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Oh, Hello: NJ WR Saeed Blacknall Commits to Penn State

Franklin and the staff pick up their most impressive verbal commit to date

By Nick Polak

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Saeed Blacknall, ladies and gentlemen!

Stats:

Home/HS: Englishtown, NJ (Manalapan)
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 210 lbs

Recruited by: Josh Gattis

Starz 'n Sheetz:

Stars: 4* 247 & Rivals, Scout & ESPN
Offer Sheet: Rutgers (Previously committed 8/10/13), Alabama, Boston College, Clemson, UConn, Florida State, Georgia Tech, LSU, Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Old Dominion, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Wisconsin

Cinema:

Also check out Saeed's Hudl page here.

The Tale:

Saeed jumped onto Penn State's radar in a big way with the introduction of the new staff in Happy Valley. The former Rutgers commit announced shortly thereafter that he was opening his recruitment back up, but would only be considering Penn State. From there, it became a fight between the two future Big Ten opponents. Blacknall took an official visit to Penn State last weekend, and was back at Rutgers this weekend. Unfortunately for the Scarlet Knights, that last visit was apparently not enough to keep the stud wide receiver in New Jersey. The new staff worked extremely quickly to pull his interest toward the Blue and White, and in doing so made this one of the best recruiting weekends in recent memory. Blacknall is the seventh commit James Franklin has picked up since being hired, and is arguably the most impressive to date; Blacknall immediately becomes Penn State's highest rated recruit according to most recruiting websites. This is a huge pickup for the staff despite the receivers already in the recruiting class, because as you can see from his offer sheet, he had his pick of elite programs to attend. And because "too many weapons for Christian Hackenberg" is not a thing.

Outlook:

Blacknall joins De'Andre Thompkins, Chris Godwin, and Troy Apke in this extremely potent group of wide receiver commits for Penn State. He's also the second 4* commitment of the weekend, joining Koa Farmer as two of Franklin's most impressive recruits. Blacknall possesses all the physical tools to become a standout receiver in the Penn State offense, especially if he is going to be receiving passes from Christian Hackenberg and Michael O'Connor.  In terms of early playing time, Blacknall is as much of a candidate to steal snaps early as anyone else is.  It seems as if all four of the receiver commits will get a shot to make their mark during training camp, so if he can emerge from a crowded field, expect to hear Blacknall's name early and often.

Blacknall is a big, strong receiver who should be able to impose his will on defenders as he continues to fill out his frame. He has an extremely bright future as a threat on the outside, and given his size should be a prime red zone target as well as a playmaker in the open field. His ability to get up to the highest point to make the catch could end up reminding some Penn State fans of our now former number eight.

Saeed Blacknall's commitment brings the Penn State class to 23.

Welcome to Penn State, Saeed!

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