Blue White Illustrated

J ust a few weeks ago in these pages, I laid out a few reasons why Penn State needed to 8nish its season strong. At the time, I was expecting seven or eight wins, maybe nine if they could get hot, but I never expected the victory over Ohio State. Most important, I didn't foresee how that win could propel this team to something special. But heading into its matchup with In- diana, Penn State was ranked No. 10 in the College Football Playo9 poll. The Lions were coming o9 a 41-14 victory over Iowa, last season's Big Ten West Di- vision champion and a Rose Bowl partic- ipant, and had shown that they're capable of competing with the confer- ence's heavyweights. But if Penn State is going to have con- sistent success against the likes of Michigan and Ohio State, recruiting will be crucial. That's not rocket science. Al- most all of you know that by now, just like most of you also know that recruit- ing isn't much of an issue for James Franklin and his coaching sta9. Before they even coached a game at Penn State, Franklin and his assistants li;ed the 2014 class into the top 25. Then, when given a full year to show what they could do, the sta9 put together one of the best classes that Penn State had seen since the start of websites like Rivals.com, 8n- ishing No. 15 overall in the Class of 2015 rankings. That class is actually a major reason why the Nittany Lions are in the position they're in today, as it featured 14 players who have contributed this season, including Saquon Barkley, John Reid, Kevin Givens and Manny Bowen. Penn State's current recruiting class, the Class of 2017, has a limited number of scholarships available, but the suc- cess we've seen this season should pay dividends down the stretch. Five-star defensive back Lamont Wade is still the big 8sh. He has three o:cial visits re- maining, which will prove to be impor- tant, but Franklin and assistant coach Terry Smith have done an excellent job with the player and his family. Heading into the season, progress on the 8eld was arguably Wade's top concern. He had previously spoken highly of the coach- ing sta9, campus, facilities and more, so that bodes well if you're a PSU fan. The upturn in Penn State's on-8eld re- sults could prove to be important with other players, too. Linebacker Nathan Proctor has spoken very highly of what he's watched this season. He also made sure to set his o:cial visit to Penn State before any other school. It will take place Jan. 20-21, which is the same weekend Penn State will host all of its committed players. This season should also help the sta9 have a strong turnout in February and March, when the coaches host dozens of 2018 and '19 prospects for junior days. With four prospects already committed in next year's recruiting class, it's the 2018 class that could prove to be the most special of all. Heading into the Michigan State game, Penn State has hosted at least 25 high school juniors who already have an o9er. Of those players, 18 came to ei- ther the Ohio State or Iowa game. Sure, there are still a couple of games remaining this season. But even if the Lions do trip up, they have already shown that they're on the rise. Every win from here on out should be icing on the cake when it comes to recruiting, as PSU has proven that it's well ahead of where most observers expected it to be at this stage. That should only make things easier on the recruiting trail. ■ Nittany Lions' on-field success could lead to recruiting wins LOOKING UP Franklin guided Penn State to six consecutive victories in Oc- tober and early November. The winning streak helped reassure recruits that the Nittany Lion program is headed in the right direction. Photo by Steve Manuel

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