Blue White Illustrated

M inneapolis native Davon Townley Jr. was one of the most important addi- tions to Penn State's Class of 2021. On paper, there's a lot for fans to be ex- cited about, including a four-star rating and a 6-foot-6, 250-pound frame that's just now being shaped for a future at this level of competition. Add in the fact that he was the last player to decide and pretty much the only reason for fans to get ex- cited on National Signing Day and it's un- derstandable why he's one of the Nittany Lions' most asked about prospects. But what made Townley's addition so important to James Franklin and his sta5 is that he was one of only a few defensive ends who they truly coveted in the 2021 class. There weren't as many elite edge rushers as usual, making it all the more important that they got their man on signing day. "They were very open with me. They let me know what they were looking for and how I 4t into that," Townley said. "They were very consistent with me, calling and texting and just staying in contact and showing me that I'm an important piece and that they want me. I'm very grateful for that." Playing college football was not Town- ley's dream growing up; basketball was always his focus. He didn't even release 4lm of his 4rst football season until the spring of 2020, a6er he and his basketball teammates had wrapped up the school's seventh consecutive Minneapolis City Conference championship. By that time, he held Division I basketball o5ers from schools like Morgan State and Hampton, with plenty of other programs showing interest. But once he put out those foot- ball highlights, everything changed. In a span of 10 weeks, Townley earned about a dozen scholarship o5ers. "I'm a big believer in our kids playing multiple sports," Minneapolis North head football coach Charles Adams said. "He was already a great basketball player and was close with a bunch of players on our [football] team, so why not come out and play another sport with his boys? At the time, it was all about coming out and having fun. We knew he had potential with his size, but I don't know if we saw this sport being the one he would end up doing [in college]." If Townley had known how quickly he would emerge as a top football prospect, those 4lm clips would have been released months earlier. He could never have pre- dicted that a pandemic was about to shut everything down, including recruiting trips. Most of Penn State's top prospects were able to at least visit in 2019, but Townley never saw any of his top schools. In fact, he still hasn't actually been to University Park. Struggling to make a decision, he ended up not committing anywhere during the early signing period, electing instead to wait until Feb. 3. There had been specula- tion leading up to the early period that he was considering Arizona State, but in the end, he said he chose the Lions over Michi- gan State, Nebraska and Washington. "I had really good communication with Coach Franklin and his sta5," Adams said. "I know that was the case for Davon and his family, too. I think that was really im- portant when it came down to the end. Personally, I'll never push my kids to go one place or another, but Penn State's sta5 really did stand out when it came to the little things. I felt like we really knew what their plan was for Davon because they were open and honest every step of the way. You never questioned where they stood. I thought that was pretty cool." With both his recruitment and his varsity basketball career now behind him, Townley can shi6 his focus to Penn State. The strength sta5 has provided him with a workout plan to follow until he gets on campus this summer, but even if he does everything right, it will likely take Townley some time to get up to speed in just his third season on the gridiron. At the same time, it's that raw potential that excites John Scott Jr. and the rest of Penn State's defensive sta5. Townley has that in spades. "He's only going to get bigger and stronger. He can still really take o5 in that department," Adams said. "He really per- formed o5 of just two years of football. That's not something you always see, so get him in that weight room, get him in that full-program environment, and man, I think he has the potential to be a pro. He already has the size and the athleticism. Now, he's joining the right program in a conference like the Big Ten, so I think he de4nitely has the potential to be a profes- sional football player one day." ■ U P C L O S E & P E R S O N A L A change in direction leads Townley to Penn State CLICK HERE to see video of Townley in action. THE TOWNLEY FILE STATS Finished with 42 tackles, seven tackles for loss, 3.5 sacks and 10 pass breakups to help lead North Com- munity High to a 5-1 record in 2020... Caught five passes for 149 yards and two TDs on o,ense HONORS Named a four-star recruit by Rivals.com, as well as the No. 2 prospect in Minnesota and No. 11 weakside defen- sive end nationally... Was a Class 2AA All- Conference choice in 2020 |

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