Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1546586
O C T O B E R 2 0 2 6 5 9 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M the Nittany Lions play host to USC for their annual White Out game. The fact that Hall is taking two visits in a three-week span is a great sign for the Lions, but there are plenty of other programs now involved. Cincinnati, Maryland and Wake Forest all extended offers a few days after Penn State, but the main competitor could prove to be Ohio State. The Buckeyes offered Hall on Sept. 5 when he visited for their sea- son opener versus Ball State. Cincinnati was also expected to host him on Sept. 19, while Maryland has a visit locked in for Oct. 17. Hall has earned a three-star grade from Rivals and is the No. 98 running back nationally and No. 59 player in Ohio. Another player to keep an eye on is McCoy Richardson, a three-star de- fensive tackle from Springfield, Mass. Richardson (6-3, 300) is committed to Wake Forest, but he visited Penn State for its season-opening victory over Marshall on Sept. 5. After the game, he met with head coach Matt Campbell and officially earned an offer from the Nittany Lions. "The visit was good," said Terrell Richardson, McCoy's father. "I was amazed at the capacity [Beaver Sta- dium] holds. The crowd excitement, the enthusiasm and seeing the team come out the tunnel was a great experience." The elder Richardson made it clear his son is "happy with his commitment to Wake Forest." However, that won't stop Penn State from trying to flip the Springfield Central prospect. In fact, members of Penn State's recruiting staff traveled to Massachusetts to watch the first game of Richardson's senior season a few days later, on Sept. 11. As of early September, many expected Richardson to ultimately flip to the Nit- tany Lions, but he did not appear to be in any sort of rush. He was planning to visit Wake Forest on Sept. 18 for its game against Miami. We expect Penn State to invite him back for its White Out game in October. Richardson is the No. 109 defensive tackle nationally, per Rivals, as well as the No. 7 player in Massachusetts. ■ Three 2028 Prospects Will Bear Watching Penn State is off to a strong start in the 2028 recruiting cycle, having earned two four-star commits in quarterback James Armstrong and defensive back Deonte Flemings. However, the Nittany Lions are also eyeing plenty of talented juniors throughout the region now that high school football is underway. Three players in particular will bear watching in the weeks ahead as the po- tential recipients of new offers. New Jersey linebacker/defensive end Aiden Ezeiruaku is the first. Ezeiruaku (6-1, 185) has shined at Glassboro High. He ranks among the top 300 prospects at all three major recruiting sites. In fact, 247Sports has him among its top 100 prospects, at No. 77 overall, while Rivals has him a bit further down at No. 228. Back in April, Ezeiruaku impressed at The Opening regional camp in New Jer- sey, posting a 4.7-second 40-yard dash, a 4.5-second shuttle and a 35-inch ver- tical leap. He focused on working out at linebacker at that camp, and that makes sense given his size. However, he's rushing off the edge in most of his film, so Penn State still has some questions about how he would fit. Ezeiruaku visited Penn State in April and is set to return later this year. He got off to a great start this season, recording 14 tackles, including 4 for loss and 2 sacks, in Glassboro's first two games. He's the younger brother of Dallas Cowboys line- backer Donovan Ezeiruaku, a former second-round pick out of Boston College. Ezeiruaku is listed as a three-star prospect by Rivals, as well as the No. 18 linebacker nationally and No. 9 player in New Jersey. He's got a four-star grade in the Rivals Industry Ranking, which pools the rankings from all three major recruiting websites. The Lions are also paying close attention to Baltimore cornerback Kinnard Mahomes. With Mahomes holding 30 offers and counting, it's a bit surprising that Penn State hasn't followed suit with the Mount St. Joseph standout. After visiting Michigan in early September, Mahomes has three more trips planned to Indiana (Oct. 7), Notre Dame (Nov. 7) and Virginia Tech (Nov. 28). His high school schedule does feature a few Saturday games, but the calendar would allow him to attend Penn State's White Out game against USC on Oct. 10. The only real concern regarding the 6-0, 165-pound Mahomes is his size. De- spite that, he is a four-star prospect, meaning that Penn State can't afford to wait much longer if it's going to extend an offer. That's likely to happen at some point, with the goal being to get him on campus before the season ends. Mahomes is a four-star prospect according to Rivals and the Industry Ranking. Rivals lists him as the nation's No. 154 overall prospect, No. 20 cornerback and No. 6 player in Maryland. Unlike Mahomes and Ezeiruaku, running back Tevin Owen-Cratsenberg hasn't blown up yet from a recruiting perspective. He's unrated by the major recruit- ing websites, and his only offers as of early September were from Kent State and Bowling Green, but that's likely to change soon. As a sophomore at Highlands High in Natrona Heights, Pa., Owen-Cratsenberg (5-11, 195) totaled more than 1,700 yards, with 26 touchdowns. Those are solid numbers, but the running back also showed throughout the spring and sum- mer that he's athletic enough to play at college football's highest level, running a 4.5-second 40-yard dash and a 4.3-second shuttle. Owen-Cratsenberg is tearing it up on the field as a junior, having rushed for 532 yards and 8 touchdowns in Highlands' first two games, with an average of more than 10 yards per carry. His visit to Penn State for the team's season opener went well, and we know he has admirers inside the Lasch Building. The recruiting staff can take their time scouting him, but his name should be on everyone's radar. — Ryan Snyder