Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/703041
J une might have appeared to be a slow month for Penn State on the recruit- ing trail, but in reality, it was anything but. Following the spring evaluation pe- riod, the coaching sta6 wasted little time taking advantage of the NCAA's de- cision to overturn the ruling against satellite camps. From June 3-24, James Franklin and his assistants attended 10 o6-campus camps, including stops in Atlanta, Detroit, Tampa and Charlotte. The sta6 also hosted two on-campus camps, as well as a seven-on-seven tournament on June 18. The 5nal two camps of the summer were set to take place July 15 and 17, bookending one of the biggest recruiting events of the year: the Lasch Bash barbecue. The ultimate measure of a program's recruiting e6orts is the commitments they yield, and for the 5rst time since Franklin took charge in 2014, Penn State didn't receive any commitments in ei- ther May or June. It's important to bear in mind, however, that the Nittany Li- ons' upcoming class will be their small- est since the NCAA rolled back its sanc- tions against the program. While the ex- act number of signees likely won't be known until November or December, we're currently projecting roughly 17 or 18 prospects for the Class of 2017. As everyone saw 5rsthand in 2012, '13 and early in the 2014 cycle before the sanc- tions were reduced, the coaching sta6 has to be selective when it's working with limited numbers. That, in turn, means that some patience will be re- quired. Extending o6ers simply to gain momentum won't do the program any long-term good. But there are two position groups – linebacker and wide receiver – at which the team will need multiple commit- ments before February, and the sta6 was able to make a few o6ers, several of which could lead to commitments soon- er rather than later. What follows is a position-by-position breakdown of Penn State's Class of 2017, as we exam- ine which prospects the sta6 is targeting to 5nish o6 the class: QUARTERBACK PLAYERS RETURNING IN 2017 3 PROJECTED SIGNEES 1 OUTLOOK Following the commitment of Rivals250 prospect Sean Cli6ord, Penn State appears to be content at the QB position for 2017. During the fall and early winter, the sta6 was showing in- terest in three-star quarterback Kasim Hill of Washington, D.C., but a7er new o6ensive coordinator Joe Moorhead was hired, the sta6 backed o6 of Hill. He went on to make a verbal commitment to Maryland. Cli6ord has been excellent this spring and summer, earning top-performer honors at the Rivals100 Five-Star Chal- lenge in Atlanta. He also recently partic- ipated in the Elite 11 Finals in Beaverton, Nittany Lions continue to pursue elite prospects A N A L Y S I S B Y R Y A N S N Y D E R F O O T B A L L R E C R U I T I N G PHILLY STYLE Swift would solidify an already strong backfield if the Nit- tany Lions were able to keep him in his home state. Photo courtesy of Rivals.com