Just read on Pennlive that we picked this dude up. From what I read this is a great get for Penn State.
Good pickup but a little overrated in a lot of peoples opinions. We really need to land Nick Marsh, the guy is a legit high 4 star with size (6’3”) and speed. Marsh was once an MSU verbal then backed off of that and became a heavy PSU lean and now sPitt is apparently in the picture. He announces on July 7th
Good pickup but a little overrated in a lot of peoples opinions. We really need to land Nick Marsh, the guy is a legit high 4 star with size (6’3”) and speed. Marsh was once an MSU verbal then backed off of that and became a heavy PSU lean and now sPitt is apparently in the picture. He announces on July 7th
Would love him, I've had enough of the smaller WRs... where are the Chris Godwin types?
So it sounds like we’re not getting any of the big time recruits we were once favored to land in the next couple weeks. Marsh, Umeh and Poly Poly among others are all going elsewhere.
I was glad to get the Denmark flip from Oregon. I’ve only seen the highlights tape which looked pretty good but after all, highlights are just that. I had a feeling after the commits from Brown and Gonzales the following Friday that the WR room was getting a bit crowded for this class. I think it influenced Hawkins going to Florida shortly after who was reportedly trending to PSU. He was the smaller type WR but was a certified burner with elite speed. When I saw the biggest fish among them wasn’t announcing until 7/7 I had a feeling we would lose out on him too. I’m not saying the previous verbals was the reason but I’m sure it didn’t help. PSU looked to be the pick by ON3 and other so called recruitniks. I’m sure Tucker was also feeling desperate and throwing all kinds NIL money at his MSU official last weekend. He’s not committed yet but it looks like MSU gets him.
@rip Yeah, I don’t like the direction this NIL is taking college football. It’s definitely here to stay so I wish they could at least regulate somewhat.
Polypoly to USC
Marsh to MSU
Umeh to Stanford
Three more in what seems like a never ending long line of losses in the recruiting wars and all players that just a short time ago were considered PSU locks. Franklin needs to stop begging alumni for NIL money and start worrying more about his deficiencies on and off the field.
@psujoe I hate losing any player we’re supposed to get but it still looks like a pretty dang good class. We have 13 four star players. I guess you win some and lose some. The kid we lost to Stanford does stink remoh he looks like the real deal. I just don’t know about the NIL
Just read on Pennlive DE Mylacki Williams committed today. Looks like another stud is on the way baby.
@psujoe Penn State has the #8 rated recruiting class in the country, not including the 4 star DE they got today. Franklin has commitments from 6 of the top 12 kids in PA including the #1 and #2 rated kids. He also got 3 of the top 4 rated kids in Wisconsin, the #1 recruit in Connecticut, and the #1 rated kid in NY. They also have the #3 rated kid from NJ (the top 2 are committed to UGA). You may be able to criticize Franklin for some things, but recruiting isn’t one of them. He recruits well, and he holds the kids to high academic standards and character. He just won 11 games and a Rose Bowl last year. Sounds like the guy is doing his job to me. FYI, recruiting and NIL now go hand in hand. If you want him to recruit well, then he has to get PSU’s NIL funding on strong standing. Oh yeah, the DT recruit’s name is Palepale. Not Poly Poly. Not sure if you were trying to be funny, but I’m guessing the kid and his family would think otherwise.
The one area I would like to see PSU recruit better is DT. Palepale could have possibly helped, but only time will tell. PSU was close to getting Wilkins and Breese in the past, but both ended up at Clemson. PSU has lacked a game changing DT that can wreck an opposing team’s game plan. They had good DTs, but not game changers. I’m hoping one of the young guys on the roster develops into that type of player. If not, the transfer portal now allows for a team to find a position of need quickly.
You guys can do the rah rah rah and brag about having the 8th rated class in the nation and I’ll continue to speak reality. We’re the 8th rated class in the nation right now because of numbers only and will not finish top ten or even top 12 as long as we continue to miss on top tier talent. Also, dominating the state is great but it’s not like the top teams in the country are making many of those guys a priority, we’ve mostly been competing with the likes of sPitt,Rutgers and MD.
We’re recruiting second level players right now and the negative recruiting against JF is not going to stop and we’re not going to land elite recruits until PSU proves it can win big games and games it’s not suppose to win.
Polypoly is what they call him at the games so I’m sure “his family” has heard it before.
IMO it's up to the coaches to develop good DT's into game changers. Bruce Clark & Matt Millen came to PSU as good players with potential. Coaching is what helped them develop into the game changers they became.
@rip Yes, I agree, but this is a completely different time. Those guys were probably not allowed to play as freshman and were at PSU for 4-5 yrs. The game has changed dramatically. You are comparing the 70’s to current times and that really doesn’t compare. High end talent kids are expected to contribute immediately and rarely are on campus for more than 3 yrs. Those types of DT recruits do exist. The FL DT that PSU brought in last year contributed immediately, although not as a starter. My hopes is that he becomes what we all want him to be this year. There are other kids with a lot of potential. We will see what new DL coach Barnes can do.
I still don't see a kid fresh out of HS as capable of being a dominant game changer, especially in the B1G. They need to be coached up and get used to the speed of the game. Just for the record, both Millen & Clark played as freshman. I believe Joe started using them in the 4th game of the 1976 season after losing 2 in a row. They looked good, but didn't come into their own until the following year. Both guys played 4 years, 1976 - 1979.
The thing with a game changing DT is that he has to be a big nastie as Millen would say or something like that; that's something you can't coach into a player, its either there or not.
You can be as big and nasty as they come, but if you don't know what you're doing and don't have the proper technique, you won't be very effective. You recruit for size & temperament and coach 'em up!
@rip Christian Wilkins was a freshman All-American DT at Clemson in 2015 while playing in 15 games and getting 450 snaps as a true freshman DT. Bryan Bresee was a freshman All-American in 2020 for Clemson while starting 10 games and playing in all 12 games for the Tigers as a true freshman DT. Both players were considered PSU leans at some point in their recruiting, but both ended up at Clemson. One from CT and one from MD, so both were in PSU’s recruiting area. These are the types of DTs I’m referring to. They do exist. And while they may be rare, they are the DTs that would take this defense to another level. They need someone to be able to shut down the run game of Michigan and OSU and make them one dimensional. They have the DEs, LBs, and secondary players to be special, just missing the special DT.
OT,DT or QB is probably the hardest 3 positions for true freshman to play. Guys it’s a great hot day to be at the race track but it feel good to be out here.
I agree 99. If you have to wait 3 years for a kid to develop, you probably recruited the wrong kid. I just don't think an 18 year old kid fresh out of HS is physically & mentally prepared to be a game changer. If he has the skill set, good coaching should be able to develop him in short order. I don't know what NIL has to do with his development, but the portal is his out if he hasn't developed fast enough to become a starter or earn significant PT at his present school.
Liam Andrews tomorrow and T.A. Cunningham on Saturday should give our defensive line recruiting a much needed boost.
