Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1545675
1 0 4 A U G U S T 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 love the coaching staff. There's nothing to not like. "I'm big on Coach Malloe. He's a de- veloper, and I want to get better. Coach Campbell is a straight shooter, and I can tell by the way we talk, he's passionate about building Penn State. That's the head coach I want to be under. Every- thing fits for me there." Paiva projects as a space-eating nose tackle in Penn State's new de- fense, which has prioritized size up the middle. He's a three-star prospect, per Rivals, as well as the No. 97 defensive tackle nationally and No. 11 player in Utah. Arizona, Boise State, Colorado, Colorado State, Oregon State and Washington State were among his other scholarship offers. Paiva helped Corner Canyon High win a third consecutive Class 6A state title in the fall before transferring to Skyline in January. He took his first visit to Penn State in April and was impressed with the Lions' hospitality. "They welcomed my family and made sure that my parents were good the whole time," Paiva said. "It's preached at a lot of campuses, but not everyone actually delivers the package like Penn State did." Clayton Powell LS | 6-2 | 190 | Lake Charles, La. Penn State special teams coordina- tor Justin Lustig hit the road this spring with a scholarship in hand, hoping to add a top long snapper to the Lions' 2027 class. His journey took him to Louisiana, where he watched Powell work out at Sam Houston High. Lustig and assistant special teams coordinator Matt Colangelo extended a scholarship offer shortly after that trip. An official visit to PSU followed. By the time he was ready to leave campus, Pow- ell was a part of the Lions' 2027 class, announcing his commitment on June 8. "Penn State is Long Snapper U and the best program for my development on and off the field," he said. "Coach Lustig and Coach Colangelo have a recent history of successful snappers, and I look forward to continuing that legacy." Powell also had a scholarship offer from Arkansas and took visits to Miami, Texas A&M and others. He made a strong impression at the 2025 Kohl's National Scholarship Camp with his quick release and tight spiral, finishing the charting phase of camp with the fifth-highest charting score in the country for the 2027 class. Powell is listed by Rivals as a three- star prospect and is the No. 3 long snap- per nationally and No. 47 player in Loui- siana. ■ Sean Fitz contributed to this report. Nittany Lions Land 2028 Placekicker Penn State doubled the size of its 2028 class when kicker Carter Petri of the St. Joseph School in Buffalo, N.Y., announced June 20 that he planned to sign with the Nittany Lions. Petri picked up an offer from special teams coordinator Justin Lustig after a workout in mid-June. Kohl's Kicking lists the 6-foot-1, 185-pound prospect as the No. 9 kicker nationally in the 2028 class. His ranking follows a strong performance at the Kohl's Eastern Spring Showcase, in which he scored 12 points and had a long kickoff of 74 yards with a hang time of 3.6 seconds. Kohl's scouts note that Petri "has huge upside and was one of the top prospects at camp. His ball striking is elite, and he had a wonderful showing at camp. … [His] consistency underscores his techni- cal skills and composure under pressure, traits that coaches at the next level should value." Petri also worked out at Georgia and Virginia Tech this summer and visited Michigan, Penn State and Syracuse in the spring. He attended a junior day in Happy Valley in January and came back for a spring practice session in April. Petri joined four-star receiver Deonte Flemings of Erie (Pa.) McDowell High in the Lions' 2028 class. The nation's No. 131 overall prospect and No. 17 receiver, as well as the No. 4 player in Pennsylvania, Flemings committed to PSU in January. — Sean Fitz Three-star Utah defensive tackle Aniti Paiva was part of a Draper Corner Canyon High squad that won its third consecu- tive Class 6A state title last fall. PHOTO COURTESY RIVALS