Lions pick up verbal

By Joe Miegoc | Published: July 25, 2010 | 0 Comments

Penn State’s 2011 recruiting class grew by one Sunday when Succasunna, N.J., guard Angelo Mangiro committed to the Nittany Lions.

Mangiro, who picked Penn State over Ohio State, Rutgers and Pitt among others, is rated by Rivals.com as a three-star prospect, the 13th-best guard in the country and New Jersey’s eight-best player. The Nittany Lions were long thought to be Mangiro’s leader, but the 6-foot-2, 290-pound guard maintained that Ohio State, Rutgers and Pitt were also high on his list.

Quick scouting report on Mangiro: He does a good job staying low out of his stance and initiates first contact well. Keeps feet moving on contact and keeps his hands inside his opponent’s shoulders. Shows a nastiness that is important for any interior lineman to have. Finishes off blocks and shows the ability to seal defenders that are quicker than him. Wasn’t asked to pull much, but when he was it was on sweep plays outside and showed the athleticism to be able to get in the open field and punish a defender. Played a lot of tackle for his high school team, but his height will probably limit him to guard at PSU.

This is a real good pickup for Penn State, not just adding a good player but also a prospect that should be able to help them recruit in the Northeast with some prospects high on the Lions’ board.

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Clark signs with CFL team

By Joe Miegoc | Published: July 20, 2010 | 0 Comments

Former Penn State quarterback Daryll Clark, a two-time All-Big Ten first-team pick, signed a contract with the Calgary Stampeders on Monday.

Clark, who led the Nittany Lions to back-to-back double-digit winning seasons in 2008 and 2009, was not picked in April’s NFL draft. He got a tryout from the Washington Redskins during their first mini-camp, but did not leave with a contract offer.

Real quick here, great move by Clark and a solid pick up by the Stampeders. Although Calgary is three games into its season and has some good quarterbacks, including for Temple standout Henry Burris, Clark will have time to refine some of the weaknesses in his game (holding the ball too long, locking onto targets and consistency in hitting receivers in stride are the big three) and do it a professional level. Will he be a success? Only time will tell, but I wouldn’t count him out.

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Take the time

By Joe Miegoc | Published: July 12, 2010 | 0 Comments

No recruiting news here tonight. All is relatively quiet on that front, at least for now.

When you have a few minutes take the time to read about former Penn State fullback Steve Smith, who has valiantly battled ALS for eight years. Great story and well told by Frank Bodani.

I only vaguely remember Smith as a player at PSU (my first memory of the Nittany Lions is watching them beat Miami in the Fiesta Bowl in 1987), but I’ve read stories about how tough he was and how great of a leader he was. You can see that spirit is still very much alive in him.;

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Make that three commitments

By Joe Miegoc | Published: July 7, 2010 | 0 Comments

Penn State picked up its third verbal commitment for its 2011 recruiting class when Fairvew defensive end Jordan Kemmer pledged to the Nittany Lions on Wednesday.

Kemmer, who picked Penn State over Iowa, also had scholarship offers from Boston College, Maryland, Minnesota, Northwestern, Rutgers and West Virginia. The 6-foot-5, 225- pound Kemmer is rated by Rivals.com as a three-star prospect and the 16th-best prospect in Pennsylvania.

Kemmer picked up an offer from Penn State earlier this month when the Lions’ coaching staff was impressed with a workout he gave them on campus. I didn’t get a chance to blog about the offer so here’s my breakdown one what Kemmer brings to the table: He does a good job keeping his outside shoulder free when rushing the quarterback and plays low for being 6-5. Shows good strength, repeatedly knocking offensive linemen back on contact. Is a good athlete who also plays fullback and contributes on special teams. Shows the ability to finish the play once he penetrates into an opponent’s backfield. Did a good job when asked to drop into coverage and showed the ability to find the ball. More often than not did a good job wrapping up, but got a bit sloppy on his film at times. Easy fix there. Keeps his shoulders parallel to the line of scrimmage while scrapping down to stop ball carriers.

Overall, Kemmer is a very intriguing prospect. He can stand to put on another 20-25 pounds and probably won’t loss much quickness. He plays with a toughness that is hard to teach and fits the Penn State mold of a hard-working type of player. Another good pick up for the Lions, who have turned around what was a dire recruiting situation just a week ago.

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The tables turn

By Joe Miegoc | Published: July 2, 2010 | 0 Comments

Just a few days after lamenting the loss (or did they?) of defensive tackle Marquise Wright to Pitt, Penn State got a huge commitment Thursday, picking up a verbal from Lansdowne defensive end Shawn Oakman.

At one point thought to be a near lock for Wright, Penn State watched as Pitt swooped in to get his commitment following an unofficial visit over the weekend. While some couldn’t understand how it could happen, rumors have floated that the Nittany Lions had cooled considerably on Wright following the completion of his junior year at Parumus High School in New Jersey.

No worries though as defensive line coach Larry Johnson helped seal the deal with Oakman, a 6-foot-8, 240-pound prospect ranked by Rivals.com as the nation’s 244th-best player, 20th-best strongside defensive end and seventh-best prospect in Pennsylvania.

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Disturbing trend

By Joe Miegoc | Published: June 29, 2010 | 0 Comments

It all started last Friday.

That’s when news came that Damascus, Md., athlete Brandon Phelps, at one point thought to be a Penn State lean, verbally committed to Virginia. The sting was less severe since both his parents being Virginia graduates, but such a big need in the defensive backfield, where Phelps was being recruited to play, didn’t take it all away.

The worst news came Monday night.

Long thought to have Penn State as his top choice, Paramus, N.J. defensive tackle Marquise Wright verbally committed to Pitt following an unofficial visit over the weekend. Wright had said on more than one occasion that Penn State was at the top of his list, but that changed and not just over the weekend. Wright had steadily built a good relationship with Pitt assistant Jeff Hafley, his lead recruiter. The two e-mailed on a regular basis and Wright said Hafley was the only coach who had done that.

So how does this happen? There really are so many reasons, but the obvious and clearest one is that Penn State simply got outworked, for Wright especially. It’s understandable that having a kid say you’re his top school might take away some of your aggressiveness as a recruiter, but in this day and age of recruiting I think it should have the opposite effect. Kids are kids. They can change their minds at the drop of a hat. One day you have their verbal commitment and the next day they’re sporting some other school’s sweatshirt.

Contact has to be as constant as the NCAA allows it to be. If you’re in an period where players have to make the first contact you better make sure they have your cell phone number and that your cell never leaves your sight. If a coach is allowed to make first contact they better do it as much as humanly possible. And not just about football. Sure a kid wants to hear that he’ll have the chance to compete for playing time right away, but ask them how history class is going, what brand of shoes they bought at the mall or what kind of ride they’re taking to the prom.

Do Penn State coaches do all that? I sure hope so, but in this case they didn’t do it enough.

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New offer out

By Joe Miegoc | Published: June 27, 2010 | 0 Comments

Forgive the lack of blogging lately. I’ve been catching my breathe after a hectic spring season/NASCAR week at Pocono.

Penn State handed out a new written offer over the weekend to Roanoke, Va., safety Michael Cole. The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Cole was in State College for camp and the Nittany Lions’ coaching staff obviously saw enough to offer.

On his highlight tape, Cole played in the box a lot, but also flashed the ability to move in space as a safety. He’s a sure tackler who keeps his feet moving on contact and does a good job wrapping his arms. Because he plays so close to the line of scrimmage, his coverage ability was so-so, but he shows enough athleticism where that can be worked on. He does a good job running to the ball, staying clean and is the first to initiate contact.

Some schools are recruiting Cole, who also holds an offer from in-state Virginia Tech, as a linebacker, but PSU is looking at him strictly as a safety. He’s rated as a two-star prospect by Rivals, but I personally think that’s low. He looked like a mid 3-star prospect to me, but beauty is always in the eye of he beholder.

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Jarrett gets offered

By Joe Miegoc | Published: June 2, 2010 | 0 Comments

In a move I thought was due any day now, Penn State finally offered East Stroudsburg South cornerback Kyshoen Jarrett.

A two-time All-Mountain Valley Conference first-team pick, Jarrett has been a starter for the Cavaliers since his freshman year and it was obvious right away that he was going to be a big-time player. He’s done the work in the weight room (and the classroom for that matter) to ensure that and when I saw him at the District 11 track and field meet two weeks ago he was absolutely cut. Great kid, too. Very nice. Very humble. And anyone with any concerns about his speed only had to watch his leg of the 4×100, which South finished second in behind a record-setting performance by Parkland. Absolutely has sped to burn.

It’s been a pretty good week for Jarrett, who was given a four-star rating by Rivals.com and made the Website’s 250 list as the 159th best player in the nation. That doesn’t shock me one bit. All you have to do is watch Jarrett in action (here as a sophomore and junior) and it’s easy to see why he has 15 scholarship offers by the second day of June. Jarrett may participate in a few more camps this summer so he could easily hit 20 offers by preseason practice in August.

Now where does Jarrett end up? Hard to say to be honest with you because I know he wants to make some visits this summer and he should. A decision might come before the high school season starts. I also know he was waiting intently for an offer from the Nittany Lions. I know the offer from Pittsburgh is big to Jarrett because it was his first one. He’s also been talking with Miami, but the Hurricanes haven’t offered yet, but it won’t surprise me one bit to see them pull the trigger. Penn State is in good position though. I have a call into him so when I get the chance to talk with Jarrett you’ll be sure to know what’s going on with his recruitment.

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Lions get first commit

By Joe Miegoc | Published: May 26, 2010 | 0 Comments

And his name is Kyle Carter, a tight end from New Castle, Del.

Yes, Carter’s offer list (scholarships from Bucknell and Delaware besides Penn State), but let me explain why this commitment, the first of a class that will end up being 15 (maybe 16 at the most) isn’t as odd as it may seem on the surface.

First of all, Penn State’s first two targets at tight end (Oil City’s Ben Koyack to Notre Dame and Brian Miller of Andover, Mass., to Boston College) were no longer options. Two other tight end prospects thought to have offers, Dillon van der Wal out of Westlake Village, Calif., (rumored to be a strong UCLA lean) and Westerville, Ohio’s Nick Vannett (thought to be an Ohio State lean) appear unlikely to go to Penn State. There are other tight ends, namely Jack Tabb from Red Bank, N.J., might be more coveted by Lions’ fans, but the fact is he still doesn’t even have an offer from Penn State (and I still think he could get one).

But more importantly, it’s what I see on Carter’s tape that makes his commitment fine with me.

First, and most importantly for any receiver, is Carter catches the ball with his hands. He doesn’t let get into his body where it can clang off his shoulder pads, facemask or whatever else you can think of. He does a good job adjusting to the ball in the air, getting himself in position to make catches on passes that aren’t exactly great throws. He’s tough and doesn’t go down on first contact. On one play he catches a jump ball near the sidelines and carries a bigger defender 10 yards before more defensive players show up to help bring him down. He uses his body well to shield defenders from making plays on the ball, giving him the first opportunity to get to it. There was only one play where he was shown blocking, but he absolutely laid out a defender in the open field. At 6-foot-4 and 230 pounds, he can probably add 15-20 pounds, not lose any speed or quickness and become good blocker.

Carter was ecstatic when linebackers coach Ron Vanderlinden, who recruits Delaware for Penn State, offered him earlier this week. Some will say because that’s because his only offers were from Division I-AA schools and that’s probably partly true, but it also shows his passion about being a Nittany Lion, which is important in a player. Carter also gets the job done in the classroom, which can’t be overlooked when giving out scholarships that amount to major dollars in today’s college world.

None of this may make you feel better about Penn State’s first pledge for the 2011 class. You may have been fine with Carter’s commitment like me. Just giving you more facts to go on is all.

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Norwood out for PSU

By Joe Miegoc | Published: May 14, 2010 | 0 Comments

Class of 2010 wide receiver Levi Norwood, whose brother Jordan starred at Penn State, was given a release from the letter of intent he signed in February.

Norwood will instead attend Baylor, where his father Brian Norwood, a former assistant coach at Penn State, is the defensive coordinator.

With the depth the Nittany Lions have at wide receiver, it wasn’t even a certainty that Norwood was going to enroll in June. From the time he verbally committed to the Lions, there was talk that Norwood would greyshirt and enroll next January.

From a talent standpoint, it’s a loss. You can never have enough playmakers in football and Norwood is just that. He might not be as quick as his older brother, but Levi is bigger and more physical. He brings versatility in the fact that he could play all three wide receiver spots and return punts. Penn State will live, but it could have used Norwood’s talents. No doubt about it.

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