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F O O T B A L L R E C R U I T I N G SMALL CLASS, BIG POTENTIAL The Class of 2021 is PSU's least numerous in years, but it doesn't lack impact players | P enn State signed 15 prospects during this year's early signing period, which ran from Dec. 16-18. Al- though the class was barely ranked inside the top 30 of the Rivals Team Rankings at No. 29 when the signing period closed, it was the lack of quantity rather than qual- ity that kept PSU from reaching previous standards. In fact, both their average star rating (3.4) and average points per com- mitment (97.3) put the Nittany Lions well within the top 20. Those numbers were also better than last year's class, which 9nished 15th in the nation with 27 signees. Overall, James Franklin and his assis- tants added seven prospects on both sides of the ball, as well as a kicker Sander Sa- haydak of Bethlehem, Pa. There are three players ranked within the Rivals250, while three others also earned four-star ratings for a total of six. The other nine all earned three-star ratings. On o:ense, the group is headlined by two four-star players: o:ensive lineman Landon Tengwall of Good Counsel in Olney, Md., and wide receiver Lonnie White Jr., who plays for Malvern Prep in Malvern, Pa. Tengwall is the highest- ranked player in the class at No. 38 in the nation. He was one of the most coveted players in the Mid-Atlantic region, total- ing 30 scholarship o:ers dating all the way back to his freshman season. White also ranked in the Rivals250 at No. 243 overall. Listed as an athlete, he'll likely play wide receiver for the Nittany Lions. He's also an elite baseball prospect who is expected to be chosen in the 9rst few rounds of the Major League Baseball Dra; in July. White hasn't completely ruled out baseball if the opportunity is too good to pass up, but the plan is to join the Nittany Lions one month prior, while also playing baseball in the spring for Penn State. Franklin and his sta: signed two other wide receiver prospects, Liam Cli:ord of St. Xavier in Cincinnati and Harrison Wallace of Pike Road, Ala., with the latter joining the class in early December. Cli:ord is the younger brother of quar- terback Sean Cli:ord, and he's been com- mitted to the Nittany Lions for more than a year now. A three-star prospect, Clif- ford was named the Division I O:ensive Player of the Year in Ohio this season. He's also the all-time leader in recep- tions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns at St. Xavier, which is one of Ohio's elite high school programs. Wallace earned an o:er from the Nit- tany Lions on Nov. 18. He was primarily a

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