Matt Campbell’s early offers could be laying the groundwork for an elite future class

Dekeen Kuyateh has been raking in offers, and according to Chad Simmons, Director of Recruiting for Rivals, the 6-foot-2, 210-pound Baltimore native is expected to be an “elite recruit” in the 2029 class. The defensive lineman worked out at Under Armour headquarters last week for the Baltimore Under Armour Next camp series. 

One of those early offers has come from Penn State. While the 2029 class isn’t yet ranked, Kuyateh is expected to shoot right to the top of the eventual rankings. The offer and Matt Campbell’s other activity in the 2029 class could be a sign that he’s ready to swim the five-star waters for the first time in his career.

The 2027 class is still coming together, but as Campbell and general manager Derek Hoodjer put together their board for 2029, Kuyateh may emerge as a priority. Getting in with him now, along with other likely “elite recruits,” gives them their best chance of landing the blue-chip talent they could never get to Ames.

Dekeen Kuyateh’s early Penn State offer could be a sign of things to come for Matt Campbell

Campbell hasn’t had Penn State in the mix for many elite recruits in the 2027 class. His 2027 class currently has 20 commits, but ranks just 16th in the country by Rivals, with six four stars and only two top 100 recruits. 

That would easily be the best class of his career, if he can hold onto it, but by Penn State’s standards, it’s merely acceptable. However, that may not be a proper reflection on his chops as a recruiter, which is, relatedly, the biggest question about his transition to a powerhouse program like Penn State. 

Coming from Iowa State, Campbell never had a real shot with any top 100 recruits, so even before they firmly established themselves atop the recruiting service’s rankings, they were, in almost all cases, already off the Cyclones’ radar. That means, as he transitions to Penn State, a program that expects to be in the fight for five-star talent, he doesn’t have the long-standing relationships you need to close the deal. Even in the NIL era, where the biggest offer tends to win out, those relationships still matter. 

The good news is that Campbell is working to establish them for future classes, so in a few years, Penn State may reap those rewards, and Campbell may start to change the narrative about his abilities on the recruiting trail. 

Campbell may not need to be a great recruiter to win a national championship at Penn State. He had Iowa State in contention for Big 12 titles with a wildly underresourced program and has routinely developed overlooked three-star talent into NFL draft picks. While it may not rival the best recruiters in the country, the uptick in talent in this class is meaningful, and he could develop it into a title contender. That’s essentially the bet that Penn State AD Pat Kraft made by hiring him, and the reason Penn State fans are okay with missing on a four-star QB talent like Peter Bourque, who chose James Franklin, for a three-star in Will Wood.

Yet, if Campbell can bring together his elite development and sprinkle in a few more elite recruits in the years to come, that will give him his best chance to take Penn State over the top. Maybe that player is Kuyateh. Maybe it’s another 2029 recruit or one in 2030. But Campbell is laying that groundwork, and that’s intriguing.

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