Latest prediction for Penn State 5-star de-commit rubs salt in the wound

Five-star running back Kemon Spell de-committed from Penn State football in the wake of firing former head coach James Franklin. Even though he seemed to already be on his way out before the decision, he officially opened up his recruitment alongside a number of former commits.

Every Penn State football recruit who has de-committed since James Franklin’s firing

According to Rivals' Steve Wiltfong's expert prediction, No. 12 Notre Dame is the frontrunner to land Spell.

Spell is the No. 1 running back from the class of 2027 and the No. 7 overall recruit, per 247Sports Composite rankings. Following his de-commitment, he named eight schools he was most interested in. Georgia, USC, Notre Dame, Florida State, Miami, Michigan, Tennessee, and Ohio State were all in the mix.

Now, the Fighting Irish lead that massive group of teams after Spell watched them defeat the Trojans. Notre Dame beat USC 34-24 at home on Saturday night.

The Fighting Irish have the 12th strongest class of 2027 with four three-star commits. Spell's addition would enhance this group's star power, become the first five-star commit for the Fighting Irish, and headline the class.

Losing Spell was already a tough blow for the Nittany Lions, but Notre Dame leading the race to land him is an even tougher pill to swallow. The Fighting Irish have been Penn State's kryptonite in recruitment.

During the spring and summer, Notre Dame took major wins away from the Nittany Lions. The Fighting Irish landed four-star quarterback Teddy Jarrard from the class of 2027 and four-star cornerback Khary Adams from the class of 2026. Adams was one of many bruises Penn State endured in its fall-off period of recruitment. As for Jarrard, the rising junior chose Notre Dame at a time when the Nittany Lions needed a young quarterback commit the most. Though he would have likely de-committed given recent events like other recruits, Penn State never even had a chance to hold onto Jarrard with the Fighting Irish in the way.

Notre Dame might just take in another Nittany Lion de-commit alongside Spell as well. The Fighting Irish were one of almost two dozen schools with interest in wide receiver Khalil Taylor. Taylor shut down his recruitment, sticking with Penn State, in early July. However, after Franklin was fired, he de-committed and reopened his recruitment. Notre Dame might just reappear in that race and steal yet another recruit from the Nittany Lions.