New Jersey RB John Forster recaps weekend trip to Penn State

Penn State welcomed back New Jersey running back John Forster for another unofficial visit this past Saturday, April 5. The 5-foot-10, 185-pound back earned an offer from the Nittany Lions in April 2022 and has been a regular visitor ever since, taking five total visits to State College.

With two of those trips being for games, plus another to camp with the staff, Saturday was still a unique experience for Forster, giving him an opportunity to watch the staff at practice up close.

“I got to see a bunch of the new players get into the mix. That was good to see. They all got a lot of time and looked to be doing really well. I also got to see how fast-paced their whole practice was and how hard they were all working.”

Forster went on to add, “That was my first time seeing Coach [Ja’Juan] Seider really coach his guys. He’s hard on them, but what I liked is, when they make a mistake, he lets them know what it was and why, but also really tries to fix the specific issue. It’s not just pointing out the mistake, but pointing out the fix and making sure they really fix it.”

Since camping with Penn State last summer, Forster has been casually speaking with Seider and other members of the staff, although he did admit that he’s primarily waiting until September to speak with coaches regularly. Meeting with Seider after practice wasn’t the first time they’ve been able to spend time together on campus, but it was one of the deeper conversations they’ve had so far.

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“After practice, I sat down with him and we went over different concepts with the inside zone,” Forster said. “He was showing me some of the key things to look for, whether it be the linebackers or the linemen. It was all about what they do and why they do it.”

“He’s a really funny guy. I thought he really brought out his personality when he’s coaching. I think that’s great.”

Forster said he also had an extended talk with Penn State head coach James Franklin before heading home.

“He was explaining how much they really wanted me there, but also some of the things they think I can still work on after I camped with them last summer. He was also asking me to just keep getting up there, keep building our relationship. Hopefully I can get up there for camp again this year so I can work with Coach Seider again this year.”

So far, Forster has also visited Boston College, Syracuse and Rutgers. He said that he’s planning to check out Maryland soon, with a trip to Virginia and Virginia Tech also in the works.

Forster is also planning to run track for the first time at the high school level this year. He hasn’t run any official times yet but believes he should be able to run sub-11 seconds.

Forster was one of three Division I running backs playing at St. Joseph’s Regional this past season. Splitting carries with Yasin Willis and future Lehigh back Luke Tucci, Forster managed to total 806 yards of offense and eight touchdowns playing in one of the region’s best leagues in New Jersey’s Non-Public Group A.

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