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man Micah Clark of St. John Vianney in Holmdel, N.J. A four-star prospect, ac- cording to Rivals.com, Clark has already emerged as perhaps the most sought-a:er o8ensive tackle in the mid- Atlantic region. He has received 13 known scholarship o8ers, but he rarely speaks with the media, so it is likely that his overall count is substantially higher than that. Among the schools that are known to have extended o8ers are Alabama, Clemson, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Penn State. We believe Clark has taken at least three uno9cial visits to University Park, so it's clear that the Ri- vals250 prospect is seriously considering Penn State. But it's not known which other schools he has visited, so there's no way of knowing who might emerge as the Nit- tany Lions' top competitors. The coaching sta8 also hosted two of the top 2017 prospects in Maryland for the game against Bu8alo: running back Anthony McFarland of Hyattsville and o8ensive lineman Jordan McNair of Ow- ings Mills. A four-star prospect, McFarland has been ranked the No. 1 running back in the nation for his class. He has received more than 20 scholarship o8ers, and among the schools on his list are Alabama, Baylor, Clemson, Florida State, Georgia, Michigan, Michigan State, Ohio State and Tennessee. Penn State will have plenty of competition, but he is close friends with Shane Sim- mons, a high school teammate and a mem- ber of the Nittany Lions' 2016 recruiting class. Simmons' presence at Penn State will likely be a factor in McFarland's de- cision. Although it's still very early, it ap- pears as if Georgia and Clemson are two schools that are already standing out. Even so, it's likely that Penn State will make his top 10, potentially even his top 7ve. McNair, meanwhile, was one of the 7rst 2017 o8ensive line- men to pick up an o8er from Penn State. That o8er was ex- tended in November 2014. Since then, the three-star prospect has been on campus for nearly a half-dozen visits. He holds 10 scholarship o8ers from an assortment of high- pro7le schools, including Maryland, Michigan, North Carolina, Ohio State, Tennessee and Vir- ginia Tech. Many of those o8ers arrived only recently, a:er schools received his midseason 7lm, and there's a good chance he will hear from some others by the end of the season. It appears that Penn State is the early leader, but Maryland and Ohio State are also 7rmly in the mix. One other 2017 prospect from Maryland who made the trip for the Indiana game was safety Damani Neal of the Bullis School in Potomac. A three-star prospect, Neal hinted at making a commitment to Penn State during an uno9cial visit in August, but he and his family decided that it would be best to see a few more schools this season. Penn State is still considered the heavy favorite, and it appears likely that he will make his commitment by Janu- ary. The progress that the coaching sta8 has made with its top Class of 2017 prospects bodes well for next year's class, but there's still some work le: to do before the Class of 2016 will be complete. In addition to pursuing uncommitted prospects to 7ll the remaining spots in the class, Penn State is working to hold onto its verbally committed players, two of whom – kicker Quinn Nordin from Rockford, Mich., and cornerback Lavert Hill from Detroit – have been receiving plenty of attention from Michigan. Both have taken multiple visits to Ann Arbor this season, and while they remain com- mitted, there are some concerns that one or both could end up switching to the Wolverines in the coming weeks or months. As of mid-October, Nordin and Hill were both expected to attend Penn State's White Out game against Michigan on Nov. 21. But as of this writing, the Nittany Lions' chances of getting their signatures in February appeared to be around 50- 50. ■ PROSPECT WATCH Consid- ered the top run- ning back in the Class of 2017, McFarland was on hand for Penn State's home opener against Buffalo in September. Photos courtesy of Rivals.com

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