Deep Dive: New Penn State commit Liam Andrews

Penn State picked up its third On3 Industry Top 100 prospect on Friday morning with the addition of Massachusetts defensive lineman Liam Andrews. The jumbo athlete committed to the Nittany Lions in a ceremony at his school. What does the pledge mean for Penn State’s Class of 2024? We try to break it down with a refresh of our Deep Dive series. 

The Andrews File

Liam Andrews
Defensive Lineman
Brookline, Mass.
Dexter Southfield School
6-4.5, 276 pounds

On3 Consensus: Four-star, 93.57 rating; No. 85 nationally, No. 4 Athlete, No. 2 in Massachusetts
On3: Four-star, 94 rating; No. 61 nationally, No. 3 Athlete, No. 2 in Massachusetts

Recruiting Background

Penn State visits: 6 (Most recently 6/2/2023 official visit)
Penn State recruiter: Phil Trautwein, Deion Barnes, Stacy Collins

The top-ranked player on the BWI Big Board, Andrews was a huge target for the Nittany Lions regardless of position. He started as an offensive lineman but his preference of playing on the defensive side of the ball won out and he’ll play under Deion Barnes at the next level. Ohio State, Oklahoma and Penn State each separated themselves early. He got out to Penn State five times since March of 2022 and he went to Oklahoma in late January. Andrews had a busy spring, checking out Clemson, Florida, Miami, South Carolina and Wisconsin. He took three official visits – Penn State, Wisconsin and South Carolina and his recruitment came down to those three programs. He also had visits scheduled to Florida and LSU, but those trips never materialized. All the intel leading up to his choice pointed to a battle between the Nittany Lions and Gamecocks. 

Quotable

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How Liam Andrews projects at the next level

Andrews camped at Penn State in June of 2022 and was a mauler at guard and tackle. It looked as if he was primed to be Penn State’s top interior offensive line target in the class. In checking further, we discovered that Andrews was being targeted as an offensive tackle. His nearly 35-inch arms on his verified 6-foot-4.5 frame backed that up. Regardless, he was a guy that Penn State just wanted to get in the boat. Then the position twist happened. Andrews came out of his junior season with intentions to play defense at the next level. Wisconsin actually gave him his first opportunity to play on that side of the ball, which is something that stuck with Andrews until the end. 

Penn State came around to the idea this spring. It seemed that any school that stuck to the original plan of offense would be out of the mix. The Nittany Lions adapted and got Barnes in on the mix. Sometimes guys who are adamant about playing on one side of the ball overrate their ability to do so. Andrews does not seem to be in that category. Sources think that he’s a draftable prospect as a defensive lineman. While his ceiling still may be higher on offense, the Nittany Lions are just happy to get him in the door. They’re content with him wanting to play defense, as he projects as an active defensive tackle. He uses his hands well and he’s aggressive. There’s still much to learn from an all-around perspective and the leap in competition will be another hurdle to deal with, but Andrews is right up there with any defensive tackle the Nittany Lions have brought into the program in recent memory. He could even start out his career as a big defensive end. 

Fitz’s Take

This was the one that Penn State was waiting for. The Nittany Lions think Andrews is a guy that boosts this class to another level. He’s versatile, athletic and I don’t really need to repeat that he’s one of my favorite prospects in the class and he has been for a while. Andrews’ demeanor at camp last summer left a good first impression and I’ve been a fan ever since. 

Andrews was quiet throughout the process, as he didn’t seem to care too much for the attention. That’s fine, he was also polite about it and did interviews when he needed to (after visits, etc.). He didn’t give away much. Penn State seemed like a logical option early, then over the winter the Nittany Lions seemed to fade. Counter to the William Satterwhite recruitment, spring visits seemed to bring Andrews back around to the Nittany Lions. He came back for the spring game, which was a big deal.

It seemed like Penn State was in a great spot coming out of his official visit, but a pick would have been premature at that point. Andrews didn’t get too high or too low and his visits were more than lip service to the other programs. Intel suggested that while he liked the idea of playing defense at Wisconsin, he didn’t find the school as a fit when he visited. He was set to visit Florida in June, but found out the Gators were planning on playing him on offense so he switched it up and visited South Carolina. He liked his trip to Columbia more than expected and the Gamecocks made it a ballgame. It stretched out longer than most thought, but Andrews closed the deal with the Nittany Lions last week. 

It’s a pickup worth celebrating for Penn State fans. Like any lineman, he’ll have some development ahead of him, but Andrews is a skilled athlete with a bright future ahead of him. 

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