2027 Recruiting Thread

[PSUForever]

That's not what I said. I said unless we do really well in the portal.

PSU loses Becht and at this point the backups are modestly ranked and inexperienced. We also lose other key starters that came over from Iowa State like Hansen (RB), Brahmer (TE), Sowell (WR), and Bacon (LB). That's on top of original PSU players like Rojas & Collins. PSU lost almost all of it's recruiting class from 2026 so there aren't many up and coming players. Without those transfers our high school recruiting class was ranked next to last in the BiG and 65th overall. The 2027 class average player rating is 6th in the BiG and most of those kids won't be making a huge contribution as true freshmen anyway.

The 2027 schedule includes @ Indiana, @ Oregon, Michigan, Washington, etc. I stand by my way too early prediction that unless we do very well in the portal 2027 & 2028 could be rebuilding years with 8-4 type seasons.

You're afraid of every opponent who looks to have a pulse. Glad you aren't the coach.

What does "unless we do very well in the portal" even mean? So if we replace 10 guys or however many you reeled off with premium portal talent then we will be very good and back to 10-2 or 11-1? What if we replace half of them? So you already know that whomever the backups are that are on the roster now will be non effective in 2027? So much can change in 16 months. How do you know we don't have a QB on the roster now that can replace Becht without missing a beat? You make it sound like after this year our roster talent drops to MAC level and we need to get all of our starters from the portal. So what will be our record in 2027 since you are such a sky is falling person about the year sans "doing very well in the portal"? I want it on record from you now. Don't hide behind the portal excuse just give me what you think it will be.

 

[PSUForever]

And you know Penn State cooled on Bourque how? Asking for a friend.

When they sent the whole coaching staff to Wood's home for starters but not for Bourque. Add to that the fact that Wood has been moving up the rankings and fits better in the offense than Bourque. But you can go on believing that we really wanted Bourque but he shunned us so we had to settle for a 2nd tier QB and Campbell is inferior to BGJ in recruiting.

 

[Marshall2323]

Key retentions:
QB - 0
RB - 0
WR - 0
TE - Rapp
OL - Donkoh, Cousins
DE - Maybe Granville
DT - 0
LB - Rojas if healthy
DB - Tracy, Collins, Dixson

That's not a lot but we did get an experienced QB, RB, WR, DE, and LB from Iowa State in the portal

The QB RB WR TE etc. all played for Campbell and the OC last year. This offense is flush with returning starters.

 

[Marshall2323]

Typical gibberish from you. You have your redundant points you like to make and you make them whether or not they actually fit with what somebody else has said.
Good luck to your Hokies this season.

Good luck to the CyLions

 

[Marshall2323]

More redundant gibberish. Literally redundant as you already posted a response to this to two posts up from this one.

Using the word redundant in consecutive sentences is ...... somewhat superfluous. LOL

 

[PSU4U]

ND is loading up on offensive linemen. They just flipped a kid from UCLA. That already had a commitment from two other OL players including Halter, a four star OT from Pittsburgh Central Catholic, who is the fourth ranked player in PA. In addition, they just got a commitment from the #1 player in NJ, a five star OT. Now, they are the favorites to land the #1 player in DE who was previously committed to PSU. They aren’t messing around.

I didn't think it were possible for me to hate Neuter Dome more but after reading this I do.

 

[bdgan]

Irrelevant. Some if tge players you listed were not starters either. Did Granvill play a down?

I shouldn't have included Granville on my list but word was he would have started if not for injury.

That doesn't change my point which is that we lost a lot of starters from 2025 and we lost most our entire 2026 class in the portal. We had an extremely depleted roster except for the Iowa State transfers. They should help make us competitive this fall but many are seniors and the 65th ranked 2026 recruiting class isn't close to what we need to be competitive in 2027. For that to happen PSU is going to need a lot of portal help.

 

[PSUFTG]

As of today, the PSU recruiting class is a bit over 1/2 way completed.
The average quality (as per the "recruiting gurus") is 87.65. As classes fill out across the country - barring PSU's quality among the later part of the class increases substantially - it will be a 25ish ranked class nationally (And middle of the pack in the Big Ten. That is just "math")

Those are about the only "facts" available.
People can think what they want about how meaningful recruiting rankings are - they can certainly choose to think high school recruiting is very important - or not important at all. But those are "feelings", which are worthless (except to the person whose feelings they are). And in most cases, one's feelings change by the minute, depending on whatever allows them to think things are super-duper (or, in some cases. non-super-duper).


But the facts are that this is on track to be PSU's worst recruiting class in some time..... aside from last year, which was just about on par with this year, and the 2021 fiasco, which was also just about on par with this year in quality. 2021 was a 17 person class - of which only 4 made impactful on field contributions (the King brothers, and the safety duo of Wheatley and Reed)

Does high school recruiting matter anymore? YMMV - most people probably reasonably think it is somewhat less important than in the past, due to the proliferation of the "portal". But, to the degree that it is still impactful, this one - from on objective read - is not nearly on track with PSU's historical standards or what is necessary (if it becomes the norm) to be consistently competitive in the Big Ten.

Time will tell.

 

[bdgan]

ND is loading up on offensive linemen. They just flipped a kid from UCLA. That already had a commitment from two other OL players including Halter, a four star OT from Pittsburgh Central Catholic, who is the fourth ranked player in PA. In addition, they just got a commitment from the #1 player in NJ, a five star OT. Now, they are the favorites to land the #1 player in DE who was previously committed to PSU. They aren’t messing around.

 

[bdgan]

I wish our donors had a problem with Indiana winning the national championship

FWIW this link says PSU is #11 and ND is #23 in NIL collective spending

NIL Tracker 2026 | NIL Spending by School — All 283 D1 Programs Ranked | The Sideline

 

[Nits1989]

As of today, the PSU recruiting class is a bit over 1/2 way completed.
The average quality (as per the "recruiting gurus") is 87.65. As classes fill out across the country - barring PSU's quality among the later part of the class increases substantially - it will be a 25ish ranked class nationally (And middle of the pack in the Big Ten. That is just "math")

Those are about the only "facts" available.
People can think what they want about how meaningful recruiting rankings are - they can certainly choose to think high school recruiting is very important - or not important at all. But those are "feelings", which are worthless (except to the person whose feelings they are). And in most cases, one's feelings change by the minute, depending on whatever allows them to think things are super-duper (or, in some cases. non-super-duper).


But the facts are that this is on track to be PSU's worst recruiting class in some time..... aside from last year, which was just about on par with this year, and the 2021 fiasco, which was also just about on par with this year in quality. 2021 was a 17 person class - of which only 4 made impactful on field contributions (the King brothers, and the safety duo of Wheatley and Reed)

Does high school recruiting matter anymore? YMMV - most people probably reasonably think it is somewhat less important than in the past, due to the proliferation of the "portal". But, to the degree that it is still impactful, this one - from on objective read - is not nearly on track with PSU's historical standards or what is necessary (if it becomes the norm) to be consistently competitive in the Big Ten.

Time will tell.

Maybe I’m foolish, but with money ruling recruiting, why do we still assume that other teams with fewer recruits but higher average rating per recruit will continue to fill their classes with higher rated recruits? Why is that the assumption? Why do we not consider that they might have to take more lower rated recruits due to cost issues?

 

[bdgan]

The QB RB WR TE etc. all played for Campbell and the OC last year. This offense is flush with returning starters.

I'm talking about 2027. Becht, Hansen, Sowell, Brahmer, and Bacon were very good and much needed additions that should give PSU a chance at a good 2026 season. The problem is they're all seniors and the 2026 recruiting class was ranked 17th in the BiG.

 

[LB99]

FWIW this link says PSU is #11 and ND is #23 in NIL collective spending

NIL Tracker 2026 | NIL Spending by School — All 283 D1 Programs Ranked | The Sideline

I don’t believe that for a second. ND is spending money like they are printing it.

 

[pendal1]

I don’t believe that for a second. ND is spending money like they are printing it.

Exactly. And Dabo said the same thing.

 

[RyanSnyder]

 

[RolexKong]

FWIW this link says PSU is #11 and ND is #23 in NIL collective spending

NIL Tracker 2026 | NIL Spending by School — All 283 D1 Programs Ranked | The Sideline

It's worth little to nothing. No one has an accurate fix. Doubtless there are schools who don't even know what "NIL spending" is for their program.

 

[rigi19041]

He will look good in a PSU unifor.

 

[Corner Room Breakfast]

Exactly. And Dabo said the same thing.

ND is getting the ACC up in arms and their is no immediate fix.

As long as they are independent money is no object, to add insult
to injury, most of ND's recruits are on the Atlantic Coast. Fla, Ga,
NC, and NJ.

 

[rigi19041]

As of today, the PSU recruiting class is a bit over 1/2 way completed.
The average quality (as per the "recruiting gurus") is 87.65. As classes fill out across the country - barring PSU's quality among the later part of the class increases substantially - it will be a 25ish ranked class nationally (And middle of the pack in the Big Ten. That is just "math")

Those are about the only "facts" available.
People can think what they want about how meaningful recruiting rankings are - they can certainly choose to think high school recruiting is very important - or not important at all. But those are "feelings", which are worthless (except to the person whose feelings they are). And in most cases, one's feelings change by the minute, depending on whatever allows them to think things are super-duper (or, in some cases. non-super-duper).


But the facts are that this is on track to be PSU's worst recruiting class in some time..... aside from last year, which was just about on par with this year, and the 2021 fiasco, which was also just about on par with this year in quality. 2021 was a 17 person class - of which only 4 made impactful on field contributions (the King brothers, and the safety duo of Wheatley and Reed)

Does high school recruiting matter anymore? YMMV - most people probably reasonably think it is somewhat less important than in the past, due to the proliferation of the "portal". But, to the degree that it is still impactful, this one - from on objective read - is not nearly on track with PSU's historical standards or what is necessary (if it becomes the norm) to be consistently competitive in the Big Ten.

Time will tell.

Your projections are facts???? Yea, wrong.



Psu will be higher than 25th.

The fact is both rivals and 247 add points for quantity in team rankings. If two teams have the same exact 20 recruits with an average of 88.1234 and one team then adds 15 more 3*s who have an average ranking of 87.0 The team with 15 extra recruits does NOT lose ground.

 

[DaytonRickster]

I shouldn't have included Granville on my list but word was he would have started if not for injury.

That doesn't change my point which is that we lost a lot of starters from 2025 and we lost most our entire 2026 class in the portal. We had an extremely depleted roster except for the Iowa State transfers. They should help make us competitive this fall but many are seniors and the 65th ranked 2026 recruiting class isn't close to what we need to be competitive in 2027. For that to happen PSU is going to need a lot of portal help.

Agree PSU will need lots of portal help the next few years because of the 2026 class issues.

 

[DaytonRickster]

FWIW this link says PSU is #11 and ND is #23 in NIL collective spending

NIL Tracker 2026 | NIL Spending by School — All 283 D1 Programs Ranked | The Sideline

Then what is the "secret sauce" for ND's recruiting success? They have to be spending much more than that published amount.

 

[LionsAndBears]

I'm thinking that part of why we turned to Wood instead of Bourque was because we knew that we were going to have to go out and get a 7 figure QB in the Transfer Portal next year.

 

[LB99]

They gotta get this kid. You can’t lose an in state kid to Nebraska. You gotta draw the line somewhere.

 

[LB99]

 

[Patterson825]

View attachment 1294292
They gotta get this kid. You can’t lose an in state kid to Nebraska. You gotta draw the line somewhere.

View attachment 1294294

He’s going the Pat Narduzzi route and doesn’t give a F about PA kids and thinks he can do better elsewhere. It’s working out for Narduzzi quite well

 

[LB99]

He’s going the Pat Narduzzi route and doesn’t give a F about PA kids and thinks he can do better elsewhere. It’s working out for Narduzzi quite well

Narduzzi had to do that because PSU was cleaning his clock with in state recruiting.

 

[Marshall2323]

I'm talking about 2027. Becht, Hansen, Sowell, Brahmer, and Bacon were very good and much needed additions that should give PSU a chance at a good 2026 season. The problem is they're all seniors and the 2026 recruiting class was ranked 17th in the BiG.

I agree about 2027. I'm not concerned for 2026. I think the imports from ISU and the returnees can master that schedule.
The 2026 class that Kraft squandered along with the current class (which doesn't currently include difference makers) does not bode well for 2027, when I anticipate a more typical and challenging conference schedule.

 

[Marshall2323]

Narduzzi had to do that because PSU was cleaning his clock with in state recruiting.

How far the mighty have fallen. The BWICAC now embraces the Narduzzi model. What next? Tarps at Beaver?

 

[Colt2169]

Spell out for me the characteristics of a Franklin-bot. Specifically, what things make someone a Franklin-bot.

I can do that for a Joe-bot ... it's easy. Refuses to accept any/most criticism of the Paterno era. Deifies him, to the point where it's more important to say something good about him, than it is to do positive things for the program, currently. Focuses on statues and other reverences of Paterno, rather than present day considerations. Considers it heresy to even mention that anything other than Joe Paterno's complete innocence and lack of any wrongdoing in the Sandusky debacle is acceptable. Will look at any PSU football issue, past or present, with the thought of "how does this reflect on Paterno's legacy?" or "how did Paterno do it better?" first, and then only proceed to consider what's happening now. Is angry at O'Brien and/or Franklin because they didn't say/do the right things (in their opinion) regarding JoePa. Was excited and suddenly considered him a possible HC candidate, when Terry Smith wore a JoePa pin.

What's the definition of a Franklin-bot? Didn't hate him while we were playing in the Natty semifinal, one play away from playing for the Championship? Isn't looking for every reason to put him down, now that he's been fired? Is fine with him not being here, and also isn't sure everything is going to be super awesome going forward? Again, I haven't seen a single person who could be labeled as a Franklin-bot. There are people who object to the anti-Franklin-bots continual onslaught of negativity toward him (including being very unreasonable and looking for things to complain about) ... but that's it.

And now those anti-Franklin-bots appear to feel the need to unnecessarily paint everything that's happening since he was fired in a completely unreasonable positive light.

Now you try.

“Are you on drugs”

 

[LMTLION]

View attachment 1294292
They gotta get this kid. You can’t lose an in state kid to Nebraska. You gotta draw the line somewhere.

I would agree with that 100%. It is interesting that he’s waiting that long. A lot of other national high-level recruits have expedited their dates as they are being told NIL budgets are largely spent.

 

[HarrisburgDave]

Just curious since Campbell won zero championships and qualified for the same number of playoff games while coaching a decade in a weaker conference on what do you base your claim that he is likely to be an upgrade as a game day coach? Not trying to be a wise guy; just asking a legitimate question.

I just looked at Campbell's bio and saw two things that jumped out to make my point. Among active coaches he has the 4th best win/loss percentage against Top 5 opponents and is tied for 5th in win/loss percentage against Top 10 opponents. Franklin has a brutal record against such teams. Why the good record? Perhaps being in the Top 4 among all coaches for having a defense that gives up the fewest points in the 4th quarter and second half had the most to do with that.

He also won two conference championships at Iowa State, the only man to ever do that. He did that in ten years.

IMO Franklin was a great recruiter and a below average game day coach. I think his record makes that plain to see.