First Impressions from Penn State’s second official visit weekend
Penn State’s second official visit weekend should result in some good news for the Nittany Lions, who hosted 10 visitors from Friday to Sunday. So far, two picks have been entered for Penn State on the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine and more are sure to come.
What’s the latest from the weekend?
First Impressions from Penn State’s second official visit weekend
– My first RPM pick went in this morning for California cornerback Daryus Dixson, who was blown away by the Nittany Lions on his first visit to Happy Valley this weekend. The Industry four-star prospect could make a decision at any time and if he does, Penn State is primed to land him. The Nittany Lions are also in a great spot for Ohio cornerback Josh Johnson and a pick will follow for that one as well. Ryan Snyder originally reported that on Sunday and I’m going to join him. One thing that was stressed to me was that taking both Dixson and Johnson will not deter the Nittany Lions from trying to seal the deal with top targets Jahmir Joseph and Brandon Finney. Joseph visits next weekend and Finney has the Nittany Lions at the top of his list.
– Penn State came out of the weekend on top for McDonogh wide receiver Jeff Exinor. That’s not exactly a surprise, but it hasn’t been a layup for the Nittany Lions with Virginia Tech and Maryland each chipping away. He got a lot of questions answered this weekend, namely about his potential role on the field, and it helped to set him on his way. Exinor still plans to visit Maryland on the weekend of the 21st before making a decision. He did not mention his planned trip to Syracuse when asking about what’s next in his recruitment. His younger brother, 2027 athlete Jameson Exinor, camped for the Nittany Lions on Sunday.
Link: Four-star WR Jeff Exinor back at Penn State, talks Nittany Lions official visit
– Florida defensive tackle Jarquez Carter spent most of the weekend attached to the hip of Deion Barnes. He’s a top priority for the second-year assistant on the interior. Carter was hosted by Florida native Zane Durant and he was impressed by the honesty of the players about the program, even without the coaches around. He’s not tied to staying in Florida despite three of his top six being in the Sunshine State. UCF, Miami and maybe Ohio State will get official visits this month and he now plans to make a decision before the season. Previously he was aiming to take this into the season. Penn State is right in it for Carter coming out of the visit. He loves Barnes and sees a lot of Durant in himself.
– Florida safety Rashad Johnson loved his visit to Happy Valley this weekend. The Nittany Lions are on top right now, with a caveat. Johnson is on the rise and he has official visits scheduled to Georgia and Texas A&M for the next two weekends. Was Penn State’s effort over the weekend enough to provide staying power? That remains to be seen. He loved Anthony Poindexter and he has a great relationship with Ja’Juan Seider as well. There’s a lot going for the Nittany Lions at this point, but he’s just getting into the meat of his recruitment and it’s relatively new for him. Penn State would like to get him on board as a safety that has moved up their list quite a bit in the last two months.
Link: Top safety target Kainoa Winston recaps Penn State official visit
– Coming out of back-to-back official visits, it seemed that Michigan felt better about Gonzaga safety Kainoa Winston than Penn State on the heels of its weekend. Still, Winston is a cerebral kid and he’ll go evaluate his options. It wouldn’t be a shock to see him not go to North Carolina and Oregon as it seems that Michigan and Penn State are the two he’s focused on. Until I hear otherwise with Winston (and we’re still awaiting more feedback), I lean the Wolverines here.
– Penn State had a couple tougher reads on campus this weekend in Virginia wide receiver Matthew Outten and Kansas defensive end Jayden Woods. Both are reserved, not just with the media but also privately on the visit. I still think that the Nittany Lions are in a very good spot with Outten with visits remaining to Maryland and Virginia Tech. He told the staff that they’re in a good spot, but it’s going to be tough for anyone to have overwhelming confidence in this one. Penn State has a good connection with Woods’ father, who played running back at Kansas State under James Franklin, but other than that it was a lot of information digestion for the four-star prospect. Purdue led coming into the weekend and the Boilermakers will get him on campus this weekend for an official visit. Woods spent quite a bit of time with Torrence Brown and used the weekend to pick up some pointers for his own game from the Nittany Lions’ defensive line GA.
Link: New Penn State pick on the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine
– Penn State hosted Maryland offensive lineman Amory Hills over the weekend for an official visit and then worked him out again on Sunday. It was his second camp for Phil Trautwein this month and while he’s a good player, there are questions about his athleticism hanging in at this level. He’s going to be one we keep an eye on, but it doesn’t seem like the Nittany Lions will push at this time.
– From asking around this weekend, running back recruiting remains interesting, if nothing else. Last week, Kiandrea Barker attended a camp at Arkansas with his Beebe teammates. The Razorbacks staff was all over him despite his insistence that he is committed to Penn State. He said some things that took the pressure off while he was there while keeping in touch with the Nittany Lions. By the end of the week, his scheduled official visit with Arkansas was off and he tweeted out a commitment reaffirmation graphic. He’s expected in next weekend for his official visit to Penn State. It’s probably not the last we hear of Barker and other schools with him being so far away, but the Nittany Lions have weathered the storm for now.
Link: New Penn State pick logged in On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine (Snyder)
Running back commit Alvin Henderson continues to say the right things when it comes to the Nittany Lions. He popped up at Auburn a few weeks ago and that is one that will be worth monitoring for the time being. Henderson has been clear that playing for Ja’Juan Seider is a high priority and he remains in regular contact with the veteran assistant. No officials beyond Penn State have been set up to our knowledge. It’s also worth noting that his coaches are on the Alabama side of the Iron Bowl rivalry.
Aliquippa running back Tiqwai Hayes surprised us this weekend by popping up at Stanford. It surprised the Penn State staff as well, as they were not aware of the visit. Hayes has been a solid commit and has been recruiting for the Nittany Lions, publicly and privately, so seeing him turn up out west over the weekend was a shocker. Was told that the outside influence on this one pressed him to go check out the West Coast. That doesn’t absolve the visit, but gives a little bit more clarity. He’s supposed to be on campus this weekend for his official visit. It’s something that can be smoothed over, even if Penn State wasn’t pleased with the development.
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