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Lions' recruiting effort must address needs on defense PHI L 'S CORNER its Class of 2013. As of this writing, the Nittany Lions had received 11 verbal commitments, including com- mitments in June from wide receiver William Fuller of Philadelphia, de- fensive back Neiko Robinson of Bratt, Fla., and linebacker Brandon Bell of Mays Landing, N.J. In this space last month, I as- W sessed Penn State's position-by-po- sition recruiting needs on offense. This time, we'll take a close look at the Lions' needs on defense. Through mid-June, Penn State had received six verbal commitments from players who are projected to play defense at the college level. That list includes Robinson and Bell, de- fensive ends Curtis Cothran of New- town, Pa., and Garrett Sickels of Lit- tle Silver, N.J.; cornerback Ross Dou- glas of Avon, Ohio; and defensive tackle Greg Webb of Sicklerville, N.J. By our estimate, Penn State has between 20 and 22 scholarships to give out. If that's the case, it's likely that between four and six additional players will be recruited on the de- fensive side of the ledger between now and signing day (Feb. 6, 2013). DEFENSIVE END SCHOLARSHIPS 7: Pete Massaro (Sr./Sr.), Sean Stanley (Sr./Sr.), C.J. Olaniyan (Jr./So.), Brad Bars (Jr./So.), Deion Barnes (So./Fr.), Anthony Zettel (So./Fr.) and Evan Schwan (Fr./Fr.) OUTLOOK Penn State has seven de- fensive ends in the fold as it gets set to enter preseason practice, and there's a good chance that an eighth 8 A U G U S T 2 1 , 2 0 1 2 ith a little over seven months to go until signing day next February, Penn State has al- ready recruited about half of player will be available. In addition to the players listed above, it's pos- sible that Jordan Kerner will be ready to go, as well. Kerner, who stands 6-foot-4, 245 pounds, missed the entire 2011 sea- son with an ACL injury he suffered last September. He is expected to be- gin preseason practice in August at the weakside defensive end position. In a separate development, red- shirt junior Kyle Baublitz has been moved from strongside defensive end to the three-technique defensive tackle spot. But even with Baublitz out of the mix, coach Bill O'Brien seemed comfortable with the Nittany Lions' depth at the position coming out of spring practice. "There are a bunch of guys there who can play," he said. "We will ro- tate guys in and out to keep every- one fresh. That is the best way to play an entire defensive line." Massaro and Stanley are listed as the starters on the depth chart Penn State released on June 6, with Olaniyan and Barnes backing them up. Zettel, Bars and Kerner will supply depth. Schwan is expected to be redshirted this coming fall. Only Massaro and Stanley are scheduled to graduate following the 2012 season, and Massaro is expect- ed to petition the NCAA for a sixth year of eligibility due to medical hardship. Given the Nittany Lions' manpower situation, O'Brien has stated that he believes the team needs to recruit only two defensive ends. That means the coaches' work here is done. They have already got- ten commitments from Sickels at the strongside defensive end position and Cothran at the weakside spot. TOP PROSPECT Garrett Sickels is 60th overall in Rivals' national rankings. SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE 2 (Penn State already has received verbal commit- ments from Sickles and Cothran.) DEFENSIVE TACKLE SCHOLARSHIPS 8: Jordan Hill (Sr./Sr.), James Terry (Sr./Sr.), DaQuan Jones (Jr./Jr.), Kyle Baublitz (Jr./So.), Brian Gaia (Fr./Fr.), Derek Dowrey (Fr./Fr.), Jamil Pollard (Fr./Fr.) and Austin Johnson (Fr./Fr.) OUTLOOK With Baublitz moving from defensive end to the three-technique defensive tackle spot, Penn State should enter preseason practice four-deep at these spots. Hill and Baublitz are one-two at the left tack- le (one-technique) position, while Jones and Terry comprise the two- deep setup at the right tackle (three- technique) spot. However, that four-deep situation at defensive tackle is tenuous at best. Of the incoming freshmen, only Pollard and Johnson are 100 percent certain to begin their Penn State careers at defensive tackle. The coaches might have other plans for Gaia and Dowrey. With Hill and Terry set to graduate after the 2012 season, Penn State will most likely sign two defensive tackles next February. The coaches already have a verbal commitment from Webb, who is rated by Rivals as one of the top six defensive tack- les in the country. Webb is projected to play the one-technique spot at the college level. The Nittany Lions' top remaining defensive tackle prospect is Eddie Vanderdoes of Placer, Calif. Vander- does is rated the 21st-best overall prospect in the country by Rivals. One of the reasons he is so highly rated is because he could play either the three-technique defensive tackle position or strongside defensive end spot at the college level. TOP PROSPECT Eddie Vanderdoes SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE 2 INSIDE LINEBACKER SCHOLARSHIPS 3: Mike Yancich (Sr./Sr.), Glenn Carson (Jr./Jr.) and Khairi Fortt (Jr./Jr.) OUTLOOK Fortt has moved here from the Sam outside linebacker position, setting up an interesting preseason battle between the 6-2, 238-pound junior and Carson, the team's re- turning starter. Yancich will be needed to supply depth. Of the three players at this posi- tion, only Yancich will be graduating following the 2012 season. With Fortt and Carson returning in 2013, one might expect Penn State to re- cruit only one inside linebacker in its upcoming class. But that doesn't appear to be the case. The Nittany Lions haven't recruited a pure in- side linebacker in the past two re- cruiting classes and need to replen- ish their depth at this position. The Nittany Lions have already landed one inside linebacker in Bell. They are also recruiting Al-Rasheed Benton of Malcolm X. Shabazz High in Newark, N.J., and Michael Deeb of Plantation, Fla., for the second posi- tion. TOP PROSPECT Al-Rasheed Benton SCHOLARSHIPS AVAILABLE 2 OUTSIDE LINEBACKER SCHOLARSHIPS 6: (Sam) Gerald Hodges (Sr./Sr.), Mike Hull (Jr./So.) and Ny- eem Wartman (Fr./Fr.); (Will) Michael Mauti (Sr./Sr.), Jamie Van Fleet (Sr./Sr.) and Ben Kline (So./Fr.) OUTLOOK It's essential for Penn State to sign two outside linebackers next February. That's because Hodges, Mauti and Van Fleet are getting set to wrap up their playing careers this season, while the past two recruit- ing classes produced only two out- side linebackers: Kline and Wart- man. This year, Penn State has already extended offers to 16 prospects who are capable of playing either outside linebacker spot. The most highly 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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