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Ethan Grunkemeyer impressed at the Elite 11, another weekend of official visitors, and more!

FOUR-STAR WIDE RECEIVER TARGET OPENS RECRUITMENT BACK UP

We will start with one of the surprises of the weekend. Four-star Philadelphia wide receiver Tyseer Denmark made it back to campus. This came after a planned unofficial visit for the spring fell through after word leaked out and Oregon squashed it.

Sunday afternoon Denmark de-committed from the Ducks, who he had been committed to since November. All signs now point toward Denmark committing to the Nittany Lions. When will that happen? We will have to wait and see. However, the Nittany Lions now appear to be the clear leaders for one of their top wide receiver targets.

Tip of the cap to James Franklin and Marques Hagans for doing a great job to get Penn State not just back into Denmark’s recruitment, but to seemingly have the Nittany Lions now in line to land a commitment from the Roman Catholic standout.

ANOTHER BUSY OFFICIAL VISIT WEEKEND

Defensive tackle Benedict Umeh has as high a ceiling as anyone that Penn State is recruiting this cycle. This past weekend he was on campus for his official visit.

Entering the official visit the Nittany Lions likely held a slight lead for Umeh, who had already officially visited Duke and Wisconsin. Next up for Umeh is an official visit to Stanford. It likely goes without saying that this is a recruiting in which academics are vital.

Penn State seemed to hit it out of the park with Umeh and his family on his official visit. While Penn State may not stack up academically to Duke and Stanford, when it comes to football they are far superior. Additionally, proximity is working in Penn State’s favor as Umeh is a Toronto native playing his high school football in Connecticut.

Umeh’s recruitment is one that won’t be over until after his official visit to Stanford this weekend. But, as of now, the Nittany Lions are the team to beat.

Another defensive tackle Penn State seems to lead for coming out of the weekend is T.A. Cunningham.

Cunningham’s recruitment has been a bit of whirlwind. He’s gone from Florida to Georgia to California and now back to Florida. Throughout, the Nittany Lions have remained a consistent in his recruitment.

The four-star prospect is set to play for Miami Central High School this fall. Cunningham has hinted at his recruitment potentially wrapping up soon. If it does, the Nittany Lions could be the choice.

A third defensive tackle prospect who officially visited Penn State over the weekend was DeAndre Cook. Entering the weekend Penn State appeared to hold a slight lead for the three-star Washington D.C. prospect. After the visit all signs point toward the Nittany Lions being Cook’s leaders and likely landing spot when he announces his college decision.

As Penn State searches for another offensive tackle in their class after the de-commitment of Deryc Plazz, four-star North Carolina product Ethan Calloway was also on campus for an official visit.

While Calloway’s recruitment is one that has long been hard to read, Penn State has long been a consistent player in it. He visited for the White Out last October and was back for an unofficial visit in January. In addition to Penn State, he’s already officially visit Florida and Georgia with a trip to LSU on tap this weekend.

It’s hard to say which direction Calloway’s recruitment is going. However, there is no doubt that the Nittany Lions are firmly in the mix. Whenever Calloway’s college decision comes, it would not be a shock to see Penn State be the choice.

MIDWEEK OFFICIAL VISIT

In addition to this past weekend being busy with official visits, Penn State also hosted a four-star official visitor mid-week last week. That visitor was Ohio defensive end Brian Robinson.

For some time now Michigan has looked like the slam dunk leaders in Robinson’s recruitment. As time has gone on and he has not committed to the Wolverines this has come into question.

Both Kentucky and Penn State appear to have killed it with Robinson during his official visits. Penn State is still likely running second at best in Robinson’s recruitment, but they certainly have put themselves firmly in the mix with a strong OV.

ETHAN GRUNKEMEYER IMPRESSES AT THE ELITE 11

Late last week Penn State quarterback commit Ethan Grunkemeyer compete in the Elite 11 Finals in Los Angeles. After having an impressive spring on the camp circuit to earn his Elite 11 Finals invitation, Grunkemeyer continued to impress.

From the start of the week to the finish Grunkemeyer continually flashed his talent, made big boy throws, and impressed.

Grunkemeyer’s performance led to him being on of the top performers at Elite 11 according to both On3 and 247Sports.

Coming out of the Elite 11 Finals it looks like Penn State has a really good quarterback in their class in Grunkemeyer. This looks like another phenomenal evaluation by Mike Yurcich and James Franklin. It would not be a surprise to see Grunkemeyer become a consensus four-star prospect after this performance.

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By: Marty Leap
Title: Blessed & Honored: Ethan Grunkemeyer at the Elite 11, Another OV Weekend, More
Sourced From: www.blackshoediaries.com/2023/6/20/23764281/blessed-honored-ethan-grunkemeyer-at-the-elite-11-another-ov-weekend-more-penn-state-recruiting-bsd
Published Date: Tue, 20 Jun 2023 14:00:00 +0000

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