So, as has been speculated, Kevin Newsome has decommitted from Michigan and is now back on the market. Brian has been following this rumor for a while now because of the implications it will have on their ability to land another top dual threat QB, and "all the eggs in one basket" Penn State target, Tate Forcier.
The implications of this could be "grrrr" for Penn State recruiting fans. Forcier has been eyeing Michigan for a while now, with an official scheduled for their game aginst Utah. It has been speculated that the one thing holding him back from signing a letter with RichRod is the fear of competition with Newsome, who is ranked a little higher on Rival's dual-threat list.
So with Newsome's decision to look around, Forcier is in a position where playing time at Michigan looks like something that could happen rather quickly, and if you believe the speculation this is what he's wanted all along...but only if Newsome doesn't turn around and recommitted. This puts the California star in an interesting predicament.
More importantly, this puts Penn State in a now-compromised position. They appeared to be one of the favorites for Forcier as long as Newsome stayed put. His other options are Florida, Oregon, Stanford, Washington State and A&M...along with, somehow New Mexico. With the incredible lack of QB recruiting at Penn State over the last couple of years, he was looking at a starting spot in two years.
So, while the best case scenario is still available, which would include landing Forcier and watching Newsome take his dual-threatyness to an out of conference program, the worst case here is pretty troubling. Now Newsome could still, maybe, end up at Penn State; he was considering an offer from Paterno before his original commitment, however this doesn't seem likely; most of the questions surrounding him involved a reconsider of Virginia Tech. Now it's only August and there will be plenty of snake oil sold before things become official next spring, but this is probably not good news.