Penn State football extends offer to 2020 Virginia Tech commit

Penn State football recently extended an offer to a 2020 three-star athlete, who is currently committed to Virginia Tech.

It’s never too late to make an offer to a prospect — even if they are already technically set on their future. Penn State football knows all too well that verbal commitments might not carry too much weight nowadays. After all, they lost quite a few for the 2020 recruiting class.

Back in June, the Nittany Lions had four recruits who were initially committed, go back on their word and either join another school or re-open their recruitment. That was for 2020 alone. Then recently, the Lions lost one of their two early commitments for the 2021 class. And unfortunately, the prospect happened to be a top, four-star wide receiver.

So Penn State has been unlucky in the recent past when it comes to de-commitments. It’s unfortunate, but it happens. However, just because they have lost commits, doesn’t mean they cannot gain commits from players who were previously locked in on a program.

That’s precisely why James Franklin and the rest of the staff recently made an offer to a 2020 prospect, despite the fact he already has his mind set on where he’s attending next fall. Vineland, New Jersey native Tyreem Powell gave the Virginia Tech Hokies his word back in February.

https://twitter.com/ReeeemX_/status/1091423795523538945

The three-star defensive athlete is supposed to play linebacker for the Hokies in 2020, but he could potentially end up at the safety position as well, regardless of what happens over time. However, some sudden changes in Virginia Tech’s program could cause a bit of a shakeup.

Hokies’ defensive coordinator Bud Foster will coach with the team in 2019, but the long-time coordinator plans to call it quits after this season — further meaning that any of his recruits coming in from 2020 and beyond would not be under his supervision. Sometimes, sudden changes like that can cause prospects to re-direct their landing spot via de-commitment or transfer.

According to Fight on State’s Sean Fitz, Powell initially only had offers from the Hokies, Rutgers, and Temple when he made his initial decision to commit. After showcasing his talents throughout the spring though, Powell garnered some more interest as he heads into his senior season. James Franklin and the Lions took notice and decided to extend an offer, regardless of his current state. Will it make a difference? Maybe it will. Maybe it won’t. We’ll have to wait and see.