hopewell High in Aliquippa and running back Rashad Jennings of Forest, Va. - were among its 2004 recruits.

Bokor attended Valley Forge Military Academy last fall to improve his grades. Jennings spent some time as a home-schooled pupil while switching high schools, so the NCAA academic clearinghouse needed extra time to review his case before clearing him to play.

Wannstedt isn't done recruiting just because letter of intent day has passed - now, he'll start working on the coaches. He'll speak Thursday before a Pennsylvania high school football coaches convention in Hershey.