Matt Campbell is putting a lot of trust in 'slow and steady wins the race'

Penn State football's Class of 2027 wound up to be pretty disappointing considering the names it was likely to land just a few months ago.

After losing out on five-star running back Kemon Spell and four-star wide receiver Khalil Taylor among many others, it was clear that head coach Matt Campbell's recruitment direction moving forward needs to prioritize in-state, blue-chip prospects. It's unfortunate that he couldn't land key targets, but it's not entirely unreasonable considering he had a late start in this cycle.

"We're going to take it slow and right," Campbell told reporters at Big Ten Media Days on Tuesday. "We're still playing catch-up in this spot: you're playing catch-up in relationships, you're playing catch-up in evaluation. And the biggest mistake we can make is taking the wrong fit . . . when you only have 105 men on your roster, aligning the football roster and finding the right fit is critically important."

Matt Campbell said Penn State is "playing catch-up" in recruiting, but doesn't want to rush anything

Campbell continued, saying he and his staff have a lot of trust in their system in terms of evaluating and team building. Recruitment in the 2027 cycle might not have panned out exactly as they hoped, but the players they did acquire weren't picked up just to put a class together with no rhyme or reason.

Even though he still believes he's playing catch-up, at least in recruitment, that excuse really only works in the 2027 cycle. So far, with the prospects he has committed from the 2028 cycle, the catch-up excuse won't have to resurface. Campbell found his main guy in four-star quarterback James Armstrong, and hopefully more Pennsylvania recruits follow in Armstrong's footsteps and commit to the Nittany Lions down the road.

As for where the 2027 class is left, Campbell still has time to flip decisions, but it doesn't have to happen immediately (or at all). One of the main priorities in this case is retaining commits. Four-star wideout Jamir Dean and three-star cornerbacks Semajay Robinson and Zachary Gleason Jr. all decommitted from the program in June. That can't be a pattern that continues into the 2026 regular season as prospects take game day visits and coaches make their last pitches to try and sway their minds.

Per 247Sports, Penn State has the No. 20 overall 2027 class with only six blue-chip recruits. The Nittany Lions might trail behind in these battles this time around, but if Campbell is that confident in his staff's recruiting process, then slow and steady might actually win the race for them. The blue and white faithful will just have to be patient through this cycle as Campbell finds his footing in his new role with his new team.

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