Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1544665
5 8 M A Y 2 0 2 6 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M L ike many of the players who are either in Penn State's program currently or soon will be, four-star wide receiver prospect Landon Blum has a relationship with the Nittany Lions' new staff that predates the coaches' arrival in State College. Blum, a standout at Woodbine (Iowa) High School, was originally offered by Matt Campbell and his staff in April 2024 while they were still at Iowa State. Fol- lowing a handful of visits to Ames over an 18-month stretch, the 6-foot-4, 210-pound athlete made it clear last Sep- tember that he was favoring the Cyclones. Those ties continued to grow after Campbell headed to Penn State in De- cember. Even after his prospective posi- tion coach, Noah Pauley, left to join the Green Bay Packers' staff in February, Blum kept the Nittany Lions high on his list. He began getting to know Pauley's succes- sor, Kashif Moore, and on April 4 he an- nounced that he plans to sign with PSU. Blum became the first offensive prospect in the Nittany Lions' class, joining corner- backs Semajay Robinson, Zachary Gleason and Ka'ron Ceaser, and defensive lineman Carter Blattner. "I have a great relationship with the old ISU staff and new PSU staff right now," Blum told Rivals analyst Allen Trieu. "I'm really working on building that relation- ship with Coach Moore right now since he's new to the program. He's been great so far." At one point, Blum was listed as a tight end by Rivals, but he was later reclassified as a wide receiver. That designation fits with Penn State's plans for him. From the start, offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser has recruited him as a wideout. Although he plays eight-man football in high school, Blum is still considered an excellent prospect, having earned a spot in the Rivals300 at No. 278 nationally. He's a consensus four-star player and is listed by Rivals' scouts as the No. 40 wide receiver nationally and the top player in Iowa. In the Rivals Industry Ranking, which pools the grades of the three major re- cruiting websites, Blum is listed as the nation's No. 240 overall prospect, No. 34 wideout and the top player in his home state. Including Penn State, which formally extended its scholarship offer in mid- January, Blum totaled 20 offers over the course of his recruitment. Other notable schools that were pursuing him included Auburn, Duke, Illinois, Iowa, Kansas State, Maryland, Miami, Michigan State, Minnesota, Northwestern, Ole Miss and Wisconsin. As a junior at Woodbine High, Blum fin- ished with 60 receptions for 1,049 yards. He also had 24 receiving touchdowns, the most by an Iowa high school player during the 2025 season. Last spring, Blum finished second in the state championship meet for the boys' Class 1A high jump with a personal-record leap of 6 feet, 7 inches. ■ Relationships With Staff Lead Iowa Receiver To PSU RYA N S N Y D E R | RYA N . S N Y D E R @ O N 3 . C O M Listed by Rivals as the top prospect in Iowa, Blum finished his junior season at Woodbine High with 60 receptions for 1,049 yards. His 24 receiving touchdowns were the most by an Iowa high school player in 2025. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS COMMITMENT PROFILE LANDON BLUM Landon Blum looks just as you would expect an X receiver to look in the offense that head coach Matt Campbell and coordinator Taylor Mouser are installing at Penn State. The 6-foot-4, 210-pound Blum has a massive frame, deep-receiving chops, and an impres- sive vertical leap that will allow him to win contested-catch battles downfield. As long as he keeps his weight down, improves his functional movement skills and gets faster, he'll be able to handle the role that redshirt freshman Iowa State transfer Karon Brookins is expected to fill the next couple of years. However, if he naturally puts on weight and he doesn't improve his speed, there's an op- tion for Blum to be a hybrid H-back style receiver. In that scenario, his usage plan wouldn't change, but the matchups would. Instead of attacking outside as an X receiver, he'd be matched up with safeties and linebackers in the slot. In the end, though, I firmly believe Blum will be a receiver at Penn State. He moves like a wideout and has enough skills to make me think he isn't a hybrid player. — Thomas Frank Carr P L A Y E R E V A L U A T I O N