Penn State Football: 3 regrets from 2023 recruiting cycle

3. Where’s the beef?

After Penn State was humiliated by Michigan back in October, James Franklin talked about wanting to get bigger on the defensive line to help stop the run.

And while by October most recruits already have their mind made up and are committed somewhere, Penn State didn’t do much to address that problem in 2023 class.

The only definite defensive tackle that Penn State landed in the 2023 cycle was 3-star Tyriq Blanding, who is listed at 6-foot-3 and 275 pounds. That’s not bad size for a high school senior, but between the fact that Blanding will have to add at least 30 pounds to qualify as Penn State getting “bigger” at defensive tackle and that he was the only one in the class, it’s not exactly ideal.

Mathias Barnwell is an X-factor in all of this. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound 4-star is currently listed as a tight end on Penn State’s roster, but there’s a chance he could move to a different position eventually, defensive tackle being an option.

Grabbing a 6-foot-6 defensive tackle that can get over 300 pounds would be huge for the Nittany Lions.

There were some big-bodied defensive tackles in the region for Penn State to go after in the 2023 cycle. Ohio State nabbed 4-star Jason Moore from Maryland, who is listed at 6-foot-6 and 280 pounds, while Texas secured the signature of 6-foot-5, 335-pound 4-star Sydir Mitchell from New Jersey.

For how good Penn State recruited Virginia in 2023, it did miss out on 6-foot-5, 310-pound Joel Starlings, who ended up with North Carolina.

Adding guys with this kind of size should be a priority for Penn State Football in 2024.