Penn State football head coach Matt Campbell has big targets on his Class of 2027 recruitment board, and one of them is a former commit.
Penn State can't get too comfortable with latest expert prediction on 4-star QB
Gabe Jenkins is a four-star safety from Pittsburgh, Penn. who was previously committed to the Nittany Lions. Soon after Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin was let go by the blue and white, Jenkins de-committed and reopened his recruitment.
Like others, Campbell reignited recruits' interest in Penn State's program despite them de-committing back in October. Jenkins is among that group. In fact, the Nittany Lions are still at the top of his radar.
It's not an easy path to re-landing him, though.
According to Von Lozon of Maize N Brew, Jenkins took a visit to Michigan on Monday, March 16. This was the first time he visited the Wolverines. They are part of Jenkins' top list as well, which also includes Pittsburgh and the Hokies where Franklin is now.
Jenkins told On3's Ethan McDowell that Michigan checks all the boxes in terms of relationship-building and valuing family. The Wolverines are slowly creeping up on the Nittany Lions as they made a good impression on the young prospect.
“Michigan is a good school,” Jenkins said. “I always liked them when I was a kid, watching them play when I was like six and I was like ‘Yeah, this is a nice school.’"
Jenkins is the No. 30 safety from the Class of 2027 and No. 11 recruit out of Pennsylvania. He's also ranked 357th overall across the country, per Rivals Industry Ranking.
As of Tuesday, March 17, Penn State is still leading by a wide margin to land his commitment at 87.7 percent. Behind the blue and white are the Panthers. The Nittany Lions now have to worry about an in-state battle as well as a Big Ten battle for Jenkins.
Given Campbell's recent track record with in-state recruits, most notably five-star running back Kemon Spell who also gave Penn State another opportunity to sway his decision back to Happy Valley, getting Jenkins is barely within arm's reach.
Jenkins scheduled an official visit with the Nittany Lions for June 5. He also visited them for Junior Day on Jan. 24.