After a dry spell dating back to the mass turnover on staff, Penn State has gained some momentum on the recruiting trail with a handful of commitments after the second week of spring practice.
Here’s what happened on the recruiting front this past week.
Commitment surge
The 2026 recruiting class was on the smaller side for Penn State, signing 15 players with 10 coming from Iowa State. The lone recruit that committed under James Franklin and the old staff that stayed on board was defensive end Jackson Ford.
For the 2027 group, all four commits that pledged under Franklin backed off their pledges following his firing.
With the process of hiring Matt Campbell and a new coaching staff, it was bound to take a while to build momentum on the recruiting trail. They needed to re-establish prior relationships with recruits and high schools while creating new ones.
After a pair of Junior Days in January, paired with hitting the road and online communication with prospects, the Nittany Lions struck in the 2027 class by landing 3-star cornerback Semajay Robinson on March 28.
He kick-started the recruiting spree, as this past week Penn State added 4-star wide receiver Landon Blum, 3-star cornerback Zachary Gleason Jr., 3-star athlete Ka’ron Ceaser and 3-star defensive lineman Carter Blattner to the 2027 group.
It was a matter of time before the Nittany Lions picked up steam, and they’re trending for several more prospects. They signed just 15 recruits in the 2026 class, so the 2027 class is expected to be large.
If the momentum Penn State has currently continues, it’ll be well on its way to landing a bigger 2027 class.
Players huddle after the Penn State football game against Indiana at Beaver Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025 in University Park, Pa. The Hoosiers beat the Nittany Lions 27-24.
Samantha Oropeza
Notable visitors
As Penn State looks for its quarterback in the 2027 class, a notable visitor showed up in 4-star Will Mencl. He hails from Chandler, Arizona, which is where offensive coordinator Taylor Mouser is from.
The schools to watch with him, in addition to Penn State, are Oregon and Auburn. Miami was in the mix as well, but the Hurricanes picked up a commitment from 4-star Israel Abrams over the weekend. Mencl, along with 4-star Peter Bourque, who’s arriving for a visit on Wednesday, are at the top of the board for Penn State.
A pair of former in-state 4-star 2027 commits also returned to campus in wide receiver Khalil Taylor and safety Gabe Jenkins. It was Taylor’s third time on campus since the new staff took over, visiting for spring practice in consecutive weeks in addition to a Junior Day visit in January. For Jenkins, it was his first spring ball visit but he also made the trip for Junior Day.
A notable re-offer was 4-star interior offensive lineman Tristan Dare, who made his way to campus after backing off of his pledge to Michigan.
Other important names that made it to campus were 4-star cornerback Dhillon McGee, 4-star linebacker Case Alexander, 4-star running back Aiden Gibson and 4-star tight end Cooper Terwilliger.
Terry Smith takeover
Penn State’s first three commitments came from the cornerback room, with Robinson, Gleason and Ceaser. Ceasar is currently listed as an athlete, but projects to play the position at the next level.
It makes sense that cornerbacks coach Terry Smith, who saw his reputation take off nationally after his stint as interim coach, cashed in early with the top targets on his board. While he’s made his name more well-known across the country, Smith has been an elite recruiter for Penn State entering his 13th year on staff.
Gleason and Ceaser are a pair of players who have been on Smith’s radar for a while now, while Robinson was recently offered in January, but a lone visit to State College and an online rapport with Smith did enough for him to commit to the Nittany Lions.
It doesn’t look like Smith is done just yet, as Penn State is trending for 4-star cornerback Kei’Shjuan Telfair to make it a quartet of cornerbacks on board.
While it certainly is a new look for the program on the recruiting front, the one thing that hasn’t changed is how Smith operates on the trail.
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