Oh, Hello: Four-Star Virginia WR Carmelo Taylor Commits to Penn State

THE SKINNY

Height/Weight: 6-foot-0, 170 pounds
Hometown/High School: Roanoke, PA (Patrick Henry)
Ranking: ★★★★ (0.8983 247Sports Composite)
Notable Offers: South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Maryland, and West Virginia

HIGHLIGHTS

THE TALE

Taylor was a bit of a late bloomer on the recruiting trail, landing a host of offers in May from the likes of Virginia Tech, South Carolina, and Penn State. He officially visited the latter two in June, with it looking like the Gamecocks would be the choice. In the end, Penn State won out, with Taylor making the call for the Nittany Lions earlier this afternoon.

Taylor becomes the 18th commitment in Penn State’s 2023 recruiting class. Despite the Nittany Lions losing a couple decommitments lately — WR/DB Yazeed Haynes to Georgia and DE Tomarrion Parker to TBD — Taylor becomes the 14th four-star prospect in the class, giving Penn State a 78% “Blue Chip Ratio.”

OUTLOOK

Taylor’s greatest skill is simple: speed. He’s track star putting up times of 10.59 in the 100M as a junior, and that speed certainly shows up on the football field too. At Patrick Henry, he’s used in a variety of ways whether it’s as a wide receiver or at quarterback. But it’s clear that their goal is to get him the ball in some sort of space, because once he has the ball, he has the speed to turn any sort of touch into a touchdown. He’s not too dissimilar to 2022-signee Omari Evans; size, speed, and the way their high school offenses use them. Like Evans, he still needs to learn the refiner points of being a wide receiver, but clearly Penn State will take on a kid with Taylor’s speed.