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CLASS OF 2017 NAME POS HT WT RATING HOME SCHOOL Damion Barber DE 6-3 220 ★★★ Harrisburg, Pa. Harrisburg Sean Clifford QB 6-2 197 ★★★★ Cincinnati, Ohio St. Xavier Yetur Matos DE 6-5 230 ★★★★ Fredericksburg, Va. Chancellor Dylan Rivers LB 6-3 220 ★★★ Stephens City, Va. Sherando CLASS OF 2018 NAME POS HT WT RATING HOME SCHOOL Micah Parsons DE 6-3 235 N/A Harrisburg, Pa. Central Dauphin * As of March 6 DE trio boosts upcoming classes Three prospects set to join Nittany Lions after committing in February P enn State's 6rst junior day of the 2017 cycle couldn't have gone much better, as the sta7 picked up two commitments for the Class of 2017, plus one for 2018, all from defensive ends. Damion Barber of Harrisburg, Pa., and Yetur Matos of Fredericksburg, Va., dou- bled the size of Penn State's next class, bringing it to four players, while Micah Parsons of Harrisburg will join those two in University Park the following year. Heading into the event, Barber had hinted at an impending decision, tweeting on Monday, Feb. 22, that he was considering making a commitment the following week. A 6-foot-3, 220-pound prospect from Harrisburg High, he had visited Rutgers just two days earlier, and it was no secret that the Scarlet Knights and Nittany Lions were his two favorites. But most observers believed that Penn State held the edge, and those suspicions were con6rmed on Feb. 27, as Barber made his commitment o8cial during a visit to campus. "I've been there a lot, so I knew what I wanted, but my mom wasn't able to see everything until today," Barber said fol- lowing his announcement. "Once she got there and got to see everything and meet everyone, she fell in love with it. She loved the coaches and she likes how much they care about their players. "Also, the education that I'll receive there is great, so today was really about her. I was able to show her how nice every- thing was, and she told me that now would be the best time to do it." A three-star prospect according to Ri- vals.com, Barber is the 24th-ranked weak- side defensive end nationally and the 11th- ranked prospect in Pennsylvania for the Class of 2017. Other programs that ex- tended o7ers include Iowa State, Pitt, Syracuse, Temple and Virginia Tech. Barber may have been the 6rst defensive end to o8cially join Penn State's Class of 2017, but he soon had company, as Matos also made a verbal commitment to the Nittany Lion coaching sta7 while on cam- pus for junior day. A four-star prospect from Chancellor High School, the 6-5, 230-pound Matos announced his com- mitment on Twitter. "A9er a long discussion with my parents, coaches and trusted friends, we are all in agreement that the best choice for me is to attend Penn State University," he tweet- ed. "I am excited to join the Penn State family and look forward to receiving an outstanding education and being part of an outstanding football program." Matos is the eighth-ranked strongside defensive end in the Class of 2017 and the ninth-ranked overall prospect in Virginia. Rivals.com national analyst Mike Farrell said he believes the Nittany Lions got a good one. "Yetur Matos is a long, angular kid with a great frame and has the upside to play at 270-plus pounds," Farrell said. "He's long, 2017 VERBAL COMMITMENTS* F O O T B A L L R E C R U I T I N G | BARBER MATOS PARSONS

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