Is lightning about to strike twice for Penn State Football’s Mike Yurcich?

Penn State Football offensive coordinator Mike Yurchich was instrumental in recruiting Drew Allar to Happy Valley, but might the Nittany Lions be about to pounce on another top QB? 

Penn State Football’s offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich received high praise last year when he was the first quarterbacks coach to identify Drew Allar as an elite-level prospect. Now, a year later, Yurcich may have done it again.

Quarterback Marcus Stokes attended a junior day at Penn State back on Jan. 29, and the 2023 recruit left the visit with a Penn State offer. At the time, Stokes was unranked, and his offer list was Georgia Southern, Georgia State, USF, Florida Atlantic, and Western Carolina.

Fast forward to this week and the 6-foot-2 signal-caller from Florida finds himself ranked as a 4-star by 247 Sports. Between his new ranking and Penn State offer, Stokes’ recruitment looks primed to explode, as Allar’s did exactly a year ago.

The parallels between the two quarterbacks are certainly notable. Allar was rated as a three-star and his best offer was Iowa State at the time he received his Penn State offer last January. Allar committed to the Nittany Lions less than two months later and ended up being the No. 1 quarterback in the 2022 cycle, according to 247 Sports.

While their stories seem similar, they are completely different prospects. Allar is the NFL prototype with his 6-foot-5 frame and rocket arm, while the smaller Stokes is more of a dual-threat quarterback. who uses his legs to his advantage.

Recruiting Stokes will also be more difficult for Yurcich than Allar was. Allar is from Ohio, and with Ohio State not offering until it was too late, Penn State was the perfect combination of a big-time offer and being somewhat close to home. That will not be the case with Stokes, as he’s roughly 1,000 miles from State College and it is only a matter of time before other big-time programs between Stokes’ home in Ponte Vedra Beach and State College offer him. Stokes will also be mindful of the fact that Allar and Beau Pribula are only a class ahead of him.

Stokes is also likely to drag out his recruitment longer than Allar did. As mentioned, it was less than two months between when Allar received his offer and when he committed to Penn State. Considering Penn State is still Stokes only major offer, he may wait and see how things develop in the Spring.

This recruitment will be a battle for Yurcich as others get involved, but like with Allar, he will have the longest relationship and can say he was the first offensive coordinator at a major program to offer. The Nittany Lions will hope those variables play in their favor with it looking like Dante Moore and Jaden Rashada will end up elsewhere.