Blessed & Honored: Anthony DaSilva Commits, White Out Camp, and More

ANTHONY DASILVA COMMITS TO PENN STATE

On Sunday, James Franklin sent out the best damn Tweet on Twitter dot com when he alerted the world that Penn State had gotten better. This was due to class of 2019 kicker Anthony DaSilva choosing to accept a preferred walk-on offer from the Nittany Lion coaching staff.

DaSilva plays for Bethlehem Catholic in the eastern part of the state. He also comes from an athletic family as his father was pro soccer player in Portugal and, like many kickers, Anthony has a soccer background as well.

OJABO CUTS LIST TO FIVE

Three-star defensive end David Ojabo wrapped up his two-week long visit swing, and announced his final five schools in the process.

Heading into the visits, the Nittany Lions were largely viewed as the leader thanks to Penn State’s early offer and Ojabo’s connection with 2018 Penn State signee Jayson Oweh. But that no longer appears to be the case, as Michigan has jumped to the forefront of Ojabo’s list, now owning 89% of the predictions on his 247Sports Crystal Ball.

We’ll see when a commitment comes — Ojabo has used just one official visit (Notre Dame) thus far — but if it comes quickly, the Wolverines will almost assuredly be the choice for Ojabo.

It’s a loss that will certainly sting for Penn State, but Michigan makes a lot of sense for Ojabo from an athletic and academic perspective. I said something similar when the Wolverines offered Jayson Oweh last year, but noted that it was probably too late to get involved. Props to Harbaugh and Co. for not botching this one.

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WHITE OUT CAMP BRINGS TALENT TO CAMPUS

James Franklin and his staff held their biggest camp of the summer this past weekend - the White Out Camp. During the final weekend before a month long recruiting dead period, the White Out Camp brought a ton of talent to Happy Valley.

Included among those on campus was a contingency from St. John’s College High School in D.C. This group featured a quarter of four-star class of 2020 recruits in cornerback Luke Hill, linebacker Mekhail Sherman, wide receiver Rakim Jarrett, and defensive tackle Tre Williams.

While it’s early in their recruitments, the Nittany Lions have established themselves among the leaders for Sherman, Jarrett, and Williams. They also appear to have made a move with Hill.

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ISAAC BACK

Also in Happy Valley over the weekend was New York City four-star defensive end Adisa Isaac.

The 6-foot-5, 215-pound Isaac remains high on the Nittany Lions, with Penn State potentially being the team to beat. He doesn’t appear to be in a hurry to make a decision though, and with official visits potentially coming in the fall, this one is far from over.

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LIONS OFFER 2019 OFFENSIVE TACKLE

With Xavier Truss now off the board, Penn State is widening its cast for offensive tackles in the 2019 class. One new offer that went out was to three-star Maryland product Zachary Franks who camped for the staff this weekend.

The 6-foot-6, 290-pound Franks has a pretty solid offer list, boasting offers from Arizona, Baylor, Cal, Nebraska, Pitt, and a host of others. Being a Gilman product, he must be a smart kid too, which never hurts on the recruiting trail.

Franks now joins fellow DMV recruit Walter Rouse as interesting options at offensive tackle should Penn State feel it needs a pure tackle in the class. Of course, targets Jakai Moore and JUCO Anthony Whigan both offer the versatility to play offensive tackle too, but both are more suited for the guard-tackle “swing” role that Penn State has recruited in the past.

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RUNDOWN OF 2020 AND BEYOND OFFERS

There were quite a few other offers so we’re going RAPID FIRE! *insert reggae air horn*

2020 WR Jaden Dottin (Connecticut): Goes to the same high school that Christian Wilkins went to. I’m actually not even mad about that anymore, so stop asking me??

2020 NJ LB Cody Simon (New Jersey): Plays under Rich Hansen at St. Peter’s Prep in New Jersey, and Simon’s brother, Shayne, just signed with Notre Dame. I think you can guess where this is going.

2021 QB Kyle McCord (Pennsylvania): McCord was impressive when I saw him throw at the New Jersey Nike Opening so no surprise that Penn State pulled the trigger on an offer. He has the chance to be a five-star type prospect.

2021 WR Isaiah Johnson (West Virginia): Not very often that West Virginia has blue-chip skill players, but Johnson can obviously play, man.

2021 WR Donte Thornton (Maryland): Here’s a picture of Thornton with McCord and 2021 running back Evan Pryor (who landed a Penn State offer during Blue-White weekend). This is one of those pictures they’ll show on College GameDay in like six years if McCord, Thornton, and Pryor all end up at Penn State.