Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1533674
5 6 A P R I L 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 P enn State's recent staff move- ments left some temporary holes in the program's recruiting map. The Nittany Lions had to make changes following the departure of Ja'Juan Se- ider and the subsequent addition of Stan Drayton as running backs coach. While position recruiting seems to have taken over, the Nittany Lions still employ the strategy of using recruit- ing territories. This approach helps when there is staff turnover; Penn State likes to have three or four members of its staff involved in any given recruit- ment so that there's some continuity if a coach leaves. Drayton has had success in select hotspots while coaching at champion- ship-level programs. He worked at Ohio State from 2011-14, and his success in the Buckeyes' home state was a big part of his recruiting legacy there. Of course, Ohio State has a level of buy-in from in-state prospects that is close to un- matched nationally, but Drayton was credited with having a hand in landing such future pros as Marshon Lattimore (Cleveland Glenville), Jerome Baker (Cleveland Benedictine), Parris Camp- bell (Akron St. Vincent-St. Mary) and Denzel Ward (Nordonia), among many others. Penn State will be putting Dray- ton back in northeast Ohio, from Youngstown to Cleveland to Toledo. He'll pop in the Columbus area, as well. All Nittany Lions coaches have a slice of Pennsylvania, and Drayton will be re- sponsible for Erie. We speculated when he joined the staff that he may or may not go on the road, but we've since con- firmed that he will be out and about when the contact period opens. He will also do spot visits for running backs. Penn State sent quarterbacks coach Danny O'Brien on the road last fall when the NCAA loosened its rules on count- able coaches. He's been the point man on quarterbacks since then, and he'll get out to watch as many signal-callers throw as possible in the spring. O'Brien will have territorial respon- sibilities for Penn State, as well. Beyond the Centre County and north-central Pennsylvania responsibilities, O'Brien gets an area that has been very good to the Nittany Lions in recent years. He'll be in northern Virginia, which is a ter- ritory that was vacated when Seider left for Notre Dame. It's been a high-yield area for the Lions in recent years, with current redshirt sophomore offensive tackle Anthony Donkoh and junior line- backer Tony Rojas among the big pulls. In addition to northern Virginia, O'Brien has also picked up Detroit. The Nittany Lions haven't had the same pull in the Motor City since Tim Banks was on staff from 2016-20, but they signed three-star linebacker Kari Jackson from West Bloomfield in 2024. Cornerbacks coach Terry Smith pre- viously covered Detroit for Penn State, but he's focusing on other areas now. Dan Connor, who was recently ele- vated from analyst to linebackers coach, will remain on the road for the Nittany Lions. With then-defensive coordinator Tom Allen off the road last fall, Connor had a busy travel itinerary, and now he's getting a few territories to work with. Staff Changes Lead To Revamped Recruiting Assignments S E A N F I T Z | S E A N . F I T Z @ O N 3 . C O M Quarterbacks coach Danny O'Brien will be taking the lead for Penn State in northern Virginia, an area previously recruited by Ja'Juan Seider. PHOTO BY RYAN SNYDER