Blue White Illustrated

F E B R U A R Y 2 , 2 0 1 7 B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M 2 staff enjoyed was any indication, he may eventually have more than one tro- phy to display to prospective Nittany Lions. The Lions signed 21 players in this year's class, bolstering their roster in a number of key areas, including the offen- sive line, the receiver and linebacker corps and the secondary. They capital- ized on their 2016 championship run, a season in which they looked spectacular both in victory and in defeat. Some of the players they recruited, most notably five-star defensive back Lamont Wade, were admittedly swayed by the team's strong showing. But many others, such as four-star Cincinnati quarterback Sean Clifford, bought in well before the 2016 season even began, confident that a turnaround was in the offing. For all the joking about Penn State's sudden return to the national spotlight, the truth, Franklin said, is that most of the players in this year's class were sold on the Lions before they won eight in a row en route to the confer- ence title game and Rose Bowl. "I think it had a little bit of an impact this year," he said, "but not as much as people think. I think where it's probably going to have the biggest impact is the '18 class and the '19 class. These guys were sitting in their living rooms and at their high schools watching Penn State be really successful and play an exciting brand of football. "I do think it helped us a little bit. La- mont Wade, for example, I think it helped us a little bit with Lamont. I felt like we were in really good shape with his family. … His dad realized that Lamont wanted to see that. Lamont is a guy who had been going through this recruiting process for a long time and wanted to see it all. I think it probably had a little bit of an effect on him." At the end of signing day, Penn State's class was rated 12th nationally by Rivals.com, the team's best finish in Franklin's three years at Penn State. The Nittany Lions were rated third in the Big Ten behind Ohio State (No. 2) and Michi- gan (No. 4). Franklin was quick to note that the uptick in the Lions' recruiting has been going on for several years. In the three years before he ar- rived, Penn State's average finish in the Rivals.com rankings was 44th. Two of those three classes were assembled under the shadow of the NCAA's sanctions, so the rankings were skewed by PSU's unprece- dented circumstances. But Franklin was still dealing with the fallout from the scandal when he arrived, as well as the roster shortcomings that resulted, and his first four classes have ranked 19th on average. Subtract his first class, which was a mix of players who had been re- cruited by Bill O'Brien and a handful of late additions that Franklin had landed aBer taking the job in January 2014, and that average rises to 16th. The Lions' fourth-year coach said he was proud of those numbers. "We still have a lot of work to do," he said, "but we've made re- ally good progress." That progress may well continue next year. The Nittany Lions already have lined up seven commitments for the Class of 2018, including a five-star player and four four-star players. The class is garnering high praise, and while Franklin dismissed the first batch of early evalua- tions on Wednesday, insisting that "re- cruiting rankings right now are ridiculous," they do offer evidence that Penn State is on the right track. Its efforts will continue in the months and years ahead, and the Class of 2017 will be a key component of whatever success the program enjoys. When he talked to his newest players on Wednes- day morning, Franklin told them to relish the moment but also to be mindful of what lies ahead. "They think they've worked hard up to this point," he said. "But the real work starts tomorrow morning at 6 a.m. I want them to enjoy tonight and kind of savor it. We'll do the same thing as a coaching staff. Tonight we're going to my house. Anybody who lives in Port Matilda, I apologize. We're going to get aBer it pretty good tonight and then give the coaches a long weekend off. "But we'll have a staff meeting Monday morning at 7 a.m. and it's back at it." Defensive line coach Sean Spencer affixes the name of recruit Jonathan Sutherland to the signing day tote board at the Lasch Building. Sutherland was one of 21 players to join the Nittany Lions' highly regarded Class of 2017. Photo by Tim Owen

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