Blue White Illustrated

LAST WORD T I M O W E N | O W E N . T I M . B W I @ G M A I L . C O M t was a combination of forward thinking, relentlessness and flexibil- ity that led James Franklin to a 23- member recruiting class, ranked fifth nationally, and his best ever personally. With the help of his staff, Franklin as- sembled Penn State's highest-rated class of the internet recruiting era. If the Nittany Lions are to have similar success in 2019, those traits will be re- lied upon even more. The potential for such an effort grew with the late-January hiring of running backs coach Ja'Juan Seider, who is deeply connected in Florida and other Southern states that PSU has only re- cruited intermittently in recent years. Like some of his other assistants, Franklin was drawn to Seider due to his unique personality and athletic history as a quarterback both at the Division I level and professionally. But make no mistake, Seider's background as a high school coach in South Florida during the 2000s, his ties to prep programs throughout the state and about a decade's worth of experience recruiting areas south of the Mason-Dixon Line provide an asset to Franklin and his staff that did not previously exist. "You don't hire Ja'Juan unless you're going to make a recruiting shift," Franklin said, "and you don't hire Ja'Juan and not recruit Florida. It doesn't make any sense." The timing is opportune. Due to the early signing period in De- cember, Penn State has already gotten off to a nearly unprecedented head start, creating relationships with many mem- bers of the Class of 2019. Only two verbal commitments had been secured as of mid-February, but scholarships have been going out at a frenzied pace. Up- wards of 50 have been extended since the turn of the calendar year. Immediately following Seider's arrival in late January, a series of them went out to prospects throughout the Sunshine State. "We have recruited Florida in the past, but obviously, once you make this deci- sion, you're going to recruit it harder," Franklin said. "He is going to get us into some doors because of his relationships and his reputation that maybe we weren't involved in before." Expanding the territory might grow into a necessity as Franklin forms his next recruiting class. Despite sending out more than 140 of- fers, Penn State has extended only two to prospects in Pennsylvania: corner- back Keaton Ellis of State College and linebacker target Andre White of Har- risburg. Ellis committed to the Nittany Lions in September. "There just haven't been as many players," Franklin said. "You have to be able to broaden your nets so that you're able to handle that and to overcome what may be a down year in the state or a down year in the region." Enter Seider. "When you say Florida, that won't be the only area I recruit. But it will give us a chance to go out and compete and get a couple kids here and there who may be difference-makers, that we don't have in our backyard for whatever reason for that year," Seider said. "That's what Ohio State is doing, what Michigan is doing and what Notre Dame is doing." Prior to his one season with the Florida Gators, Seider coached at West Virginia, an institution from which he has two degrees. A common perception he battled while with the Mountaineers was that recruits from Florida and other Southern states don't want to go north for their college careers, to play in the higher latitudes and colder weather. However, he has found that's not a difficult misapprehension to overcome. In fact, he's done it himself. Seider is a native of Belle Glade, Fla., but he's spent much of his adult life in West Vir- ginia both as a player and coach, having also worked a few seasons for Marshall. Opposing coaches often use the cold weather as a scare tactic to keep South- ern prospects close to home, he said, but there's a limit to its effectiveness. "Too much negative recruiting hurts you more than it helps you," Seider said. "Kids adjust. Every kid wants to play in the NFL, so they have to get over that weather part of it." As a member of Penn State's staff, he has a lot of positive selling points at his disposal. The Nittany Lions have put together a pair of 11-win seasons, played in consecutive New Year's Six bowl games and are approaching the upper echelon of college football once again. The program's recent history gives players with backgrounds like Seider's another reason to make the same leap that he did some 20 years ago. "When you have a product like we're seeing right now and the success that the program is having, with BCS-level games, kids see that on TV," Seider said. "Every kid's objective is to go to school right now and then go to the NFL and get a great education. Well, Penn State offers that." One reason he was hired by Franklin was to ensure that more recruits are aware of that possibility than might have been the case previously. The Lions are taking a forward-thinking approach aimed at helping compensate for a down year in Pennsylvania. They're showing relentlessness in not allowing the geo- graphical distribution of next year's class to affect the final outcome, and they're also showing that they have the flexibil- ity to go wherever necessary in order to land another top-10 class. As the signing periods for the Class of 2019 approach, that appears to be what's needed. ■ Going the extra mile I

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