Penn State among National Signing Day 'losers' but still landed more four-stars then Pitt, Rutgers: Newsstand

Without a new head coach to replace James Franklin, who was fired 54 days ago, Penn State finished day one of the early signing period on Wednesday with just two Class of 2026 signees. That led to a day of the Lions getting pummeled on social media. The class is unranked in the Rivals Industry Rankings. It is the smallest in school history at the moment, though a new coach is sure to add to it during the traditional signing day window in February once hired. And it meant that, when it came time to pick winners and losers, Penn State ended up in the latter category.

With all that said, PSU fans can at least hang their hat on one trivial thing: Defensive end Jackson Ford and quarterback Peyton Falzone, the two signees, are four-stars in the Rivals Industry Rankings, which means the Lions earned more four-star commitments than the likes of Pitt, Rutgers, Kansas, Northwestern, and Duke, among others. So, if you’re looking for something to be happy about among an otherwise sea of misery for ‘Nittany Nation’ between the fanfare-less Signing Day and lengthy head coaching search, there you go.

More: New Penn State QB commit Peyton Falzone: ‘I have an amazing opportunity on my hands’

“Penn State’s class was always going to suffer for James Franklin’s midseason firing,” Paul Myerberg writes for USA Today. “But the long and drawn-out process to find his replacement and Franklin’s move to Virginia Tech has put a huge dent in the Nittany Lions’ group, which as of Wednesday afternoon ranked last in the Big Ten.

“As expected, Franklin poached multiple members of his former class, including several highly rated prospects. The best might be four-star running back Messiah Mickens. While the next Penn State coach can make up ground in the transfer portal, to have a class this small and unimpactful will create a roster imbalance that may take one or two additional cycles to correct.”

The rest of today’s newsstand is below.

Headlines of the day

The Penn State Football Coaching Hot Board, v. 9.0: Fitz, BWI

How much has Penn State’s coaching search netted other coaches in extensions?: Carr, BWI

Buzzworthy: Inside Penn State’s coaching search reset: Bauer, BWI

So, you want Pat Kraft fired? Here’s what the math and current reality at Penn State have to say about that: Pickel, BWI

Malvern Prep coach on Jackson Ford: ‘He wants to play for his state’s flagship school’: Snyder, BWI

Quote of the day

“I think when this decision was first made, it was obviously under a different coaching staff, but even when it was first made, there was a connection to the school. Jackson loves the idea of being a Pennsylvania athlete, staying in state and playing for the flagship university. He felt a real connection with the school. Every time he would go to a game, it would only enhance that feeling. He saw himself on that field, being cheered on by 107,000 people. So, the connection was always very strong to the institution.”

Malvern Prep head coach Dave Gueriera on Jackson Ford signing with PSU.