Penn State football's 2025 season that was meant to take the Nittany Lions (3-4, 0-4 Big Ten) all the way to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game crashed and burned halfway through the regular season. However, they're not the only ones experiencing an unforeseen breakdown, which means they're not the only ones losing recruits left and right.
Florida fired Billy Napier on Sunday, so some class of 2027 and 2026 recruits are going to be back on the market. While it might be difficult to poach prospects and bring them over to another broken team, all hope isn't lost for Penn State to redeem its recruitment and reinstate stability for the future of the program.
Offensive tackle Chancellor Campbell and safety Kaiden Hall are two Gator commits that had interest in Penn State before making their decisions.
Hall is a four-star recruit, according to 247Sports Composite rankings, and the No. 18 safety in the country. The Nittany Lions currently have two safeties still committed from the class of 2026, Matt Sieg and Darrell Carey. Sieg is a four-star recruit and Carey is a three-star.
Penn State was one of the schools Hall took an official visit to. On May 17, he visited Happy Valley after receiving his offer back on Feb. 20. He also took official visits to Oklahoma and Alabama. Alongside his many unofficial visits to Florida State, Hall also attended Junior Day on Jan. 18. The Nittany Lions will have stiff SEC competition if Hall de-commits from Florida.
As for Campbell, the class of 2026 offensive tackle is ranked 42nd in the country at his position and is listed as a three-star per 247Sports Composite rankings. Penn State has three-star Marlen Bright, three-star Tavian Branch, and four-star Kevin Brown at the position who are still committed from the class.
Happy Valley was the last school he took an official visit to, which was after he already committed to the Gators. Campbell made his decision on June 8 and proceeded to take visits to Ohio State on June 13 and Penn State on June 20.
In a perfect world, the Nittany Lions poach offensive playmakers to fill the gaps created due to de-commitments. In both classes, 2026 and 2027, are weak and time is running out for Penn State to grab a quarterback, running back, or wide receiver. Once de-commitments roll in, there are a few positions the Nittany Lions desperately need to focus on, and a couple prospects that won't hurt to have.