Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/368554
| D ivision I football programs are ap- proaching what is traditionally con- sidered the halfway point of the re- cruiting season, but James Franklin and his assistant coaches haven't been focused solely on 4nishing up the Class of 2015. They've also been laying the groundwork for the class that will follow in 2016. Those e5orts began to pay o5 in late July, as Penn State earned commitments from two of the Mid-Atlantic region's elite prospects: running back Miles Sanders of Woodland Hills High School in Pitts- burgh and defensive end Shane Simmons of DeMatha Catholic in Hyattsville, Md. Only two days a6er being ranked by Ri- vals.com as the 25th-best prospect in the nation and fourth-best defensive end, Sim- mons surprised many on July 30 when he chose Penn State over 26 other programs that had extended o5ers. In addition to the Nittany Lions, his 4nalists were Alabama, Ohio State, Florida State and Maryland. "It just felt more like home to me," Sim- mons told Adam Friedman, Rivals' Mid- Atlantic recruiting analyst. "I have a great connection with all my coaches over there and the players, too. So it was a better connection for me." Although Franklin and defensive line coach Sean Spencer were primarily responsible for recruiting Simmons, who could be a 4ve-star prospect by the time he signs his letter of intent in February 2016, several of the verbally committed players in Penn State's 2015 class, notably defensive linemen was the place for me to go. It just seemed right, and I was really excited when I made the decision." Unlike receiver, DB is a position Penn State is still recruiting in 2015. Reid had been one of PSU's top targets, dating back to Bill O'Brien's tenure as head coach. The No. 10 cornerback and No. 101 over- all prospect in the country, Reid chose Penn State over Alabama, Arizona, Mary- land, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Pitt, Virginia and West Vir- ginia, among others. He told Friedman he won't be taking any additional recruit- ing visits. "I think this is the right school, and I'm very happy with my decision," said Reid, who attends St. Joseph's Academy. Following the commitments of Charles and Reid, Penn State's Class of 2015 was ranked 46h in the nation by Rivals.com. That ranking could improve signi4cantly if the Nittany Lions are able to sway 4ve- star cornerback Minkah Fitzpatrick out of his commitment to Alabama. The nation's ninth-ranked prospect overall, Fitzpatrick recently visited Uni- versity Park with his parents, as well as high school teammate and future Penn State quarterback Brandon Wimbush. Fitzpatrick didn't publicly comment on the visit, but it's believed he may be having second thoughts about living more than 1,000 miles from his home in Jersey City, N.J. ■ CLASS OF 2015 COMMITMENTS* NAME POS HT WT HOME SCHOOL Saquon Barkley RB 5-11 190 Whitehall, Pa. Whitehall Ryan Bates OG 6-5 285 Warminster, Pa. Archbishop Wood Manny Bowen LB 6-2 206 Barnegat, N.J. Barnegat Ryan Buchholz DE 6-6 230 Malvern, Pa. Greater Valley Kamonte Carter DE 6-4 230 Gaithersburg, Md. Gaithersburg Irvin Charles WR 6-4 207 Haddonfield, N.J. Paul VI Jake Cooper LB 6-2 226 Warminster, Pa. Archbishop Wood Steven Gonzalez OG 6-4 321 Union City, N.J. Union City Myles Hartsfield Ath. 5-10 180 Parlin, N.J. Sayreville War Memorial Jonathan Holland DE 6-3 235 Potomac, Md. Bullis School Sterling Jenkins OT 6-9 308 Pittsburgh, Pa. Baldwin Juwan Johnson WR 6-4 205 Glassboro, N.J. Glassboro Adam McLean DT 6-1 282 North Potomac, Md. Quince Orchard Jarvis Miller DB 6-1 198 West Suffield, Conn. Suffield Ayron Monroe DB 6-1 195 Washington, D.C. St. John's College Brandon Polk WR 5-9 150 Ashburn, Va. Briar Woods John Reid DB 5-10 175 Philadelphia, Pa. St. Joseph's Andre Robinson RB 5-10 210 Harrisburg, Pa. Bishop McDevitt Brandon Wimbush QB 6-2 208 Jersey City, N.J. St. Peter's Prep CLASS OF 2015 HOT LIST Micah Abernathy CB 6-0 181 Norcross, Ga. Greater Atlanta Christian Matthew Burrell Jr. OL 6-4 286 Woodbrdige, Va. C. D. Hylton Minkah Fitzpatrick DB 6-0 188 Jersey City, N.J. St. Peter's Prep Neville Gallimore DT 6-3 303 St. Catharines, Ontario Canada Prep Football Academy Shareef Miller DE 6-5 225 Philadelphia, Pa. Frankford Cameron Ordway DB 5-11 171 Pulaski, Tenn. Giles County Kyle Phillips DE 6-4 245 Nashville, Tenn. Hillsboro Tim Settle DT 6-2 307 Manassas, Va. Stonewall Jackson Kendall Sheffield DB 6-0 165 Missouri City, Texas Fort Bend Marshall Russell Ude DL 6-3 251 Atlanta, Ga. Westminster Jordan Whitehead DB 5-10 165 Monaca, Pa. Central Valley Christian Wilkins DT 6-4 295 Suffield, Conn. Suffield Academy * As of Aug. 17 Sanders, Simmons become first members of 2016 class