FOUR-STAR OL TARGET UPDATES RECRUITMENT

Late last week, a rumor started to circulate in a Michigan newspaper that four-star Wolverine State offensive lineman Rocco Spindler was going to commit over the week. Well, Spindler quickly shot this rumor down.

Spindler visited Penn State for a junior day in February. The same junior day that has already helped the Nittany Lions land three commits from the state of Michigan. That visit was a home run for Spindler, and thrust the Nittany Lions into the thick of his recruitment. Right now, it appears Penn State is running third at worst in Spindler’s recruitment.

Offensive line coach Phil Trautwein has developed a terrific relationship with Spindler. It has long seemed that if Penn State could get Spindler back on campus for an official visit that they would have as good a shot as anyone at landing the top 100 offensive lineman. According to Spindler, that visit will happen.

NEW 2021 WR OFFER

As Penn State continues to search for answers at wide receiver in the 2021 cycle, Taylor Stubblefield extended another new offer. This offer went out to four-star wide receiver Ketron Jackson.

Jackson is a native of Rose City, Texas. A week before receiving the Penn State offer, Jackson released his top 7. This top 7 consisted of Arkansas, Colorado, Oregon State, SMU, Texas, Texas A&M, and TCU. Penn State is a better program than any school in Jackson’s top group. Due to this, if the Nittany Lion coaching staff can get Jackson to campus for a visit this fall this is a recruitment they could find themselves in the thick of.

TOP GROUPS

In the past week, Penn State made the top group of both of 2021 and 2022 players. We will start with 2021 defensive end Naquan Brown.

To be honest, it was a surprise to see the Nittany Lions in Brown’s top group. Brown visited campus in January, when Sean Spencer was still defensive line coach. Neither Spencer before departing for the New York Giants, nor new defensive line coach John Scott Jr. appeared to have much in the way of interest in Brown. This is due to there being questions about his actual height and weight in comparison to his listed height and weight. So, the Nittany Lions appear to be nothing more than a hat on the table when Brown announces his college decision on July 1.

When it comes to 2022 recruits, the player at focus here is wide receiver Kaden Saunders. The four-star Ohio native put the Nittany Lions in his top 7.

In addition to releasing his top group, Saunders has said he plans to commit in September. He has visited Penn State more than any other school, including visits in March and April that were canceled due to the coronavirus pandemic. As we covered last week, landing Saunders, along with 2022 Pennsylvania wide receiver Anthony Ivey, would go a long way toward Stubblefield silencing his recruiting doubters. While the threat of an Ohio State offer will always loom, Penn State appears to be in a great early position for Saunders.