Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/260491
RECEIVERS There is no question that Blacknall, Godwin, Thompkins and Troy Apke supply Penn State with the No. 1 wide receiver class in the Big Ten. All four were rated among the top 75 pass-catchers in the country by Rivals. Godwin was 21st, Blacknall 32nd, Thompkins 40th and Apke 73rd. God- win was Delaware's Gatorade Player of the Year and chose Penn State over Ohio State, South Carolina, USC and Virginia Tech. Blacknall was New Jersey's top- rated wide receiver. He chose the Lions over Rutgers, Alabama, LSU and Notre Dame. Thompkins was an Under Ar- mour All-American who picked Penn State over North Carolina, Florida, Ten- nessee and South Carolina. And Apke was the WPIAL's top-rated wide receiv- er. When Rivals issues its position rank- ings later this month, I wouldn't be sur- prised to see Penn State's wide receiver group among the nation's top :ve. DEFENSIVE BACKS I don't think I can re- member Penn State ever signing seven defensive backs in a single recruiting class. But it did so this year, and all of the newcomers have size and speed. When you examine the Big Ten's re- cruiting haul team-by-team, the only Big Ten school that comes close to matching Penn State's success at safety and cornerback is Ohio State. The Buck- eyes signed two outstanding players in four-star safety Erick Smith of Cleve- land and four-star cornerback Damon Webb of Detroit. But no Big Ten team came away with the kind of quality and depth the Nittany Lions recruited in the secondary. I include McSorley in Penn State's group of seven defensive back recruits because of the way he performed at free safety in the Chesapeake Bowl in De- cember. He was one of two players highlighted by Rivals, and even though he's listed as a quarterback in Penn State's class, I believe he has an excel- lent chance of contributing in the sec- ondary at some point in his college ca- reer. As for the six players who are de:nitely set to join the secondary, they all are quality athletes with superb size, speed and athletic ability – players who look as though they could compete in the Southeastern Conference. There are a few other things I like about Penn State's class. One of its key attributes is the fact that it contains three running backs: Mark Allen, Nick Scott and Johnathan Thomas. With Bill Belton and Zach Zwinak graduating af- ter the 2014 season, it was important for the Nittany Lions to restock their back- :eld. I also like the fact that outside line- backer Jason Cabinda is listed at 6-1, 240 pounds. Franklin was quick to point out on signing day that Cabinda has the ability to play running back. And I like that defensive end Torrence Brown is listed at 6-4, 240 pounds and has 4.6-second 40-yard speed, which clearly illustrates the exceptional posi- tional speed Franklin has recruited with the Class of 2014. That said, the Lions didn't meet all their needs with this class. They will enter the 2014 season with serious depth problems at defensive tackle and at all three linebacker positions, and while the newcomers will provide some help, there simply aren't enough of them to alleviate those concerns. The incoming class has only two defensive tackles (Barney and Antoine White) and two linebackers (Cabinda and Troy Reeder). Penn State wasn't able to sign an ex- ceptionally athletic outside linebacker in the mold of Gerald Hodges, Michael Mauti, Sean Lee or NaVorro Bowman. The sta; will need to bring in some ath- letic linebackers and dominant tackles in 2015. It goes without saying that the Nittany Lions le< room for improvement. Their class was only rated third in the Big Ten according to Rivals.com, and that wasn't good enough to earn them a top-20 na- tional ranking. It will be interesting to see whether the Lions are able to build on their achieve- ments this year and sign a top-10 class in 2015. It's a worthwhile goal, and, I be- lieve, a realistic one. ■