Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1547542
5 4 D E C E M B E R 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 ends. For now, that's tentatively set for Sunday, Nov. 22. But even if Rolapp doesn't make it to PSU, he's been on campus before, hav- ing visited in April. In fact, he wasn't far off from earning an offer from the staff at the time, but they went on to offer Wood about a week later. Listed by Ri- vals as the nation's No. 67 quarterback and No. 3 player in Connecticut, Rolapp looks to be a player that Penn State can realistically flip and sign. We'll also note that adding a second high school quarterback at little ad- ditional cost late in the cycle isn't out of the question. Now that roster lim- its have expanded to 105 scholarship players, Penn State and many other programs are actively scouting players who won't cost them much financially beyond the expense of a scholarship. Penn State will add a quarterback in the portal this year, but it's also in a situa- tion where Alex Manske and Kase Evans are their only two returning scholarship signal-callers. Manske will be a redshirt sophomore next season, while Evans will be a redshirt freshman. Keep that in mind leading up to sign- ing day. It would require a few things to fall into place, but there's a reason Penn State is actively scouting a few Mid-American Conference-level quar- terbacks and FCS commits. WIDE RECEIVER Penn State has had just one wide re- ceiver committed since the summer: four-star Iowa prospect Landon Blum. Rivals ranks Blum as the nation's No. 43 wideout and No. 2 player in his home state. At one point, it looked as if the Penn State's difficult start to the 2026 season carried over to the recruiting trail in October. After suffering their fourth consecutive Big Ten defeat, this one to Michi- gan, the Nittany Lions also lost a pair of commits within a week, beginning with quarterback Will Wood's decision to flip to Boston College on Oct. 18. A week later, linebacker Blake Betton made a similar move, flipping his com- mitment to Wisconsin on Oct. 25. A three-star prospect from Natick, Mass., Wood had been committed to the Nittany Lions since May 15. Rivals ranks him as the nation's No. 40 quar- terback and No. 3 player in Massachusetts. Originally, Boston College looked like the team to beat for Wood, but his visit to State College in late March left Campbell and quarterbacks coach Jake Waters impressed. Once the spring contact period began on April 15, Waters traveled to his school, Xaverian Brothers, to watch him throw. The Nittany Lions then of- fered the 6-foot-2, 210-pound quarterback a few days later when he agreed to return to Happy Valley for a second visit. "I loved Penn State and have so much respect and appreciation for Coach Campbell, Coach Waters, the whole staff and the great fan base. I know they're going to get things turned around," Wood said. "But for me, it be- came clear over time that Boston College was the place where I truly saw myself playing football and going to school. The opportunity to play for a coach like Coach [Bill] O'Brien and be only 20 minutes from home is what ultimately made this the right decision for me." Losing a quarterback this late in the cycle hurt Penn State, but Betton was considered by many to be the better overall prospect. Given a four-star rating by Rivals, Betton had a longstanding relationship with Campbell and other staff members dating back to their time at Iowa State. The Shakopee, Minn., native visited Penn State multiple times in the spring before commit- ting to the Nittany Lions in April. Rivals lists Betton as the nation's No. 27 linebacker and No. 3 player in Minnesota. Wisconsin had been a finalist for Betton the first time around. However, the Badgers were coming off a 4-8 season, one that led many to believe head coach Luke Fickell would be on the hot seat this fall. Wisconsin's turnaround this season, combined with some personal rea- sons involving his family, ultimately led Betton to stay closer to home. "It was a very, very hard decision," said Ray Betton, Blake's father and head football coach at Shakopee High School. "How he felt about those coaches, they were his guys. Those guys were a big part for Blake. It had nothing to do with them or Penn State. It was really about the logistics piece. There were some other factors, but in the end, Wisconsin was the best place for Blake." — Ryan Snyder Quarterback Will Wood flipped his commitment from Penn State to Boston College on Oct. 18. The Natick, Mass., prospect cited the chance to play for Bill O'Brien and attend college just 20 minutes from home. PHOTO BY RYAN SNYDER Penn State Loses Wood And Betton To Big Ten And ACC Rivals