||

It looks like the Nittany Lions are set to add another four-star talent to their recruiting class this week

FOUR-STAR RUNNING BACK SET FOR FRIDAY COMMITMENT

On Friday, four-star Wisconsin running back Corey Smith is set to announce his college decision. All signs point toward Smith choosing the Nittany Lions.

Smith was recently on campus for the Blue White Game, and there was some smoke that he might commit coming out of that visit. Well, after going home and taking time to allow the post-visit high to die down the Nittany Lions still look like the favorites to land Smith.

A teammate of recent offensive line commit Donovan Harbour, Smith would continue Penn State’s new found recruiting momentum in the state of Wisconsin. Smith would pair with Quinton Martin to give Penn State one of the best running back duos in the 2024 recruiting cycle.

QB TARGET ANNOUNCE TOP 3

Other than Florida State commit Luke Kromenhoek, odds are Penn State has now quarterback higher on their board this cycle than St. Frances Academy’s Michael Van Buren. Currently set to announce his college decision on July 8th, Van Buren has announced a top 3 of Maryland, Oregon, and Penn State.

While the home state Terps made his top 3, Oregon and Penn State appear to be the schools competing for Van Buren’s commitment. For much of his recruitment it appeared the Nittany Lions were the team to beat for Van Buren, but that appears to be changing.

Van Buren visited Oregon last weekend and will be back for their spring game this weekend. At this point the Ducks appear to be surging in his recruitment. Despite his plans to announce on July 8th, it would not be a surprise to see Van Buren commit to Oregon this weekend.

It looks like Van Buren will be the latest in a long, long list of St. Frances Academy kids Penn State recruited as hard as anyone but failed to land. You can’t just completely ignore the biggest powerhouse high school in your region, but recruiting SFA kids has been a total and complete waste of time for Penn State.

NOTABLE NEW QB OFFER

Regardless of what happens with Van Buren, the plan has long been for this to be a two quarterback class. A new quarterback that is emerging on the coach staff’s radar is Ohio signal caller Ethan Grunkemeyer who picked up an offer from the Nittany Lions late last week.

Grunkemeyer is currently one of the more under-the-radar quarterbacks in the cycle. His film is much better than his rating and offer list. He also works with QB guru Brad Maendler who helped mold Drew Allar into the top QB prospect in the country.

Grunkemeyer also plays some of the best competition in Ohio at Olentangy High School. Odds are, Grunkemeyer is a QB who is about to see his recruiting stock rise with the summer camp circuit and summer workouts. Mike Yurcich and James Franklin being Grunkemeyer’s first big time offer could help make the Nittany Lions a huge player in this recruitment.

--------------------------------

By: Marty Leap
Title: Blessed & Honored: Four-Star Running Back Target Set to Commit, QB Target’s Top 3, & More
Sourced From: www.blackshoediaries.com/2023/4/25/23694010/blessed-honored-four-star-running-back-target-set-to-commit-qb-targets-top-3-penn-state-recruiting
Published Date: Tue, 25 Apr 2023 13:00:00 +0000

Read More