Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/667675
A P R I L 1 6 , 2 0 1 6 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 12 F O O T B A L L R E C R U I T I N G Linemen join Lions' Class of '17 R Y A N S N Y D E R | B L U E W H I T E I L L U S T R A T E D Penn State's Class of 2017 gained its first offensive linemen when C.J. Thorpe of Pittsburgh and Robert Martin of Montvale, N.J., both announced Satur- day that they plan to sign with the Nit- tany Lions. A four-star offensive guard from Pittsburgh Central Catholic, Thorpe has been a regular in Happy Valley the past two seasons, making nearly a dozen vis- its including two trips earlier this spring. During that time, he's not only built a strong relationship with head coach James Franklin and his assistants, but has also become fa- miliar with State Col- lege and the surrounding area. "Every time I'm up there, I just feel at home," Thorpe said. "The coaches have al- ways shown me a lot of love and that they really wanted me. I appreciate how much effort they put in with me. Also, after seeing all of the schools I really liked, I definitely felt like Penn State's environ- ment was the best fit for me. Not just on the team, but the whole campus, the whole town. "I also think that I have a real chance to get early playing time. I would love to play early if I can make that happen, so it just made sense to me. I didn't see any reason to hold off." Like many of the offensive linemen CLASS OF 2017 NAME POS HT WT RATING HOME SCHOOL Damion Barber DE 6-3 245 ★★★ Harrisburg, Pa. Harrisburg Sean Clifford QB 6-2 197 ★★★★ Cincinnati, Ohio St. Xavier Robert Martin OL 6-5 258 ★★★ Montvale, N.J. St. Joseph's Regional Yetur Matos DE 6-5 230 ★★★★ Fredericksburg, Va. Chancellor Dylan Rivers LB 6-3 220 ★★★ Stephens City, Va. Sherando C.J. Thorpe OL 6-4 310 ★★★★ Pittsburgh, Pa. Central Catholic CLASS OF 2018 NAME POS HT WT RATING HOME SCHOOL Chris Bleich OT 6-5 308 N/A Bradenton, Fla. IMG Academy Micah Parsons DE 6-3 235 N/A Harrisburg, Pa. Central Dauphin * As of April 16 VERBAL COMMITMENTS* NEW COMMITMENT Thorpe had made numer- ous visits to Penn State before announcing on Sat- urday that he intends to sign with the Nittany Lions. Penn State also re- ceived a commitment from New Jersey lineman Robert Martin. Photo cour- tesy of Rivals.com