Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1532761
5 8 M A R C H 2 0 2 5 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M T he first official visits of the 2026 recruiting cycle are still nearly three months away, but it's never too early to start making plans. Head coach James Franklin and his staff have been busy the past few weeks setting up dates for their top recruits to check out Penn State. As of Feb. 23, 44 recruits had publicly confirmed that they will be taking offi- cial visits to PSU. That's a much higher number than we've seen at this stage in previous recruiting cycles, and there are several reasons for the surge in antici- pated visits. Recent NCAA Rule Changes Since 2018, high school juniors have been allowed to take official visits dur- ing a three-month window beginning on April 1 and lasting up until the start of the summer dead period. This year, that window closes on June 22. Prior to 2018, FBS programs weren't allowed to welcome players for official visits until the start of their senior year. When that rule was changed, Penn State took the opportunity to host a dozen recruits in the class of 2019 for official visits in April. In the case of three play- ers — running back Devyn Ford and de- fensive backs Tyler Rudolph and Mar- quis Wilson — those early visits led to verbal commitments in May. At the time, the NCAA still restricted players and schools when it came to how many official visits they could use. Players were limited to five, while schools could bring no more than 70 players to campus for official visits in any given year. After that first year, it started to be- come apparent to Penn State and other schools around the country that it was more effective to use these key visits later in the window. The Nittany Lions did land running back Keyvone Lee the following year after an official visit in April, but for the most part, June be- came the earliest that Franklin and his staff would use their visits. It's been that way ever since. In April 2023, the NCAA lifted the rule that limited prospects to just five official visits. However, schools were still allowed to host a maximum of 70 players, and with that cap still in place, coaching staffs didn't change their ap- proach very much. With coaches still primarily focused on June, recruits found themselves only taking a handful of official visits anyway. This past November, the NCAA an- nounced it was temporarily lifting the cap for schools, allowing them to host as many official visits as they wanted. Technically, that ruling is set to end on March 31, but multiple sources throughout the industry have indicated that they expect it to become perma- nent. Impact On PSU's Plans By BWI's count, only five players publicly announced in February of the previous cycle that they planned to take official visits to Penn State. That's why this year's total of 44 is so striking. It's a very significant departure from the norm. Of course, with the cap expected to be eliminated, it makes sense that Penn State and every major program would now be much more aggressive in lining up visits. Something that hasn't changed, though, is the importance of June. Penn State's Lengthy 2026 Guest List Keeps Growing RYA N S N Y D E R | RYA N . S N Y D E R @ O N 3 . C O M FOOTBALL RECRUITING Consensus four-star safety Joey O'Brien of Glenside, Pa., has scheduled an official visit to Penn State for the weekend of May 16-18. PHOTO COURTESY ON3 On3 Industry 2026 Team Recruiting Rankings As of Feb. 24 Rk. School Commits 1. Oregon 9 2. USC 11 3. LSU 6 4. Texas A&M 9 5. Auburn 6 6. Penn State 9 7. Ohio State 4 8. Texas 3 9. Tennessee 7 10. Notre Dame 7