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receiver Emery Simmons have set their plans, and juco lineman Anthony Whigan will be arriving in January, too, after finishing up his coursework at Lackawanna College. The five defensive players who plan to enroll early are linebackers Brandon Smith and Lance Dixon and defensive backs Keaton Ellis, Tyler Rudolph and Marquis Wilson. In May, Franklin discussed the uptick in early enrollment, both at Penn State and across the country, during a Coaches Caravan stop. The trend has paid divi- dends for many top college programs. Alabama, for example, has taken at least seven early enrollees every year since 2012. The Crimson Tide's 2017 class in- cluded 16 early enrollees, and the signif- icance of that development was underscored when one of those players – quarterback Tua Tagovailoa – threw the winning touchdown pass in overtime to lift Alabama over Georgia for the na- tional championship. In addition, three of Tagovailoa's classmates were on the field alongside him for the decisive play in the College Football Playoff title game. Franklin said that in the years to come, he expects the Nittany Lions to welcome a growing number of early enrollees. "I think that's a trend that's going to continue to get bigger and bigger," he said. "I see a lot of programs across the country are around the 10 number. I could see us getting to 10 guys coming in at midsemester." So, which other prospects could poten- tially join this list? Aside from those who have already committed, two players to watch are running back Noah Cain, from IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla., and de- fensive end Adisa Isaac, who attends Ca- narsie High in Brooklyn, N.Y. Both Cain and Isaac have already informed the media that they plan to graduate early. Earlier this month, Cain took his o7- cial visit to Penn State for its game against Wisconsin. He and is family have spoken highly of not only Franklin and his sta6, but also the school, noting that they have been impressed with its aca- demic opportunities. LSU and Texas are believed to be the Nittany Lions' top competitors. We expect him to make his decision public around the start of the early signing period, which begins Dec. 21. As for Isaac, the Lions have been con- sidered the favorites for a few months now to earn his signature. The 6-foot-5, 210-pound pass-rusher took his o7cial visit to Penn State in September for the game against Ohio State. As of early No- vember, he hadn't announced any further plans, but we expect him to take an o7- cial visit to LSU either later this month or in early December. Sources close to Isaac have told BWI on multiple occasions that they would be surprised if he le8 the region. That's a major reason why we expect him to not only end up a Nittany Lion, but to begin training with the squad in January. ■ Now Open in Paterno Library tern tern a P w O w O o N no Librar no Librar Open in Open in ry y ry

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