Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/83706
Penn State at some point this fall, so he's one to watch closely. Issah, of Harrisburg (Pa.) Central Dauphin, maintains that Penn State is still in the running, but it's much more likely that he will sign elsewhere come February. 4. OFFENSIVE LINE VERBAL COMMITMENTS Brendan Mahon, An- drew Nelson POTENTIAL PROSPECT Chasz Wright With Mahon projected to play at the guard position and Nelson versatile enough to play outside or inside, it looks as though Penn State would like to land someone who could play offen- sive tackle. That makes Wright, of Woodbridge (Va.) C.D. Hylton, an easy choice for a scholarship offer. Wright has made it clear that North Carolina State has the early edge, but he's also said he won't make a decision until late in his senior season or afterward, so Penn State has plenty of time to make a push. Educational opportunities are very important to him, and he's already stated that Penn State has the edge in that de- partment. 5. WIDE RECEIVER POTENTIAL PROSPECTS Brian Lemelle, Andre Patton, Richie Anderson The Nittany Lions are still in the hunt with Lemelle, who is from Har- risburg (Pa.) Bishop McDevitt, but the staff has reached out to a few other prospects, including Patton, of Wilm- ington (Del.) St. Elizabeth. Richie An- derson, as previously mentioned, could play slot receiver or running back, but Patton projects as a legitimate target to play the X receiver position in O'Brien's offense. For now, Patton is focused on his senior high school season, but he could end up taking an official visit to Penn State late in the year. Penn State re- cently received his transcripts, and there are indications that he's inter- ested. However, it does appear that he favors West Virginia, Rutgers, Iowa and Purdue. time to hit the road. Despite having only a few scholar- H ships left for 2013, the staff wasted little time this year, as both Larry Johnson and Stan Hixon used their time wisely the Friday before the Virginia game. As the team did walkthroughs with the majority of the staff that afternoon, both coaches were spotted at a few schools on the drive down to Char- lottesville. But no matter how hard the coaches recruit Virginia, Maryland and really any state in which they've had success in the past, it will be the relationships they form in Pennsylvania these next three months that could very well deter- mine how Penn State weathers the NCAA sanctions it received over the summer. The way the staff sees it, these relationships could allow them to eventually prove the doubters wrong. "These coaches have the ability, the support staff and the facilities to make a lot of these in-state kids successful at that level, I have no doubt about that," said George Howanitz, who coached Nyeem Wartman at Valley View High School in Archbald, Pa. "Just in my area, there's a lot of talent that goes unnoticed until late in their high school careers. "Those guys are all across Penn- sylvania, though, and you know many of those players are also the type of guys who want to learn, want to get better and do anything they can to contribute to the team. There are a lot of guys out there like that, there are a lot of kids who PSU finds hope in home state igh school football is in full swing across the Mid-Atlantic region, meaning one thing for Bill O'Brien's assistants: It's grew up Penn State fans who are like that, so Penn State just needs to find them." Since the recruiting business boomed in the early 2000s, more than a few blue-chip Pennsylvania prospects have disappointed the Penn State faithful by choosing to go elsewhere to play their college football. That was the case a bit too often during the final decade of the Joe Paterno era. But you don't have to think long or hard to recall a few prospects who went under the radar in high school only to later emerge as successful college play- ers. One who instantly comes to my mind is Dan Persa, Northwestern's starting quarterback in 2010 and '11. The Bethlehem native was giv- en a three-star ranking coming out of high school, with offers from Akron, Connecticut, Temple, West Virginia and Northwestern. Persa was not a superstar at the college level, but with a below-aver- age offensive line and rushing game, he did a pretty good job tak- ing the Wildcats to two consecutive bowl games. What makes him all the more interesting is that he grew up a Nittany Lion fan, camped in State College growing up and threw only eight interceptions throughout his entire high school career. No coaching staff is perfect, and there will always be a few Dan Per- sas who slip through the cracks. But with limited scholarships to of- fer and the majority of four- and five-star prospects out of reach the next couple of years, this staff will have to find players who want to be Penn Staters, who want to prove the doubters wrong. Pennsylvania has the homegrown talent to allow the Nittany Lions to do just that.