Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/83706
it's possible Penn State will hand out an offer to another running back in the coming weeks. Anderson could work well in Penn State's system. We haven't seen much of the offense so far, but under O'Brien, the New England Patriots often passed to running backs coming out of the backfield. Anderson has proven he can do just that, so this could be a good fit if Anderson finds himself reconsidering his commitment to Maryland. Clay, of Lancaster (Pa.) Catholic, is another name to remember. His 442 yards rushing and six touchdowns against Dallastown earlier this season were impressive to say the least, and Penn State's staff certainly took notice. Another option is Phillips, of Archbald (Pa.) Valley View, who made a recent visit to Penn State. He's a north-south runner who could fit the Big Ten style, but it's still too early to tell where Penn State stands with him. 3. LINEBACKER VERBAL COMMITMENTS Brandon Bell POTENTIAL PROSPECTS Zayd Issah, Buddy Brown, Al-Rasheed Benton, Jonathan Walton Bell remains solid and will likely stay Checking in with the verbally committed members of Penn State's Class of 2013 PROGRESS REPORT BRANDON BELL With 27 seconds left in a game against Egg Harbor Township, Bell caught a 24-yard pass that could have given Oakcrest High the lead. But Bell was tackled at the 8-yard line and Oakcrest went on to lose, 14-9, on Sept. 7. ADAM BRENEMAN Breneman's torn ACL will keep him out of action for the entire season, but even in his ab- sence, Cedar Cliff High got off to a fast start, winning its first two games. Quarterback Andrew Ford, a 2014 prospect, threw for 578 yards and 10 touchdowns in his first two games, including a 319-yard, seven-touch- down performance against Southwestern High School on Sept. 6. CURTIS COTHRAN Council Rock North lost its first two games, including a 58-21 loss to Central Bucks South on Sept. 7. Cothran's stats have not been made avail- able. CHRISTIAN HACKENBERG The Rivals100 quarterback for Fork Union Military Academy went 6 for 11 for 81 yards and two passing touchdowns against Goochland on Sept. 7. He also had a touchdown on a 3-yard run. Hackenberg bounced back from what he called the worst game of his career a week earlier, a game against Georgetown Prep in which he completed only 2 of 16 passes for 22 yards and was intercepted twice. Through three games, Hackenberg was 21 of 54, with three touchdown passes and two interceptions. He also had two rushing touchdowns. BRENDAN MAHON Mahon and his Randolph High team- mates started their season on a winning note, defeat- ing Pope John XXIII, 27-18, on Sept. 7. Mahon esti- mates that he had roughly 15 pancake blocks. ANDREW NELSON Hershey won its first two games, in- cluding a 36-32 victory over Elizabethtown on Sept. 7. Nelson's stats were not made available. NEIKO ROBINSON Robinson is serving a six-game suspen- sion handed down by the Florida High School Athletic Association after he threw a punch in a game. Northview split its first two games, defeating John Paul II, 60-0, on Aug. 31 and losing a heartbreaker the following week to Marianna, 48-42. GARRETT SICKELS Sickels recorded nine tackles in Red Bank Regional's 47-0 season-opening loss to Red Bank Catholic on Sept. 8. Three of his tackles were for losses. JORDAN SMITH Smith has already used his four years of high school eligibility, meaning he won't play this year for H.D. Woodson. -R.S. firm through the coming months. Be- cause he's projected to play in the mid- dle, Penn State will be targeting outside linebackers. That probably rules out Benton of Newark (N.J.) Shabazz High. Though it wouldn't be a complete sur- prise to see him join the Class of 2013, Benton is not the type of linebacker Penn State is interested in at the mo- ment. However, Brown, of Williamstown, N.J., does fit that outside linebacker mold, so it will be interesting to see how hard Penn State pursues him in the coming months. Brown's father re- cently said his son will most likely visit