As is the case for most coaches this time of year, Matt Campbell is looking for a little flurry on the recruiting trail before the early signing period arrives at the beginning of December. Yet, so far for Campbell and Penn State staff, flip season has yielded more departures than arrivals.
The Nittany Lions have lost two commits: three-star QB Will Wood and three-star linebacker Blake Betton, and added just one, three-star running back Jordan Hall. That attrition has dropped them to No. 21 in the national rankings, falling behind Kentucky.
Despite his three-star ranking, Hall was a major get for Penn State, which beat out Ohio State and Missouri for the former Miami (OH) commit. The rest of Penn State’s flip targets, though, aren’t exactly being pursued by powerhouses.
Penn State hosted three 2027 recruits committed elsewhere on Saturday’s 31-17 win over Purdue: Jayden Paulino, Arnold Mugerwa, and Ben Sakyiama, who are committed to Boston College, Rutgers, and Syracuse, respectively. According to Brian Dohn of 247Sports, the Nittany Lions are also involved in the recruitment of Boston College commit Ben Rolapp and Wisconsin commit Will Zaccagnino.
Of those programs, only Wisconsin has sniffed the Top 25 this season, and only Wisconsin is spending more than $25 million on its roster in 2026. Boston College, which flipped Wood and has so far held Campbell off for 3-star defensive tackle Markius Woods, along with Paulino and Rolapp, ranks dead last in roster spending this season at $8-13 million.
Penn State’s latest flip targets for 2027 recruiting class
- Jayden Paulino, DL - 3-star: No. 809 overall (Boston College)
- Arnold Mugerwa, WR - 3-star: No. 469 overall (Rutgers)
- Ben Sakyiama, OT - 3-star: No. 1864 overall (Syracuse)
- Ben Rolapp, QB - 3-star: No. 1497 overall (Boston College)
- Will Zaccagnino, DL - 3-star: No. 1300 overall (Wisconsin)
Paulino was just offered by Penn State on Tuesday after his visit. He continues a trend of Campbell and his staff, including general manager Derek Hoodjer, attempting to raid Bill O’Brien’s 2027 class. Yet, so far, O’Brien has poached from Penn State while the Nittany Lions are empty-handed.
Now, roster spending doesn’t necessarily equate to talent. Some teams have a budget to spend, and they do it by overpaying across the board; look at Florida State and Texas A&M this year. However, it’s a decent proxy for understanding the players who are being valued by the market.
It’s not unheard of for a good player to wind up at Rutgers, and Syracuse has landed five-star talent under Fran Brown as recently as last cycle. But it’s worth noting that these are the programs Penn State is currently positioning as its primary opponents on the recruiting trail.
I mean, this team is having a pretty extensive back-and-forth with Boston College. You have to exhaust all avenues to win on the margins in recruiting, and maybe it's smart to pick battles you think you can win, but that's still such a rough look for this operation as it approaches its first early signing period at Penn State.
Whether that’s a product of Campbell’s lack of high-end recruiting chops or the state of Penn State’s financial situation, Penn State isn’t playing tug-of-war for talent with Ohio State, Notre Dame, Michigan, and Oregon on a regular basis. It’s looking to pluck a few pieces away from the bottom-tier spenders of the Power 4, and so far has been largely unsuccessful.
Mugerwa would be the biggest get of this bunch, not just because of his overall ranking in the 247Sports Composite, but because of the need Penn State has at wide receiver. Currently, four-star Landon Blum is the only wide receiver committed in Penn State’s class, and Mugerwa is one of a few WR flip targets, along with fellow Rutgers commit Jamar Taylor and WVU commit Chase Guers. It feels likely that Campbell and his staff get one of those three, but not quite a guarantee.
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