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Penn State Football Recruiting Roundup: January 12, 2017

By Marty Leap

Oct 8, 2016; University Park, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin looks on from the sideline during the fourth quarter against the Maryland Terrapins at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Maryland 38-14. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O
Oct 8, 2016; University Park, PA, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin looks on from the sideline during the fourth quarter against the Maryland Terrapins at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Maryland 38-14. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O /
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The Penn State Football season might be over, but the Penn State football recruiting season never ends.

Welcome back to our weekly look at all things Penn State football recruiting here at Victory Bell Rings. This is the Penn State Football recruiting weekly roundup.

The recruiting news has been a little slow in recent weeks, however, that will be changing. The reason this will be changing is due to the end of the recruiting dead period. The NCAA recruiting dead period came to an end Wednesday night, and now coaches are entering the final push until National Signing Day on February 1.

With the end of the dead period, Penn State’s coaching staff will be on the road to visit commits and recruits. Additionally, official visits will be starting up once more. With all of that said, let’s dive into this week’s recruiting roundup.

Official Visitor This Weekend

The Nittany Lions will host one official visitor this weekend. That official visitor will be defensive back Tariq Castro-Fields. Castro-Fields is a 4-star prospect, and a native of Maryland.

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Tariq Castro-Fields attends Riverdale Baptist High School in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, which is the same high school of Penn State freshman cornerback Zech McPhearson. Castro-Fields recently announced a top three of Alabama, Maryland, and Penn State. Additionally, he will announce his college decision on January 23.

Entering this visit, I believe that Maryland is the team to beat. However, I think Penn State can make a big move this weekend.I believe the Nittany Lions will have the opportunity to become the team to beat this weekend.

The Nittany Lions remain tight on space, but they would accept a commitment from Castro-Fields in a heartbeat. Hopefully, the coaching staff will earn one come January 23.

The Contact Period Begins

As I mentioned above, the NCAA dead period has now ended. The contact period will last through January 28th.

The Nittany Lion coaches will be all over the country visiting players the next 16 days. Additionally, the Nittany Lions will be hosting both committed and un-committed prospects for official and un-official visits the next three weekends.

Along with Castro-Fields, there are a few other recruits to keep an eye on this month, including Virginia Tech linebacker commit Nathan Proctor and athlete Lynn Bowden.

It has also been previously reported that Indiana tight end commit Peyton Hendershot is expected to take an official visit to Penn State on January 27.

A New Offer Goes Out

Wednesdaynight, the Nittany Lions extended an offer to class of 2017 wide receiver Tyjon Lindsey.

The 4-star wide receiver is a native of Las Vegas, Nevada, and attends national powerhouse Bishop Gorman High School. This offer came on the same day that Lindsey de-committed form Ohio State.

While Lindsey seems like a long shot, it does not hurt to extend this offer. I am sure the Nittany Lions will attempt to get him on campus for a visit this month. But I would not bank on it.

Mark Webb Locks In His Official Visit

Warminster, PA, wide receiver Mark Webb has been committed to Georgia since September. However, according to Adam Friedman of Rivals.com, he will take an official visit to Penn State the weekend of January 27.

Early on in his recruitment Webb appeared to be a huge Penn State lean. However, that went on to change over the summer months. Despite that, I always felt that with a strong season the Nittany Lions could get back into the mix for Mark Webb.

It will not be easy to flip Webb from Georgia. However, I believe Penn State has a chance. If Webb was not interested in Penn State he would not be taking an official visit. Additionally, I have spoken with a source that has told me a lot of people around Webb believe he is a better fit at Penn State than he is at Georgia. That could be a factor as well.

Next: James Franklin Named Woody Hayes Coach of the Year

That will do it for this week. As always, stay tuned here at Victory Bell Rings for all of the latest news in the world of Penn State Football recruiting. Especially now that the contact period is upon us and the made dash until National Signing Day is underway.

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