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With college teams in the midst of their fall camps, and high schools closing in on the start of their seasons, recruiting news can slow to a trickle this time of year. That does not mean there is nothing going on, however. Penn State, of course, received a verbal commitment for one of the top players in Pennsylvania last weekend when Karamo Dioubate committed to the Lions. Two more top targets are closing in on decisions, and precious few spots remain in PSU's class, which now stands at 19.
Brendan Ferns Nearing a Decision
By now, most Penn State fans are aware of perhaps PSU's top target at linebacker this cycle. The four star St. Clairsville, Ohio linebacker has cut his list to Penn State and West Virginia, with a decision rumored to be coming soon. Ferns visited Happy Valley back in March with his father to check out not only the Lions' spring practice, but to get an up close look at the the highly regarded Petroleum Engineering program. Not too long after, Ferns dropped Ohio State from consideration, ultimately setting up his final two.
Ferns' older brother, Michael, will be a redshirt freshman in Morgantown this year, and will sit out the season after transferring from Michigan. Brendan and his family have spent at least two days at WVU over the summer, and for that alone, it would seem that the Mountaineers have a slight lead. However, there is plenty of talk about Ferns returning to State College with his parents this fall. If that happens before a decision is made, I like Penn State's chances.
Andrew Pryts Decision Soon?
Our friends over at Land Grant Holy Land had an interesting tidbit on the PSU legacy's commitment timeline yesterday. It was only about a month ago that Pryts seemed destined for Columbus when he attended the Buckeye's high profile Friday Night Lights camp in Ohio Stadium. However, Andrew left Central Ohio without committing, and popped up at Penn State earlier this month.
It would seem to be an Ohio State-Penn State battle at this point, and the 247 Crystal Ball is trending heavily in PSU's favor, including both Nick and I. We will of course let you know as soon as Andrew announces his decision.
Tre Nixon Makes a Southern Swing
Four star Florida receiver Tre Nixon was back at Penn State in July for the Lasch Bash, and despite plenty of buzz, left town without committing. Since then, he has visited Georgia and Auburn. The Bulldogs are thought to be the other half of Tre's top 2, along with PSU. Georgia is loading up at receiver in this class, while PSU has focused squarely on Nixon, which may be a big plus in the Lions' column. No timeline has been announced, but a decision before his senior season would not be surprising.
VERY IMPORTANT LAVERT HILL UPDATE
Lavert continues to be 100% committed to the Pennsylvania State University.
2017 Notes
With perhaps just 4 spots left available in 2016, plenty of focus has been turned to what is an exceptionally talented 2017 class. Here are a few notes on some of PSU's main targets.
- 4-star Maryland safety Damani Neal has made no bones about favoring Penn State, and was back at PSU in early August. He left without committing, but the staff has to love their chances with one of their top targets for the next cycle.
- IMG Academy in Florida has become quite the destination for many of the country's top high school athletes. Four of Penn State's primary targets in 2017 have enrolled for this season. They are four star OL Robert Hainsey (Monroeville, PA), four star OL Cam Spence (Baltimore, MD), four star LB Jordan Anthony, and five star DE Josh Kaindoh (Essex, MD). Hainsey is thought to heavily favor PSU, while Kaindoh has said the Nittany Lions are his current leader. Ohio State, Maryland, and Penn State are considered Spence's top three at this point, and the Terps and Lions are currently leading for Anthony. Plenty of time remains before any of these players make a decision, and their presence in Florida will expose all 4 to more programs, but PSU should remain firmly in the mix.
#HOT #RECRUITING #LINKS
Nick was all over the place this week with plenty of recruiting notes. You should read them now if you didn't already. You should read them again if you already have.
- Recruiting the Garden State: Who Truly Owns New Jersey Recruiting? (hint: It's not Rutgers)
- Freshman QB Ricky Town announced he was transferring from USC. There's a PSU connection to this, we swear.
- The aforementioned Brendan Ferns talked about a number of things at his high school's media day.
- Shane Simmons, who should be one of your favorite members of the 2016 class, had a nice video interview earlier this week.
- Nick and Bill had New Jersey OL Will Fries on the podcast and it was good.
- The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review highlighted the top RBs in the area. Not surprisingly, four star PSU commit Miles Sanders topped the list. Big time 2017 target Lamont Wade came in at number two.