National Signing Day 2017: Welcome to Penn State, KJ Hamler

The culmination of the recruiting season is just around the corner, as National Signing Day 2017 is only days away. Here at Black Shoe Diaries, we’ll have coverage of Penn State’s recruiting class, taking a player-by-player look at each member of the class, and taking a bigger picture look at the class as a whole. Thanks for stopping by, and if you aren’t already following, please follow @BSDTweet on Twitter for more recruiting news and notes.

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After only taking one wide receiver in last year’s class, Penn State made the position a point of emphasis in 2018, landing a trio of wideouts. Leading the pack is four-star KJ Hamler, who chose the Nittany Lions over offers from Oregon and Michigan State.

Highlights

Scouting Report

KJ Hamler was always very high on Josh Gattis’ wide receiver board, and when looking at his film, it’s clear to see why. Hamler is a threat to score a touchdown every time he touches the ball. He might not be the straight speed demon that someone like Brandon Polk is, but Hamler is a magician with the ball in his hands, able to make defenders miss with ease. The Michigan wide receiver should find a home at slot wide receiver, and will factor into the discussion as a punt returner and kick returner during his years in Happy Valley.

Outlook

Being that he’s only about 155 pounds, is still recovering from a torn ACL, and Penn State only loses Chris Godwin at wide receiver, it’s extremely likely that Hamler will redshirt in 2017. But because he’s such an offensive weapon, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Hamler have a big role in the offense and on special teams in 2018.