Penn State hoping to flip blue-chip Michigan commit with Week 10 visit to Beaver Stadium

2025 four-star tight end Andrew Olesh has long been a priority recruiting target for James Franklin and Penn State. Despite a commitment to Michigan, the Center Valley, Pennsylvania native is visiting Penn State on Saturday for the Nittany Lion’s top-5 clash with Ohio State at Beaver Stadium. 

The 6-foot-4 tight-end prospect plays his high school ball for Southern Lehigh, just south of Allentown, PA. He is the No. 76 player in the country by 247Sports Composite rankings, is the No. 3 tight end in the country, and the No. 3 overall player in the state of PA. James Franklin consistently preaches that the best in PA stay in PA, but the top three players in the state by 247Sports Composite rankings are all committed elsewhere. 

Quarterback Matt Zollers chose Missouri over Penn State, the Nittany Lions are still desperately trying to flip four-star defensive end Zahir Mathis from his Ohio State commitment, and Olesh announced his commitment to Michigan in July. Penn State currently only has commitments from three of the top 10 players in Pennsylvania, No. 4 Jabree Wallace-Coleman, No. 5 Alex Tatsch, and No. 10 Cameron Smith. 

Franklin has had plenty of success attracting and developing tight ends, which is a helpful selling point to Olesh. The Nittany Lions have had five tight ends drafted into the NFL across James Franklin’s 10-year tenure and Tyler Warren, the favorite to win the Mackey Award for the nation’s best tight end, will be next. Five-star tight end Luke Reynolds was the headliner of Penn State’s 2023 recruiting class and has played an increased role this season following the season-ending injury to redshirt freshman Andrew Rappleyea, a 2022 four-star recruit out of New York. 

Olesh’s father George is a Penn State alumnus, which likely won’t hurt the program’s chances of flipping the blue-chip tight end.