Then-three-star wide receiver Jamir Dean was viewed as a potential riser when he committed to the Nittany Lions on the first day of May. Now, as Matt Campbell continues to add to his class, with 18 commits in place after landing quarterback Will Wood on Friday, that rise has already started.
On Friday, Dean earned his fourth star from 247Sports. The 247Sports rankings have Dean as the 33rd overall wide receiver in the class, and the composite rankings view him as the 383rd overall player and 50th wide receiver.
The 6-foot-1, 175-pound Alcoa, Tennessee, product is an elite athlete as a multi-sport star in basketball and in track and field as a state qualifier in the decathlon. He’s now Penn State’s sixth four-star in the 2027 class, which ranks No. 6 in the country.
Jamir Dean becomes Penn State’s sixth four-star with updated 247Sports rankings
During his 10 years at Iowa State, Campbell was never viewed as an elite recruiter. He never landed a four-star recruit and established a reputation as one of the best developmental coaches in the country, consistently producing NFL Draft picks, including three at wide receiver.
At Penn State, Campbell has access to much better resources and is leading a program with a greater history of success. Naturally, that attracts higher quality talent, and with a fast start to the 2027 cycle, Campbell has capitalized. Still, he’s not allured by the four and five-star rankings. His pivot from Peter Bourque, the seventh-ranked QB in the class, to Wood, the 29th-ranked, is proof of that.
Campbell has his convictions. He has certain body types he looks for, and finding the right cultural fit is paramount to his recruiting process. That’s all the same from his time at Iowa State. The funny thing about the recruiting industry, though, is that the same player who remained a three-star as an Iowa State commit may get a bump to a four-star after committing to Campbell’s Nittany Lions.
The recruiting rankings industry is a good measure of talent, and it continues to improve with increased access to film and more opportunities to view players at camps or other events. However, the industry, as it should, frankly, still takes cues from coaches, because who is going to be a better judge of talent than the people whose livelihood depends on a 17-year-old panning out?
That’s a smart thing to do. If Nick Saban thinks a three-star or even a zero-star is good enough to get an offer to play for him, then they’re probably not a zero or even a three-star. Yet, this has its dangers, and in Saban’s era, it led to the “Bama bump.” That still exists in some form today, and the top-tier programs, of which Penn State is one, often benefit from rankings boosts to their commits.
The same player who committed to Campbell and his staff at Iowa State would probably remain a three-star, but now, if they commit to the same staff with the same track record for talent evaluation at Penn State, you can expect a boost in the rankings.
Matt Campbell has an elite eye for under-recruited talent
None of that is to say that Dean is a bad player undeserving of a four-star ranking. He has a slender frame that he’ll need to fill out, but his explosiveness jumps off the tape. He’s immediately all over the defensive back with enough speed to beat them deep in a foot race, and enough quickness and body control to snap the route off at any moment to create separation.
Whether working from the inside or the outside, Dean wins early and continues to separate late. He’s comfortable tracking the ball, and while he’s not overly physical, he positions himself well to win in contest catch situations.
His build and his play style may prevent him from ever becoming the volume No. 1 for a Big Ten passing game, but his propensity for creating explosive plays will allow him to make an impact very early in his career. It’s hard to find players who maintain speed in-and-out of breaks downfield as well as Dean does.
Campbell identified Dean early, made a strong push, and locked in a commitment before the spring official visit season. That’s a skill and a credit to him and his staff for winning recruiting battles before they get too crowded. Justified or not, recruiting rankings changes are what they are, but the important part is that Campbell added a dynamic playmaker at a position of need.
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