WHAT HE DID Thri? signed with Temple coming out of
Gateway High in Monroeville, Pa., two years ago. He was red-
shirted by the Owls as a true freshman and le? the school be-
fore he had a chance to see action. He enrolled last year at
Lackawanna Community College, where he developed into a
defensive lineman. Last fall, he cial visits to UCF
and Idaho. But through his ties to Gateway and Temple,
Thri? had gotten to know Penn State assistant coach Terry
Smith, who previously coached at both schools. Those con-
nections led to a commitment on signing day, Feb. 3.
QUOTABLE Mark Duda, Lackawanna head coach: "As soon
as he learned that they were interested, PSU immediately be-
came the school that he wanted to attend. For his size, he's
very quick and he also has great hands. We've seen him really
take his game to a di=erent level this season, and I think that
with the coaching he's going to get at Penn State, he will real-
ly end up surprising some people there."
STAFF SAYS Smith: "We're not looking for him to come in
and be a developmental guy. We're expecting him to come in
and contribute. Hopefully he will get into the rotation up
front at the defensive tackle position. He's a high-motor guy.
He's really passionate about the game."
PHIL'S TAKE Thri? has grown substantially since coming
out of high school as a 220-pound linebacker. He's listed at
285 pounds, so he's already got the size he needs to play the
three-technique tackle spot. He reportedly has 4.8-second
40-yard speed, which should help him in his bid for playing
time.
BRENON
THRIFT
RIVALS ★★
POS DT HT 6-3 WT 285
HOME Monroeville, Pa.
SCHOOL
Lackawanna CC/Gateway HS
WHAT HE DID A four-year starter at Imhotep Charter, Toney
began his career at defensive end before shi?ing to line-
backer. During that span, the Panthers had one of the best
runs in PIAA history, going 53-6 overall. Toney and his team-
mates made it to the PIAA Class AAA semicial visit to
Pitt in late January, in the end he maintained his commit-
ment to the Nittany Lions.
QUOTABLE Toney on his visit to Penn State: "It was breath-
taking. It felt like home. There was so much love from them. I
actually got there a little bit early, so I got to hang out with the
coaches a little bit before everyone. Man, I loved it. It was re-
ally cool when I walked in and all the coaches were there wait-
ing for me. That was a great feeling. It dec. Toney
played defensive end his sophomore and junior seasons be-
fore moving to outside linebacker as a senior. Analysts have
projected him as an outside linebacker at the college level,
but it looks as though he is going to begin his career at end. It
will take a while for him to develop the size needed to play
defensive end in the Big Ten, which all but assures that he
will redshirt this coming fall. But if the coaches decide to go
in a di=erent direction, I could easily see him excelling as a
225- or 230-pound Sam outside linebacker.
SHAKA
TONEY
RIVALS ★★★
POS DE HT 6-3 WT 200
HOME Philadelphia, Pa.
SCHOOL Imhotep Charter
P L A Y E R B I O S
Rivals.com
Rivals.com
