James Franklin’s 2026 recruiting class ranked No. 4 in the country, but heading into his 12th season in Happy Valley, Franklin is still battling to add a true headliner to his loaded 16-player class. Penn State has yet to add a 2026 four-star, but that could change this summer after five-star edge rusher Carter Meadows named the Nittany Lions as one of his four finalists.
The 6-foot-6, 235-pound edge rusher is the No. 6 overall player by On3's 2026 recruiting rankings, and by 247Sports Composite Rankings, he’s the 70th best player in the country. That top 70 ranking would still slot him as the second-highest-ranked recruit in the Nittany Lions’ 2026 class behind offensive tackle Kevin Brown.
BREAKING: Five-Star EDGE Carter Meadows is down to 4 Schools, he tells me for @on3recruits
— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) May 9, 2025
The 6’6 235 EDGE from Washington, DC is ranked as the No. 6 Recruit in the ‘26 Class (per On3)
Where Should He Go? 👀https://t.co/W3oe3TGhO7 pic.twitter.com/KrUNp0hMO1
Carter Meadows named Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan, and South Carolina as finalists
A product of Washington DC and Gonzaga College High School, Meadows is right in one of Penn State’s recruiting hotbeds. So while he’s not an in-state recruit, it’s important for Franklin to fend off Ryan Day and Sherrone Moore to land a commitment.
While Meadows is already a highly-ranked player, with his size and length at 6-foot-6, he’ll have plenty of potential to unlock at the next level. It could take Meadows some time to add weight to his frame so he’s able to hold up at defensive end against Big Ten offensive tackles, but once he does, he could be one of the league’s top pass rushers.
So far in 2026, Franklin has landed commitments from three defensive linemen and linebacker Terry Wiggins, who could feature on the edge as an undersized pass-rusher. That’s a heavy investment in one position, but with Jim Knowles taking over the defense, it’s a worthy one.
Knowles loves to get after the quarterback. Early in his career, that meant bringing additional pass-rushers, but last season, as he helped lead Ohio State to a national championship, it was all about relying on his four-down linemen to apply pressure. If that’s the philosophy he wants to bring to Happy Valley, then he and Franklin better keep finding elite edge rushers who can win without much help. That’s the type of player Meadows projects to be, and Franklin certainly doesn’t want his offensive staff to be gameplanning against him in two or three years.
With so many veterans in their final seasons of eligibility on this year’s roster, the 2026 recruiting class has become that much more important to the future in Happy Valley. It needs to bring a massive influx of young talent, and maybe Meadows can be the next Dani Dennis-Sutton.