Blue White Illustrated

F O O T B A L L R E C R U I T I N G Top prospects visit for spring game Williams, Johnson among players on hand for Blue-White Weekend BY RYAN SNYDER Blue White Illustrated B ill O'Brien's first Blue-White Game was about much more than just the debut of his highly anticipated offensive system. About 75 prospects made the trip to University Park for Penn State's spring game, with the majority of its 2012 signees in attendance, plus all of the verbally committed prospects for the Class of 2013. It was a bigger turnout than the Nittany Lions received for the Alabama game last season and the Michigan game in 2010. Of those in attendance, the top undecided prospects were running back David Williams of Philadelphia and offensive lineman Dorian John- son of Belle Vernon, Pa. Williams said his trip went well. "I always enjoy myself at Penn State," he said. "But this time was pretty fun because I met with basically all the guys who are currently commit- ted, plus I met some of the guys from last year's class, so it was good get- ting to know some of the guys who could be my teammates down the road." As for Johnson, the trip to Penn State was his second in just over a week; he had previously attended a practice on campus. Johnson's recent show of interest in the Nittany Lions has given rise to speculation that Penn State may be overtaking Pittsburgh as his favorite school. And it's not just the recruiting gurus who believe that Penn State has a good chance to sign both Johnson and Williams next P E N N S T A T E C O M M I T M E N T S * NAME Adam Breneman Curtis Cothran Ross Douglas Christian Hackenberg Brendan Mahon Andrew Nelson Garrett Sickels Greg Webb * As of April 29 POS TE DE DB QB OL OL DE DT HT 6-5 6-5 5-10 6-4 6-5 6-5 6-4 6-2 WT 220 225 180 215 302 265 225 290 40 – – 4.4 – – – 4.7 – HOME Camp Hill, Pa. Newtown, Pa. Avon, Ohio Fork Union, Va. Randolph, N.J. Hershey, Pa. Little Silver, N.J. Sicklerville, N.J. SCHOOL Cedar Cliff Council Rock North Avon Fork Union Military Academy Randolph Hershey Red Bank Regional Timber Creek PICTURE THIS Brene- man, far left, and Hacken- berg, center, pose with uncommitted prospect David Williams. The Philadelphia running back was one of about 75 prospects on hand for the Blue-White Game. Tim Owen February. Verbally committed tight end Adam Breneman said he's con- fident the two four-star prospects are feeling good about the Lions. "I've really been getting to know Dorian pretty well over the past month or so," Breneman said. "David and I have been talking for a while now, but it was great to hang out with both of them during the game. I sat next to Dorian and David for pretty much the entire game, so we pretty much hung out the entire time we were there. "I think both really do recognize how special of a place Happy Valley is right now. I think we're in pretty good shape with both David and Dorian." Also making the trip to Penn State for the spring game was Zayd Issah of Central Dauphin High in Harris- burg, Pa. The Pennsylvania Class AAAA Player of the Year in 2011, Issah is expected to play linebacker in college. It's a position of need for Penn State this year, especially after Wyomissing prospect Alex Anzalone committed to Ohio State during the Buckeyes' spring game, which took place the same day as the Blue- White Game. Issah has already received a verbal offer from Penn State. With Anzalone now set to sign with the Nittany Lions' border rival, O'Brien and his assistants made it clear to Issah that they will be making an even bigger push in the coming weeks. "I went back into the locker room after the game," Issah said. "Coach [Ron] Vanderlinden, Coach [Larry] FOLLOW RECRUITING ONLINE Visit bwi.rivals.com for updated information about Penn State's verbal scholarship offers and commitments. 10 J U N E 1 , 2 0 1 2 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M

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