On Tuesday, one day after Penn State landed USC wide receiver transfer Kyron Hudson, his former teammate, Zachariah Branch entered the portal with plans to depart from Lincoln Riley’s program. The 5-foot-10 175-pound sophomore wide receiver caught 47 passes for 503 yards and a touchdown in 2024 and could be a good fit if he decided to follow Hudson to Happy Valley.
Branch is a different player than Hudson, an undersized slot receiver who thrives on his quickness and is an electric kick and punt returner. He could be a useful player in Andy Kotelnicki’s innovative and versatile offensive scheme and a significant upgrade over Liam Clifford, the team’s primary slot receiver in 2024.
Penn State improved its receiver group with the addition of Hudson, but that is not nearly enough to offset the loss of tight end Tyler Warren to the NFL this offseason, and James Franklin still needs to improve the pass-catching talent beyond just that. Franklin and wide receiver coach Marques Hagans have targetted plenty of wideouts, including Ball State’s Justin Bowick who is scheduled to visit State College, and Eric Rivers from FIU who already visited, but Branch should be added to that list.
On3.com’s Pete Nakos released a list of early schools to watch for Branch and Penn State was not included, but Franklin and his staff still have time to express interest in the dynamic playmaker.
Branch burst onto the scene as a true freshman in 2023, catching passes from Caleb Williams, and while he failed to take a significant step forward to becoming a dominant force in 2024, he was still as tough to tackle as anyone in the conference. He averaged 8.3 yards after the catch per reception, the most among Big Ten wide receivers and three yards more than Clifford, who led Penn State wide receivers in yac/rec.
Hudson’s size will help Drew Allar to push the ball downfield and throw into tight windows, but Branch’s quickness and speed would allow him to get the ball out more quickly and trust somebody else to make a big play.
With players dropping in and out of the portal daily, it’s hard to keep track of Penn State’s ideal portal targets at wide receiver. Branch should move near the top of the list with Bowick and Rivers, but Penn State will need to find a way onto his radar as his recruitment heats up.