After a hot start to the 2026 recruiting cycle, Penn State’s class was losing steam. The Nittany Lions lost three-star receiver Jerquaden Guilford, who de-committed in February, and since losing running backs coach Ja’Juan Seider to Notre Dame, every running back commit has been under siege by the Fighting Irish.
However, on Tuesday, James Franklin re-established some momentum by landing three-star in-state athlete David Davis. The 5-foot-10 180-pound Davis was recruited by cornerbacks coach Terry Smith and figures to fit into the defensive backfield when he arrives in Happy Valley.
Penn State lands 2026 three-star David Davis
According to 247Sports Composite Rankings, Davis is the 429th-ranked player in the 2026 class and the 12th-best player in Pennsylvania. Smith, who is from Aliquippa, PA was able to leverage his western PA connections to land the Imani Christian High School star. Davis holds offers from West Virginia, Pitt, Michigan State, Tennessee, and Kentucky among others. He attended Junior Day in Lexington, but according to 247Sports, has taken six unofficial visits to Happy Valley since 2022.
Davis could be a late riser up the recruiting rankings, the type of player Franklin and his staff have done such a good job evaluating in recent years. Though he’s listed as an athlete, he’s likely to play cornerback and if so, he joins three-star Julian Peterson and four-star Matt Sieg as defensive backs in Penn State’s 2026 class.
Now that Franklin’s 2026 class is back up to nine players, it ranks seventh in the country and third in the Big Ten. USC currently holds the top-rated class in 2026 with 15 commits including five-star athlete Xavier Griffin, and Oregon has the sixth-best class. The new West Coast Big Ten teams have been recruiting powerhouses, so it's crucial for Franklin and the rest of the conference to keep pace.