Wilhelm plays role in Pitt success

PITTSBURGH — The full circle moments still come. Like many attempting to wind down from the holiday, Taylor Wilhelm was watching on television as the Cleveland Browns played the Green Bay Packers on Christmas Day. The matchup between two iconic franchises in a legendary venue didn't need much more spice than the name recognition of the teams and Lambeau Field alone. But then Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers threw a touchdown pass to Allen Lazard in the first quarter of the eventual 24-22 win over the Browns, Wilhelm's favorite team from his days growing up in Greenwich. The TD pass was No. 443 for Rodgers, breaking the previous franchise record held by Pro Football Hall of Famer Brett Favre. And Wilhelm had worked with Lazard in the creative media field while the two were members of the Iowa State University program. "The next day, I had a text from Allen that said he hoped I had been doing well, and he had a favor to ask," said Wilhelm, the director of creative media for the University of Pittsburgh football. "He wanted to know if I could do one of my artwork paintings of the record touchdown as a gift to Aaron Rodgers," Wilhelm said. "Thinking back to my days in art class at South Central, it's incredible still to think from then to now and you're being asked to make something for future a Hall of Fame quarterback. "This is going into my sixth year in college football, and one thing I've been reflecting on a lot since the summer is the relationships," he added. "I've built relationships with so many of the players and coaches. Seeing some of those guys excel at the next level is very rewarding. All these years later, you don't remember the stressful parts of the job … but you do remember the people you meet." On top of watching Lazard catch the historic TD from Rodgers, Wilhelm wasn't even at home when it happened. The 2011 South Central graduate was tuned in from a hotel in downtown Atlanta — because the Pitt Panthers were ACC champions and preparing for the Peach Bowl — part of the elite New Year's Six bowl game slate — against Michigan State. The Panthers lost the back-and-forth game to the Spartans, 31-21, inside Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Pitt finished 11-3 overall as ACC champs and a No. 13 ranking in both the final Associated Press and USA Today coaches polls. "That was the biggest bowl game I've gotten to experience so far," Wilhelm said. "They opened up the roof to the stadium, and it was definitely one of the coolest venues I've been inside." Wilhelm got to photograph the game inside the fancy home of the Atlanta Falcons, which opened in 2017. "Being able to go on the sidelines and stand in the end zone as the action is coming toward you is a long way from Greenwich," Wilhelm said. "It's just really cool every time still. Our team didn't win, but as an Ohio State fan growing up, just being at that game with a Big Ten team involved was a fun experience." While in Atlanta, Wilhelm and his wife, Shannon, a 2013 Perkins graduate, were able to take part in several events throughout the days leading up to the game. That included a night at Mario Andretti's Indoor Karting and Games, as well as visits to the World of Coca-Cola museum and the College Football Hall of Fame. "It wasn't too much of a vacation (for the football staff), but it was good just being able to get away and enjoy everything they had to offer," Wilhelm said. A former football player at South Central and Malone, Wilhelm's big break came when crafted an image of former University of Toledo and Cleveland Browns wide receiver Andrew Hawkins. The business and accounting major then posted it to his Twitter account, and the results were overwhelmingly favorable. That led to getting noticed by the UT football coaching staff, and Wilhelm was offered a graduate assistant position in 2015 with the Rockets as part of their recruiting team. When current head coach Matt Campbell left for Iowa State from Toledo in 2017, he took Wilhelm with him and created the position of Director of New Media for the Cyclones. After three seasons in Ames, Iowa, Wilhelm took the job in Pittsburgh in 2019. He mainly creates graphics and videos for social media and recruiting. He also helps produce graphics for branding and promotions, or when a player is recognized with an award of some kind. That happened plenty in 2021. Pitt quarterback Kenny Pickett, likely a first-round draft pick, was a Heisman Trophy finalist. Wide receiver Jordan Addison won the Biletnikoff Award as the nation's top receiver. "The more we won, the more work I had, which is a good problem to have," Wilhelm said. "We had several of our players win prestigious awards so I worked on the graphics and content for that, which was awesome to be a part of." In 2020, Wilhelm also got to play a small role in part of the branding of an alternate uniform and helmet the team wore to pay homage to Pittsburgh's steel working industry. Wilhelm's heavy focus, however, is on the recruiting side of the sport. He also is the secondary photographer on the sidelines for Pitt. He creates graphics, such as personalized mail items for the coaches to write something on and send to a high school recruit — or even digital versions. "We're still making recruiting graphics every week," Wilhelm said. "Whether it's something to do with pop culture or of them being in our Pitt uniforms. "Ever since in-person recruit visits have returned since COVID, the full uniform photo shoot with kids has become one of the main things they look for when they come to visit." The Panthers actually didn't sign anyone on Wednesday, the official signing day for college football. They also signed just 12 players on Dec. 15 for the early signing day period. Though having the No. 64-ranked class may not be viewed as a overly strong ranking for a team coming off the ACC title, it was also by design. "This was a really small class for us because of the amount of players we have with the extra year of eligibility (from COVID)," Wilhelm said. "The way the numbers worked, the space wasn't there for large class. We also have several transfers coming in who are likely going to be key contributors next season." Wilhelm has still been busy creating signing day graphics for the 12 players the Panthers did sign. He's also done work with the video department for highlight reels of the players. And on the side, he has that small request from Lazard for artwork of the historic Rodgers TD pass. It would follow a line of artwork pieces he's done along with Pitt alum Aaron Donald, the star defensive tackle for the NFC champion Rams, and Browns running back Kareem Hunt, who Wilhelm knows from his Toledo days. "I still have a lot of fun doing that in my free time,' Wilhelm said. "It's certainly been a fun ride so far."