Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1464375
M A Y 2 0 2 2 5 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M S n owd e n h a s a l so ta ke n multiple visits to Cincinnati and Notre Dame, and he's be- ing hotly pursued by Arkansas, Indiana, Iowa, Missouri, Mis- sissippi and West Virginia. Four-star wide receiver Jus- tin Brown was one of the few 2023 players who visited for the first time in recent weeks. A 6-foot- 2, 185-pound player from Blackman High School in Murfreesboro, Tenn., Brown earned an offer from the Nittany Lions back in October, visiting for the first time March 28. Mississippi State, Mississippi and Tennessee are also se- riously in the mix, and all three SEC schools have hosted him for visits in recent months. The Lions "have been recruiting me hard and trying to get me on campus for a while," Brown said. He went on to add, "Coach Franklin talked about how education is important, and the goal is to graduate with a degree by the end of my college career. It shows that Coach Franklin actually cares about his players and not just the money and the football. He wants to make sure his players are set for life and make sure every player gets a degree." Penn State's strength in the 2023 class is clearly along the offensive line, but that hasn't stopped position coach Phil Trautwein from pursuing others. Amir Herring ranks among his top tar- gets, and the four-star interior lineman returned to campus March 30. It was Herring's third visit to Penn State over- all. He also attended the game against Michigan last November, followed by a junior day in January. "Just seeing Coach Franklin and Coach Trautwein in action, coaching up the guys, it brought a different aspect to this one compared to the previous two visits I've been on," Herring said. "Seeing Coach Trautwein being hands-on with the guys was good to see. That's something I've never really seen before, and it's important to know how he is as a coach. It gave me a different aspect for Penn State. I was good to see how it's a high-tempo practice. Overall, it was just a really good experience for me and my family." A few of the staff 's top prospects were expected to be on campus in the weeks leading up to the Blue-White Game. Defensive end Mason Robinson of McDonogh School in Owings Mills, Md., was planning to visit April 9. The 6-3, 217-pounder is one of the staff's top targets at the position, and the Nittany Lions appear to be the team to beat. However, there is plenty of competition. Pitt, South Carolina and Virginia Tech have all hosted him multiple times over the past year, al- though none of those schools have hosted Robinson as many times as Penn State. PSU also is planning to host two of its top linebacker prospects the week prior to the Blue-White Game. Four-star prospect Tony Rojas is ex- pected to be on campus first, April 15. Rojas is a native of Fairfax, Va., and Penn State has recruited him harder and longer than just about any other school. That has worked in the staff's favor; Rojas admitted in late March that the Nittany Lions remain the team to beat. "Penn State is still at the top for me," he said. "They text my parents and my family the most. They check in to see how they are and are family- oriented." Rojas' upcoming visit to Penn State will be his fifth. He's also taken five visits to Virginia Tech, although Clem- son may be the school with the best chance of knocking the Nittany Lions off. Since offering him in the beginning of March, Clemson has received two visits from Rojas in a one-month span. C L A S S O F 2 0 2 3 C O M M I T M E N T S NAME POS HT WT RATING* HOME SCHOOL Mathias Barnwell Ath. 6-5.5 255 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Fredericksburg, Va. Riverbend Alex Birchmeier OL 6-5.5 275 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Ashburn, Va. Broad Run Anthony Donkoh OL 6-4 310 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Aldie, Va. Lightridge Joshua Miller OL 6-4 320 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Colonial Heights, Va. Life Christian Academy Lamont Payne CB 6-0.5 180 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Bridgeville, Pa. Chartiers Valley Andrew Rappleyea TE 6-4 215 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Milton, Mass. Milton Academy Joey Schlaffer TE 6-5.5 205 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Reading, Pa. Exeter Township Marcus Stokes QB 6-1.5 190 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. Nease Jven Williams OL 6-4 290 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Reading, Pa. Wyomissing C L A S S O F 2 0 2 4 C O M M I T M E N T NAME POS HT WT RATING* HOME SCHOOL Cooper Cousins OL 6-5.5 300 ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ Erie, Pa. McDowell * Player ratings reflect On3 rating as of April 11 Rk. School Commits 1. USC 3 2. Notre Dame 9 3. Georgia 7 4. Ohio State 6 5. Penn State 9 Rk. School Commits 6. Arkansas 10 7. Michigan 6 8. Oklahoma 4 9. Texas A&M 4 10. Texas 3 ON3 CONSENSUS 2023 TEAM RANKINGS As of April 11