Preseason Penn State Recruiting Report Card - Offense
With the season starting in just a few days this is the perfect time for a look at where the Penn State football team stands in the recruiting race. There is certainly a long away to go until signing day and a lot of things can change but on paper the Lions are off to a quick start (at least numbers wise) with 16 verbal commitments. Certainly it is impossible to predict how the Class of 2009 will end up and the on field success of this year's version of the Penn State football team will definitely have a huge impact on what talents from across the country decide to cast their lot with JoePa and Co. With 25 or more scholarships to give Penn State needs to prioritize skill athletes and speed in this recruiting class. This particular feature will be delivered in two parts, with the offensive report card now and the defensive report card later in the week.
QUARTERBACK:
Current grade: Incomplete
Current verbal commitments: none
These days on the internet there is a relatively new "buzzword" that has come to the forefront on websites and message boards. That buzzword is "fail." In the realm of college football recruiting nowhere is the word fail more apropos than when used to describe QB recruiting at Penn State. Recruiting at the Quarterback position this decade at Penn State has been nothing short of atrocious. Yes PSU landed blue chippers Anthony Morelli and Pat Devlin this decade, but in reality the Nittany Lions back doored their way to each and quite honestly had both fall in the laps late in the process. Aside from those two particular years Penn State has failed miserably in trying to land a top signal caller.
A major mistake that the PSU staff has made several times this decade when it came to QB recruiting was "putting all their eggs in one basket." They seems to primarily set their sights on one kid and more or less forsake all others. This certainly was the case with Chad Henne and Terrelle Pryor. The Penn State coaches just didn't seem to learn their lesson.
This year didn't start out that way as Penn State offered Kevin Newsome, Tate Forcier, Morgan Newton, and depending on who you believe Tom Savage. QB targets quickly went by the wayside though this recruiting season as Newsome and Savage both committed elsewhere early on (to Michigan and Rutgers respectively) and Newton made it clear that he simply wasn't interested. That basically leaves PSU in the familiar position of having all QB recruiting eggs in one basket. That being the basket of Tate Forcier. The California gunslinger has serious interest in PSU and plans to enroll in college early. Forcier has stated that he will visit PSU officially and has the Lions solidly in his top 3 along with Michigan and Florida. There are a few other schools still in the mix as well.
Does PSU have a realistic shot at landing one of the top QBs in the west? They most certainly do. With some kids depth charts mean a lot and there is no QB depth chart anywhere in college football that is more favorable than Penn States. Of course, as all PSU fans know, there is a perception out there that Jay Paterno cannot develop QBs. This clearly works against Penn State. And Tate Forcier comes from an intelligent football family with two older brothers who went through the recruiting process. So it remains to be seen if the Forcier family will take that leap of faith and sign on with Joe Paterno and Penn State.
The fact that Penn State has not signed a QB in two years makes it beyond imperative that they not only sign a QB in this class, it makes it imperative that they sign a top QB. Apparently it's Tate Forcier or bust. As in past years the PSU staff is playing a dangerous game with QB recruiting. It looks like the past lessons again have not been learned. If Forcier goes elsewhere the terms Epic Fail won't be enough to describe the catastrophe that PSU will have on its hands at the QB position.
TAILBACK:
Current grade: C-
Current verbal commitments: Curtis Dukes
It really doesn't make much sense but PSU has had great difficulty in landing top end TBs in recent years as well. This is perplexing because an argument could be made that Penn State is Tailback U. Penn State gets is tailbacks to the NFL. That cannot be disputed. And at PSU TBs get to carry the ball a lot. So the fact that the Lions have had such difficulty attracting top TB prospects is strange to say the least.
As for this recruiting class PSU got an early July verbal commitment from big NY TB Curtis Dukes. Dukes ran for around 900 yards and 15 TDs last season and committed to Penn State over offers from Syracuse, Buffalo,and Pitt. Dukes plays small school football in upstate New York and faces a lot of questions regarding the level of competition that he plays against. But Dukes, while not rated highly by the recruiting services, has the look, size, and speed of an elite level Tailback. Dukes goes 6'2 235 lbs and runs a sub 4.5 forty. Those are the measureables of a prototypical Big 10 tailback. If Dukes has the mental toughness required to succeed it college it appears that he has the rest of the package necessary to be big time. Time will tell.
Penn State is looking to add at least one other TB in the class of 2009 besides Dukes. Besides Dukes, the Nittany Lions have also offered scholarships to Brandan Wegher, Jordan Hall (Ohio State commit), Tavon Austin, David Wilson(Virginia Tech commit), Theo Riddick (Notre Dame commit) and possibly Shawne Alston (West Virginia commit).
Tavon Austin is the remaining known offeree who seems to have a strong legitimate interest in PSU. However there are some conflicting reports as to just how high he is on Penn State. But there is no doubting that the Lions needs a back with Austins combination of speed and quickness.
Wegher, while he still lists PSU, seems to be favoring other schools at this time. But the door apparently is not closed.
There certainly are a few other Tailbacks on the PSU radar but at this point none have received written offers. Right now it looks like Austin is the last chance PSU has for a 2nd Tailback in the Class of 2009. He would be a great compliment to the big, bruising Curtis Dukes. But there is a lot of work to be done yet. Other schools including West Virginia and the hometown Terps of Maryland are heavily involved with Austin.
There is no disputing that Penn State needs an infusion of speed on offense and if Austin is not in the cards the staff needs to work overtime to find a player with similar talents who can put some fear into opposing defenses. Penn State needs to get back to stockpiling Tailback talent like they did in the "good old days" and like other top schools do now. They need difference makers in the backfield. While Dukes is a good looking prospect Penn State simply needs more. And if Penn State fails to land Austin or a talent who is somewhat comparable, then Tailback recruiting in the Class of 2009 has to be deemed at least partially a failure. Especially when you consider the number of scholarships that the Nittany Lions have available.
WIDE RECEIVER:
Current grade: D-
Current verbal commitments: Brandon Felder, Curtis Drake, Christian Kuntz
Wide Receiver is another position at which Penn State where failing at recruiting is becoming all too common. Last year PSU flat out fail with regard to WR recruiting, whiffing on all their top targets before finally landing AJ Price.
The Nittany Lion staff tried to start this recruiting season off with a bang at WR by offering Je'Ron Stokes (Tennessee commit), Logan Heastie (West Virginia commit), Jaleel Clark, Tyree Watkins (Virginia commit), Todd Thomas, and Justin Brown early on in the spring. However, as has been the case in recent years, many of the early offerees chose elsewhere quickly. To compound matters PSU clearly mis evaluated Clark early on but to their credit appears to have cooled on him to the point where they aren't recruiting him anymore. Similarly PSU has apparently parted ways with Todd Thomas due to academics. PSU later offered North Carolina WR Jheranie Boyd but it quickly became apparent that he has no interest in PSU. Justin Brown has rapidly become the top WR target on the board for PSU and is a must get. He is on record as stating that Penn State is his current top choice but he has plenty of other suitors (Tennessee, LSU, UNC, NC State, and South Carolina to name a few)and will not be making a decision until after his season.
Penn State landed their first WR of the year in late May when MD speedster Brandon Felder committed to the Nittany Lions. Felder was relatively unknown until a breakout performance at the PSU Nike Camp in Mid May. Felder is slight in stature at only 167 lbs but his 6'2 frame has room to add muscle. Felder impressed onlookers this spring with his speed, quickness, and hands. Last season Felder was highly productive on the field as he caught 40 passes for over 900 yards and 11 TDs. Felder is a bit of a sleeper but looks like a good prospect down the line.
In early June Philadelphia West Catholic QB/Athlete Curtis Drake verbally committed to Penn State over an offer from Northwestern. The 6'0 170 lb Drake was recruited to play WR for the Nittany Lions. The decision to offer Drake so early in the process was a bit puzzling to some as it looked like he favored PSU all along yet there were several more highly rated WR prospects still out there. Drake plays QB for West Catholic and could be considered an "emergency QB" for the Class of 2009 if PSU were to strike out again with their top QB targets. But with Drakes reported 4.7 speed the questions will remain as to why exactly he was offered a scholarship so early (In late April).
The 4th of July fireworks extended to the Lasch building this year when PSU Senior Camp standout Christian Kuntz from Camp Hill, PA Trinity High School committed to the Nittany Lions over offers from UConn, Buffalo, Akron, and Towson. The 6'4 195 lb Kuntz was an unknown commodity until his breakout performance at the PSU summer camp which earned him an offer to play WR for the Nittany Lions. Kuntz plays Tailback for his high school and is a standout hurdler in track having placed 2nd in the 300m hurdles at this past years PIAA State Meet. Kuntz attended several other summer camps at BCS schools (Notre Dame, Virginia, Maryland, Rutgers and Pitt) and failed to earn any offers from any of those powerhouse football schools. The fact that Kuntz has never played WR before has to be a concern as does the fact that he didn't generate much other recruiting interest.
The WR recruiting effort is perilously close to a big, fat "F." And if it were not for our perceived upside of Brandon Felder it would be an F without question. Kuntz and Drake are not going to help PSU overtake Ohio State or Michigan. Those two programs are the benchmarks that Penn State needs to measure itself against. Whatever reason/excuse you want to come up with just doesn't matter. There is no spinning just how poor WR recruiting has been this decade at PSU and how poorly it continues to go. Penn State does not even have a true # 1 WR on their board. I'll even go one step further to say that outside pipe dream Logan Heastie PSU didn't even go after any impact #1 type WRs this year. And with the barren WR depth chart after this season that is a major head scratcher. Justin Brown is a must, must get as he is the closest WR recruit that PSU is working on to a number 1. Penn State for whatever reason has targeted for too many sleepers at the ultra important position of WR and seem to have eschewed the top end kids. The top end 5 star type kids are the ones who can help bring championships. Not walk ons and lightly recruited sleepers. Expectations at WR need to be significantly higher than they apparently currently are. Until this changes PSU is in a world of hurt down the line at WR.
TIGHT END:
Current grade: Incomplete
Current verbal commitments: none
By all appearances it doesn't seem like Penn State is seeking to land a Tight End in the Class of 2009. For recruiting balance purposes and with a large number of scholarships available I do not agree with this strategy. Tight End may not be the single most important position on the field but it still is important and warrants taking one a year. PSU should be working harder to land a Tight End in this class.
OFFENSIVE LINE:
Current Grade: C+
Current verbal commitments: Ty Howle, Mark Arcidiacono, Eric Shrive, Frank Figueroa, Nate Cadogan, Adam Gress,
In a repeat of last year, Penn State has one glaring need along the Offensive Line for the Class of 2009, that being Offensive Tackle. Offensive Tackle was a priority last year as well, but again, in a seemingly recurring theme, the PSU staff failed to successfully address the position. Deon'Tae Pannell was signed as an OT and it is hoped that he is tall enough to play the position. The other (very, very late) signee was lightly recruited Andrew Radakovich and he is more than likely practice fodder for the next 4 years at best. Mike Farrell was "recruited" to play OT as well but is paying his own way to attend PSU. As a walk on it is difficult to believe that he will ever see significant time down the line at Offensive tackle at Penn State.
PSU landed its first Offensive Line recruit in late March when North Carolina Center Ty Howle (6'1 295 lb) committed to the Nittany lions over Navy and East Carolina. Howle was known to be very high on PSU from the outset and it's our belief that PSU could have waited months before officially offering Howle and they still would have landed him with ease. It isn't clear why PSU felt such a pressing need to offer the lightly recruited Howle so early.
Penn State secured OL verbal # 2 at the end of April when Philadelphia St Joseph's Prep lineman Mark Arcidiacono committed to the Lions over Notre Dame, Rutgers, Florida, and Miami amongst others. The 6'3 290 lb Arcidiacono claimed over 15 written offers when he made his commitment to PSU public. Known as a tough, physical player Arcidiacono may be a tad short to play Offensive tackle as some hope and project. It seems like he is better suited to play the Offensive Guard spot instead. Regardless Arcidiacono is solid pickup for Penn State and should be a solid contributor down the line.
The biggest national recruiting shocker of the near to this point occurred in Penn State's favor in mid May when West Scranton OT Eric Shrive (6'7 295 lbs) stunned the recruiting world and chose the Lions over 40 offers included the the perceived frontrunners Notre Dame and Illinois. The Five Star rated Shrive is long, athletic, and mean and is rated as one of the top 5 Offensive tackles in the nation. He is a monumental grab for the Penn state staff and easily the most important recruit landed to date in the class of 2009. Shrive projects at the coveted Left Tackle position and could possibly even compete for playing time as a freshman due to the depth chart concerns at the position. In addition to his on field talents Shrive has been working hard to help recruit other talent to Happy Valley. A very important recruit indeed.
On the same day PSU pulled the positive stunner of the year with Eric Shrive they also pulled the biggest "who?" and "why?" recruit of the year when Virginia Guard Frank Figueroa (6'3 280 lbs) committed to the Lions over William and Mary. Yes...1AA William and Mary. Figueroa is a late bloomer who has grown significantly over the past 2 years. A few things don't make sense with PSU offering Figueroa so early though. He had generated little Division 1 recruiting interest. He plays Offensive Guard which really isn't a big priority in this class. There are better and more highly rated OGs out there it was deemed necessary to recruit another. As was the case with Howle, PSU could have waited to offer Figueroa until late January and still probably landed him.
In early July Penn State landed its next "legacy" as Portsmouth, Ohio's Nate Cadogan (6'6 280 lbs) committed to the Nittany Lions over offers from Purdue, Syracuse, Cincinnati, and ahost of MAC schools. Nate is the younger brother of current Lion starting LT Gerald Cadogan. It was widely known for some time that due to family ties Nate Cadogan was a strong PSU lean. Cadogan initially was viewed by many as a Defensive Line recruit but as he has gotten bigger it has become more clear that with his size, length, and athleticism he is built to be an Offensive Tackle. As he gets stronger Cadogan has the frame to play either tackle spot and do it well. Another plus is that he comes from a solid family and is very intelligent both on and off the field. Cadogan is a high character kid who when you combine that with his athletic ability will make him a most welcome addition to the PSU offensive line.
Also in the first week of July Pittsburgh West Mifflin's Adam Gress (6'7 290 lbs) fulfilled a lifelong dream and committed to play college football for Penn State. Gress is a classic late bloomer who really saw his stock skyrocket this past spring. He has added over 30 pounds in the past year and has gone from a MAC level recruit to a BCS level recruit. Gress several written offers from his work at various camps and combines and in the end chose PSU over offers from Michigan, Rutgers, and West Virginia. Gress is reported to be a tough kid who plays an intense style and possesses quite a "mean streak." Those intangibles aside it has also been said that Gress is a bit of a project as he is still growing into his body and has only played Offensive Tackle for one year. But Gress certainly has a lot of upside and at the very least will provide needed depth at the OT position.
This is the first time in a few years that at least numbers wise the Penn State staff has adequately addressed the position of Offensive Tackle. This is a positive step for those who work inside the Lasch Building. Eric Shrive is clearly the gem of this OL group and will likely be a leader early on in his career both on and off the field. Arcidiacono and Cadogan both look like probable future starters and Gress may be in that group as well if he continues to work hard. The additions of Howle and Figueroa are certainly question marks and based on their high school resumes and offer lists they will have to significantly overachieve in order to see meaningful playing time at Penn State. Essentially when breaking down the members of the current OL class you have 2-3 legitimate big time prospects (Shrive, Arcidiacono, and Cadogan), one probable big time prospect (Gress), and two "sleepers" (Howle and Figueroa). It's a pretty good OL class overall thus far but in our estimation it could be and should be better. PSU may look to try to land one more Offensive Tackle prospect for the Class of 2009, but in reality it may be too late to get seriously involved with any top talent. Barring something unforeseen it is our belief that Offensive Line recruiting for the Class of 2009 is completed.
Stay tuned later this week as we at Laschout.com will release our defensive recruiting report card and the current overall grade for Penn State's Class of 2009.
QUARTERBACK:
Current grade: Incomplete
Current verbal commitments: none
These days on the internet there is a relatively new "buzzword" that has come to the forefront on websites and message boards. That buzzword is "fail." In the realm of college football recruiting nowhere is the word fail more apropos than when used to describe QB recruiting at Penn State. Recruiting at the Quarterback position this decade at Penn State has been nothing short of atrocious. Yes PSU landed blue chippers Anthony Morelli and Pat Devlin this decade, but in reality the Nittany Lions back doored their way to each and quite honestly had both fall in the laps late in the process. Aside from those two particular years Penn State has failed miserably in trying to land a top signal caller.
A major mistake that the PSU staff has made several times this decade when it came to QB recruiting was "putting all their eggs in one basket." They seems to primarily set their sights on one kid and more or less forsake all others. This certainly was the case with Chad Henne and Terrelle Pryor. The Penn State coaches just didn't seem to learn their lesson.
This year didn't start out that way as Penn State offered Kevin Newsome, Tate Forcier, Morgan Newton, and depending on who you believe Tom Savage. QB targets quickly went by the wayside though this recruiting season as Newsome and Savage both committed elsewhere early on (to Michigan and Rutgers respectively) and Newton made it clear that he simply wasn't interested. That basically leaves PSU in the familiar position of having all QB recruiting eggs in one basket. That being the basket of Tate Forcier. The California gunslinger has serious interest in PSU and plans to enroll in college early. Forcier has stated that he will visit PSU officially and has the Lions solidly in his top 3 along with Michigan and Florida. There are a few other schools still in the mix as well.
Does PSU have a realistic shot at landing one of the top QBs in the west? They most certainly do. With some kids depth charts mean a lot and there is no QB depth chart anywhere in college football that is more favorable than Penn States. Of course, as all PSU fans know, there is a perception out there that Jay Paterno cannot develop QBs. This clearly works against Penn State. And Tate Forcier comes from an intelligent football family with two older brothers who went through the recruiting process. So it remains to be seen if the Forcier family will take that leap of faith and sign on with Joe Paterno and Penn State.
The fact that Penn State has not signed a QB in two years makes it beyond imperative that they not only sign a QB in this class, it makes it imperative that they sign a top QB. Apparently it's Tate Forcier or bust. As in past years the PSU staff is playing a dangerous game with QB recruiting. It looks like the past lessons again have not been learned. If Forcier goes elsewhere the terms Epic Fail won't be enough to describe the catastrophe that PSU will have on its hands at the QB position.
TAILBACK:
Current grade: C-
Current verbal commitments: Curtis Dukes
It really doesn't make much sense but PSU has had great difficulty in landing top end TBs in recent years as well. This is perplexing because an argument could be made that Penn State is Tailback U. Penn State gets is tailbacks to the NFL. That cannot be disputed. And at PSU TBs get to carry the ball a lot. So the fact that the Lions have had such difficulty attracting top TB prospects is strange to say the least.
As for this recruiting class PSU got an early July verbal commitment from big NY TB Curtis Dukes. Dukes ran for around 900 yards and 15 TDs last season and committed to Penn State over offers from Syracuse, Buffalo,and Pitt. Dukes plays small school football in upstate New York and faces a lot of questions regarding the level of competition that he plays against. But Dukes, while not rated highly by the recruiting services, has the look, size, and speed of an elite level Tailback. Dukes goes 6'2 235 lbs and runs a sub 4.5 forty. Those are the measureables of a prototypical Big 10 tailback. If Dukes has the mental toughness required to succeed it college it appears that he has the rest of the package necessary to be big time. Time will tell.
Penn State is looking to add at least one other TB in the class of 2009 besides Dukes. Besides Dukes, the Nittany Lions have also offered scholarships to Brandan Wegher, Jordan Hall (Ohio State commit), Tavon Austin, David Wilson(Virginia Tech commit), Theo Riddick (Notre Dame commit) and possibly Shawne Alston (West Virginia commit).
Tavon Austin is the remaining known offeree who seems to have a strong legitimate interest in PSU. However there are some conflicting reports as to just how high he is on Penn State. But there is no doubting that the Lions needs a back with Austins combination of speed and quickness.
Wegher, while he still lists PSU, seems to be favoring other schools at this time. But the door apparently is not closed.
There certainly are a few other Tailbacks on the PSU radar but at this point none have received written offers. Right now it looks like Austin is the last chance PSU has for a 2nd Tailback in the Class of 2009. He would be a great compliment to the big, bruising Curtis Dukes. But there is a lot of work to be done yet. Other schools including West Virginia and the hometown Terps of Maryland are heavily involved with Austin.
There is no disputing that Penn State needs an infusion of speed on offense and if Austin is not in the cards the staff needs to work overtime to find a player with similar talents who can put some fear into opposing defenses. Penn State needs to get back to stockpiling Tailback talent like they did in the "good old days" and like other top schools do now. They need difference makers in the backfield. While Dukes is a good looking prospect Penn State simply needs more. And if Penn State fails to land Austin or a talent who is somewhat comparable, then Tailback recruiting in the Class of 2009 has to be deemed at least partially a failure. Especially when you consider the number of scholarships that the Nittany Lions have available.
WIDE RECEIVER:
Current grade: D-
Current verbal commitments: Brandon Felder, Curtis Drake, Christian Kuntz
Wide Receiver is another position at which Penn State where failing at recruiting is becoming all too common. Last year PSU flat out fail with regard to WR recruiting, whiffing on all their top targets before finally landing AJ Price.
The Nittany Lion staff tried to start this recruiting season off with a bang at WR by offering Je'Ron Stokes (Tennessee commit), Logan Heastie (West Virginia commit), Jaleel Clark, Tyree Watkins (Virginia commit), Todd Thomas, and Justin Brown early on in the spring. However, as has been the case in recent years, many of the early offerees chose elsewhere quickly. To compound matters PSU clearly mis evaluated Clark early on but to their credit appears to have cooled on him to the point where they aren't recruiting him anymore. Similarly PSU has apparently parted ways with Todd Thomas due to academics. PSU later offered North Carolina WR Jheranie Boyd but it quickly became apparent that he has no interest in PSU. Justin Brown has rapidly become the top WR target on the board for PSU and is a must get. He is on record as stating that Penn State is his current top choice but he has plenty of other suitors (Tennessee, LSU, UNC, NC State, and South Carolina to name a few)and will not be making a decision until after his season.
Penn State landed their first WR of the year in late May when MD speedster Brandon Felder committed to the Nittany Lions. Felder was relatively unknown until a breakout performance at the PSU Nike Camp in Mid May. Felder is slight in stature at only 167 lbs but his 6'2 frame has room to add muscle. Felder impressed onlookers this spring with his speed, quickness, and hands. Last season Felder was highly productive on the field as he caught 40 passes for over 900 yards and 11 TDs. Felder is a bit of a sleeper but looks like a good prospect down the line.
In early June Philadelphia West Catholic QB/Athlete Curtis Drake verbally committed to Penn State over an offer from Northwestern. The 6'0 170 lb Drake was recruited to play WR for the Nittany Lions. The decision to offer Drake so early in the process was a bit puzzling to some as it looked like he favored PSU all along yet there were several more highly rated WR prospects still out there. Drake plays QB for West Catholic and could be considered an "emergency QB" for the Class of 2009 if PSU were to strike out again with their top QB targets. But with Drakes reported 4.7 speed the questions will remain as to why exactly he was offered a scholarship so early (In late April).
The 4th of July fireworks extended to the Lasch building this year when PSU Senior Camp standout Christian Kuntz from Camp Hill, PA Trinity High School committed to the Nittany Lions over offers from UConn, Buffalo, Akron, and Towson. The 6'4 195 lb Kuntz was an unknown commodity until his breakout performance at the PSU summer camp which earned him an offer to play WR for the Nittany Lions. Kuntz plays Tailback for his high school and is a standout hurdler in track having placed 2nd in the 300m hurdles at this past years PIAA State Meet. Kuntz attended several other summer camps at BCS schools (Notre Dame, Virginia, Maryland, Rutgers and Pitt) and failed to earn any offers from any of those powerhouse football schools. The fact that Kuntz has never played WR before has to be a concern as does the fact that he didn't generate much other recruiting interest.
The WR recruiting effort is perilously close to a big, fat "F." And if it were not for our perceived upside of Brandon Felder it would be an F without question. Kuntz and Drake are not going to help PSU overtake Ohio State or Michigan. Those two programs are the benchmarks that Penn State needs to measure itself against. Whatever reason/excuse you want to come up with just doesn't matter. There is no spinning just how poor WR recruiting has been this decade at PSU and how poorly it continues to go. Penn State does not even have a true # 1 WR on their board. I'll even go one step further to say that outside pipe dream Logan Heastie PSU didn't even go after any impact #1 type WRs this year. And with the barren WR depth chart after this season that is a major head scratcher. Justin Brown is a must, must get as he is the closest WR recruit that PSU is working on to a number 1. Penn State for whatever reason has targeted for too many sleepers at the ultra important position of WR and seem to have eschewed the top end kids. The top end 5 star type kids are the ones who can help bring championships. Not walk ons and lightly recruited sleepers. Expectations at WR need to be significantly higher than they apparently currently are. Until this changes PSU is in a world of hurt down the line at WR.
TIGHT END:
Current grade: Incomplete
Current verbal commitments: none
By all appearances it doesn't seem like Penn State is seeking to land a Tight End in the Class of 2009. For recruiting balance purposes and with a large number of scholarships available I do not agree with this strategy. Tight End may not be the single most important position on the field but it still is important and warrants taking one a year. PSU should be working harder to land a Tight End in this class.
OFFENSIVE LINE:
Current Grade: C+
Current verbal commitments: Ty Howle, Mark Arcidiacono, Eric Shrive, Frank Figueroa, Nate Cadogan, Adam Gress,
In a repeat of last year, Penn State has one glaring need along the Offensive Line for the Class of 2009, that being Offensive Tackle. Offensive Tackle was a priority last year as well, but again, in a seemingly recurring theme, the PSU staff failed to successfully address the position. Deon'Tae Pannell was signed as an OT and it is hoped that he is tall enough to play the position. The other (very, very late) signee was lightly recruited Andrew Radakovich and he is more than likely practice fodder for the next 4 years at best. Mike Farrell was "recruited" to play OT as well but is paying his own way to attend PSU. As a walk on it is difficult to believe that he will ever see significant time down the line at Offensive tackle at Penn State.
PSU landed its first Offensive Line recruit in late March when North Carolina Center Ty Howle (6'1 295 lb) committed to the Nittany lions over Navy and East Carolina. Howle was known to be very high on PSU from the outset and it's our belief that PSU could have waited months before officially offering Howle and they still would have landed him with ease. It isn't clear why PSU felt such a pressing need to offer the lightly recruited Howle so early.
Penn State secured OL verbal # 2 at the end of April when Philadelphia St Joseph's Prep lineman Mark Arcidiacono committed to the Lions over Notre Dame, Rutgers, Florida, and Miami amongst others. The 6'3 290 lb Arcidiacono claimed over 15 written offers when he made his commitment to PSU public. Known as a tough, physical player Arcidiacono may be a tad short to play Offensive tackle as some hope and project. It seems like he is better suited to play the Offensive Guard spot instead. Regardless Arcidiacono is solid pickup for Penn State and should be a solid contributor down the line.
The biggest national recruiting shocker of the near to this point occurred in Penn State's favor in mid May when West Scranton OT Eric Shrive (6'7 295 lbs) stunned the recruiting world and chose the Lions over 40 offers included the the perceived frontrunners Notre Dame and Illinois. The Five Star rated Shrive is long, athletic, and mean and is rated as one of the top 5 Offensive tackles in the nation. He is a monumental grab for the Penn state staff and easily the most important recruit landed to date in the class of 2009. Shrive projects at the coveted Left Tackle position and could possibly even compete for playing time as a freshman due to the depth chart concerns at the position. In addition to his on field talents Shrive has been working hard to help recruit other talent to Happy Valley. A very important recruit indeed.
On the same day PSU pulled the positive stunner of the year with Eric Shrive they also pulled the biggest "who?" and "why?" recruit of the year when Virginia Guard Frank Figueroa (6'3 280 lbs) committed to the Lions over William and Mary. Yes...1AA William and Mary. Figueroa is a late bloomer who has grown significantly over the past 2 years. A few things don't make sense with PSU offering Figueroa so early though. He had generated little Division 1 recruiting interest. He plays Offensive Guard which really isn't a big priority in this class. There are better and more highly rated OGs out there it was deemed necessary to recruit another. As was the case with Howle, PSU could have waited to offer Figueroa until late January and still probably landed him.
In early July Penn State landed its next "legacy" as Portsmouth, Ohio's Nate Cadogan (6'6 280 lbs) committed to the Nittany Lions over offers from Purdue, Syracuse, Cincinnati, and ahost of MAC schools. Nate is the younger brother of current Lion starting LT Gerald Cadogan. It was widely known for some time that due to family ties Nate Cadogan was a strong PSU lean. Cadogan initially was viewed by many as a Defensive Line recruit but as he has gotten bigger it has become more clear that with his size, length, and athleticism he is built to be an Offensive Tackle. As he gets stronger Cadogan has the frame to play either tackle spot and do it well. Another plus is that he comes from a solid family and is very intelligent both on and off the field. Cadogan is a high character kid who when you combine that with his athletic ability will make him a most welcome addition to the PSU offensive line.
Also in the first week of July Pittsburgh West Mifflin's Adam Gress (6'7 290 lbs) fulfilled a lifelong dream and committed to play college football for Penn State. Gress is a classic late bloomer who really saw his stock skyrocket this past spring. He has added over 30 pounds in the past year and has gone from a MAC level recruit to a BCS level recruit. Gress several written offers from his work at various camps and combines and in the end chose PSU over offers from Michigan, Rutgers, and West Virginia. Gress is reported to be a tough kid who plays an intense style and possesses quite a "mean streak." Those intangibles aside it has also been said that Gress is a bit of a project as he is still growing into his body and has only played Offensive Tackle for one year. But Gress certainly has a lot of upside and at the very least will provide needed depth at the OT position.
This is the first time in a few years that at least numbers wise the Penn State staff has adequately addressed the position of Offensive Tackle. This is a positive step for those who work inside the Lasch Building. Eric Shrive is clearly the gem of this OL group and will likely be a leader early on in his career both on and off the field. Arcidiacono and Cadogan both look like probable future starters and Gress may be in that group as well if he continues to work hard. The additions of Howle and Figueroa are certainly question marks and based on their high school resumes and offer lists they will have to significantly overachieve in order to see meaningful playing time at Penn State. Essentially when breaking down the members of the current OL class you have 2-3 legitimate big time prospects (Shrive, Arcidiacono, and Cadogan), one probable big time prospect (Gress), and two "sleepers" (Howle and Figueroa). It's a pretty good OL class overall thus far but in our estimation it could be and should be better. PSU may look to try to land one more Offensive Tackle prospect for the Class of 2009, but in reality it may be too late to get seriously involved with any top talent. Barring something unforeseen it is our belief that Offensive Line recruiting for the Class of 2009 is completed.
Stay tuned later this week as we at Laschout.com will release our defensive recruiting report card and the current overall grade for Penn State's Class of 2009.
Poor job with the tailback evaluation. With Royster, Green, Carter, and Beachum, Penn State only needs to bring in 1 tailback in this class. Dukes has all the measurables of a stud tailback.
PSU has a speed back in Green who has 4 years of eligibility remaining. Tailback recruiting should be at a B+.
No complaints, agree with the QB, and WR. slightly disagree with the RB position, and many beleve Austin is being recruited to fill a slot role.
The OL grade is low IMHO. Shrive Arci, and Cadogen are all probable starters down the line. I'm probably a little higher on Howle than you are Stern. He's got a good base, and a powerful run blocker with a mean streak. He's not all that different from Shipley and he too will be a starter down the line, and quite possibly be in the mix from the onset next year. All in all, with 4 probable starters in the commit list, and another very solid pickup in Gress, I'd have given PSU a B for that group. Figueroa makes no sense, but as with Drakes, the early offers should be reserved for the "studs"...these guys are not "studs".
How many TE's do we have on roster? Do we really need to take another one? Someone on FOS posted that there's 11 scholarship TE's (I don't know if that's accurate, I honestly didn't look yet.)
As a whole, I'd give our offense a C- mainly due to the WR and QB recruiting. We need to land a QB and minimum 2 WR's. Am hearing that barring a total flub-up by PSU Brown will don on a lion cap.
Pretty good summary, Stern.
Phil Grosz "not pleased."
Agree that OL should be higher. Not bad overall, but technically shouldn't every position get an incomplete considering it's August?
O-line grade is low with two great pick-ups and some others with potential. should be a solid B.
WR and QB is very concerning.
Your observations were definitely better and more on target when you were not writing them down. Grade C-
Good summary overall.
The only thing I would suggest is O-line is graded too low.
The problem we have at QB and wide receiver is the highly rated ones we got recently really havent produced.
When you see a player that was ranked the number 1 prospect in the country become an average receiver in an average conference, other highly rated kids take notice. I believe the perception is poor coaching in the passing game.
Nice job Howard. Nice to see the LaschOut boys back in business.
kinda sad that a pennsylvania kid committing to penn state was a shock to the recruiting world.
this is akin to penn state bragging about king and williams stating 'our freshmen could have gone anywhere.' yet, they still chose to go to penn state.
Tailback is too low a rating. We only need one and we recruited a stud.
With the logjam at TB and little at WR, we only get Austin if we sell him as a DWill utility position.Not TB.
Dead on. Offensive line was graded too low as well.
Great to have you guys back at it!
I do think you are a little harsh on the grading.
OL has the potential to be outstanding.
Dukes is gonna be a beast at RB. So many people have compared Beachum to Aaron Harris...I see more similarities in Dukes (no knock on Beachum).
Definately agree Forcier and Brown are must haves!
OL has 2 legit guys and the rest have huge question marks. A player can always end up being better then you think but he can just as easy be worst.
I like Dukes but please do not jump the gun on him. He plays in a wing T type offense so he has not run from directly behind the QB yet and his competition is more then questionable. They are usually very poor. He may be a diamond in the rough but we need another top level running back.
Royster - 2 years remaining
Carter - 3 years
Green - 4 years
Beachum - 4 years
Dukes - 4 years
I would never turn down a talent like Austin but we do not NEED another tailback in this class. Dukes makes 5 tailbacks and unlike a position like OL or QB, tailbacks can easily contribute in their 1st or 2nd years.
I know why Howie participates in the sight. Because blatant under evaluation of certain players on a more widely read message board would show a lot more people his gross lack of open mindedness.
The analysis of the RB recruiting and OLine recruiting is baseless.
Howie should call this segment, "My Agenda Driven Evaluations."
At least then we would know what we were getting.
Blueband98 you do not have a clue when it comes to football. You have shown that over and over again on FOS. Go back to blowing your flute with other band mates.
You may not like Hs evaluation but sure seem to be more upset with HS then anything else. We all would like PSU to get back to its elite days but when we are settling for mid level guys itishard to get there. We got two legit OL everyone else is a project. Dukes has promise but has proven nothing yet against legit talent or when he has to line up directly behind the QB.
We will make you a deal we will not try to evaluate how well the diffrent Bands play during halftime if you stop pretending you can evaluate Football
You can blow me Joe! You are another cronie of the Haters. Im upset with Howie because of his blatant negativity on every aspect of the Penn State program. I cant point that out??? But he cant point out every negative thing he thinks??? Ya that makes a good argument.
I know 10 times more football than you do from your posts over on FOS.
You are telling me a RB is suspect because of poor talent? That makes no sense. He does what he does against the competition he plays against and he dominates. He has a body fit for big time football. He has incredible siize and speed. Do you need a slide rule to figure it out?
Do us all a favor, stop posing as some football guru. Just because you post on a football blog doesnt make you smart.
And it takes an intelligent and witty guy to come up with the whole "band comeback." Did you make that up on your own or did you have help with that one. Get a life!
Yeah you are right when royster runs for 300 yards against costal carolina we all should just assume that he will run for 300 against every big ten team. Of course you need to look at the talent in a league to see how legit someone is. HE MAY be very legit but to not question the opponents he puts the yards up against is just crazy. Yeah you know more then any of us on here. Move on.
You are trying to compare a lower ranked single game that a Div 1A collehe running back will play to an entire season and playoffs that a HS running back will play????!!!! DUMB DUMB DUMB DUMB!!!!!
No I am trying to compare NEw england High school football to PA,Fl Tx,OH and other legit high school football. You continue to be a fool.
This site sucks.