CONTENTS
15|UC&P: STEVEN BENCH BWI's Up Close & Personal se- ries returns with a profile of the Lions' newest QB.
16|UC&P: DA'QUAN DAVIS The Maryland defensive back develops into a big-time prospect.
19|UC&P: JAKE KILEY The New Hampshire athlete shines after deciding to focus on football.
20|AROUND THE BIG TEN Ohio State and Michigan lead the way in recruiting.
23|UC&P: AKEEL LYNCH PSU's newest tailback meets a major need.
24|THE NATIONAL SCENE Ala- bama and Texas vie for top honors.
26|STAFF REACTIONS The Li- ons' new coaches discuss their first recruiting effort.
AKEEL LYNCH
S IGNING DAY SPECIAL
THE CLASS OF 2012
The Nittany Lions begin to address a few of the team's most pressing questions with the addition of a 19-member freshman class
W W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M
RYAN SNYDER & TIM OWEN B L U E WH I T E I L L U S T R AT ED
hen it was all said and done, Penn State's Class of 2012 answered some questions and raised some others. The Nittany Lions got off to a fast start and seemed to be on their way to recruiting a top-20 class, but the Jerry Sandusky scan- dal, the dismissal of Joe Paterno and the eventual dispersal of most of his coaching staff changed everything.
Hired in early January, new coach Bill O'Brien
and his staff were forced to hit the ground run- ning. Much of their effort was aimed at keeping previously committed players from departing. Adding to the challenge was the fact that O'Brien was busy overseeing the New England Patriots' offense through the Super Bowl. In the end, the Nittany Lions' class finished at
No. 50 overall according to Rivals.com. It includes two four-star prospects, 11 three-stars and six two-stars. If you totaled up the rankings, they
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