Penn State football's Class of 2027 has experienced some bumps and bruises along the way throughout this official visit season, but head coach Matt Campbell can't dwell on the negatives.
Despite the series of flips over the past week that caused the Nittany Lions' class to drop out of the top 10 (now ranked No. 11 overall), Campbell's made great progress with a few recruits — including blue-chip prospects — who can help redeem Penn State's class.
The Nittany Lions added another four-star player to their class with defensive lineman Elijah Guertin. He was one of five visitors over this past weekend and one of four previously uncommitted recruits on campus.
Even though Campbell doesn't have official visits lined up for this last weekend of the season, there are still a few prospects on his board he's more than capable of landing.
1. Wide receiver Khalil Taylor
The four-star wideout has been a hot topic in Happy Valley, and he's a prospect Penn State can't go without in this cycle.
No other school has come close to Taylor throughout his recruitment, even though he has yet to officially make his decision. He took a series of official and unofficial visits with Pittsburgh, Colorado, Rutgers, and Ohio State but the Nittany Lions stayed above the rest.
Following his official visit with Penn State, he canceled his remaining official visits. He previously saw the Buffaloes the week prior, but decided to forgo Nebraska and Alabama. In addition to these cancellations, experts heavily favored the blue and white to land Taylor.
It's nerve-wracking knowing the wideout rescheduled his official visit with the Cornhuskers for the final weekend, but Nebraska is scrambling for another wide receiver. It has a lot to make up for in Taylor's recruitment considering where the Nittany Lions currently stand with him. This weekend is something to keep an eye, but it's highly unlikely the Cornhuskers will completely flip Taylor's mind.
Ideally, Taylor's decision will be made after this weekend's official visit and Campbell won't have to sit on the edge of his seat any longer.
Taylor is ranked No. 87 nationally and No. 15 at wide receiver, according to Rivals Industry Rankings. He's also the fourth-ranked athlete from Pennsylvania.
2. Linebacker Case Alexander
Similar to Taylor, the four-star linebacker's recruitment got a bit more interesting. Oklahoma is seriously pushing for him, but it's another scenario where the Sooners need a huge push to sway Alexander from Penn State.
Oklahoma hosted Alexander for a visit this past weekend, which was his last of this official visit season, and five-star offensive tackle and Sooners commit Cooper Hackett also made a pitch for Alexander to stay at home. However, there hasn't been much significant movement in terms of predictions so far and Penn State remains the linebacker's top choice.
Campbell and Alexander already have that relationship built from when he recruited him at Iowa State. Connections and culture have been huge in Campbell's approach to recruiting and leading the Nittany Lions in general since he was hired. In regards to Alexander's recruitment, that relationship is withstanding any outside recruiting pressure.
Alexander is ranked No. 311 nationally, No. 26 at linebacker, and No. 7 from Oklahoma, according to Rivals Industry Rankings.
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