Penn State Football Recruiting Roundup: June 7, 2017
By Marty Leap
Welcome back to the weekly Penn State Football recruiting roundup
As the summer months begin, the start of the 2017 Penn State Football season is growing nearing. Additionally, things are really starting to heat up in the world of Penn State Football recruiting.
This past weekend the Nittany Lions held the first of their summer camps on campus, and it featured a big-time visitor. In fact, that visitor will be back again this week. Unfortunately, Penn State also suffered a big time de-commitment. There is this, plus other nuggets.
Let’s begin the weekly recruiting roundup, shall we?
A Five-Star Visitor
This past Saturday, five-star defensive end Micah Parsons visited Penn State. The Harrisburg High star, and ex-Penn State commit, will also be on campus for an unofficial visit today (Wednesday the 7th).
These are Parsons’ first two visits to Penn State since he decommitted from the Nittany Lions back on April 23. The first step to potentially getting Parsons back in the fold for Penn State’s 2018 recruiting class was getting him on campus, and that first step has been taken.
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While I still believe Ohio State is the team to beat for Parsons, the Nittany Lions appear to be firmly in his top two. If for some reason Parsons does not end up a Buckeye, I expect him to circle back to Penn State. Unfortunately, it’s tough to envision a scenario in which he does not play his college football in Columbus.
Justin Fields De-Commits
Penn State has lost five-star quarterback commit Justin Fields. On Tuesday night, Fields announced on Twitter that he is opening his recruitment back up. This is a massive blow to the Nittany Lions. A strong argument can be made that Justin Fields is not just the best quarterback, but the best player in the country. There is a reason that 247 Sports ranks Fields as the second best player in the country in their rankings, while he comes in at number six in their composite rankings.
A strong argument can be made that Justin Fields is not just the best quarterback, but the best player in the country. There is a reason that 247 Sports ranks Fields as the second best player in the country in their rankings, while he comes in at number six in their composite rankings.
There is no way around it, this is a massive blow for the Nittany Lions. Justin Fields is the elite type of quarterback recruit that does not come around very often. No matter the quarterback Penn State signs in this class, they will not be as talented as Fields is.
Elite Camp I
This past weekend was the first of multiple camps the Nittany Lion coaching staff will host in Happy Valley over the summer. At their Elite Camp I, Penn State hosted a key visitor, to go along with Micah Parsons visited, and extended a few new scholarship offers.
First off, four-star cornerback Jordan Miner was in town for a visit during the camp. This was the first visit to Happy Valley for the Tampa Bay native.
“Everything was amazing,” Miner told Scout’s Corey Bender about his visit to Penn State. He also said that this visit “set the bar” moving forward. It appears the Nittany Lions have given themselves a real chance with the Sunshine State standout. Now, the key will be to try and get him back on campus for another visit.
Secondly, there are the new offers that Penn State extended following their Elite Camp I. Class of 2019 quarterback Max Duggan and class of 2020 running back Jalen Berger were both offered by the Nittany Lions following their camp performances.
Max Duggan is from Council Bluffs, Iowa, and is shaping up to be one of the top quarterback recruits in the Midwest for 2019.
As for Jalen Berger, he is from Don Bosco Prep in New Jersey. Berger already holds offers from Maryland, Michigan, and Michigan State, among others.
Jalen Berger is going to be one of the top running back recruits in the country in the 2020 recruiting class. Therefore, it is great for Penn State to get in on his recruitment early on. The earlier a school gets involved in a player’s recruitment, the better chance they have at landing that player.
Next: 3 Redshirt Freshmen To Watch In 2017
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.