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Penn State Football: Would a win over Michigan help recruiting?

By Alec Whitaker

STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 10: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions leads the team onto the field before the game against the Ohio Bobcats at Beaver Stadium on September 10, 2022 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
STATE COLLEGE, PA - SEPTEMBER 10: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions leads the team onto the field before the game against the Ohio Bobcats at Beaver Stadium on September 10, 2022 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /
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STATE COLLEGE, PA – SEPTEMBER 24: (L-R) Head coach James Franklin and offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich of the Penn State Nittany Lions watch warm ups before the game against the Central Michigan Chippewas at Beaver Stadium on September 24, 2022 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
STATE COLLEGE, PA – SEPTEMBER 24: (L-R) Head coach James Franklin and offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich of the Penn State Nittany Lions watch warm ups before the game against the Central Michigan Chippewas at Beaver Stadium on September 24, 2022 in State College, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) /

The argument against

Let’s start with the most obvious thing here: Recruits rarely are swayed in their recruitment because of one game.

Let’s say a recruit was down to Penn State and Michigan. The winner of the game is not guaranteed to land the commitment. Maybe he likes the academics at Michigan more or has a better relationship with the Penn State staff. One game won’t change that.

Additionally, Penn State has two difficult games against Minnesota and Ohio State following this game. Let’s say they lose those two, well, any moment from a Michigan win is pretty much done a week later.

As mentioned earlier, most recruits don’t care about a team’s record before they’re on the team. The exception is if the record is so bad that coaches get fired. Penn State itself is a prime example of that. The Nittany Lions went 7-6 in 2021 but had the No. 6 recruiting class for 2022. Winning will help, but it’ not the end all be all in recruiting.

There are other factors involved with recruiting. They include NIL, facilities, housing, academics, player development and so on. Penn State does pretty well in most of these areas, especially because the football facilities just got renovated. The Nittany Lions are still well behind in housing for student-athletes and are currently middle of the pack in NIL. More Penn State NIL funds are emerging though, and Penn State football should become a big player in that.

Winning recruits over in these areas may be more beneficial than a win at Michigan.

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