Grosz: Early enrollees could be big asset to Penn State in '19 and beyond
In January 2017, Alabama welcomed 12 members of its recruiting class to campus, the biggest contingent of early enrollees in the Football Bowl Subdivision that year. Just 12 months later, one of those players – quarterback Tua Tagovailoa – ended up throwing the winning touchdown pass in the championship game of the College Football Playoff.
The Crimson Tide had taken the early enrollment trend to the next level, but it was growing everywhere. Georgia, Oklahoma, Clemson, Ohio State, Texas and Michigan all had seven or more January enrollees in their classes that same year. Their success in persuading prospects to graduate early from high school and enroll in college in time for the start of the spring semester turned out to be the final straw that convinced NCAA officials that an early signing period was needed. There were other reasons, of course, notably the increasing tendency of prospects to verbally commit months or even years in advance of the traditional February signing date. But whatever the rationale, in the spring of 2017, college football’s governing body decided to give prospects the opportunity to sign in December. And ever since that change was approved, increasing numbers of January enrollees have flocked to schools throughout the FBS.
Penn State was a little late to the party. Only four members of its 2017 recruiting class enrolled in January of that year. Those four players were five-star defensive back Lamont Wade, four-star outside linebacker Brelin Faison-Walden, four-star wide receiver K.J. Hamer and three-star offensive lineman Mike Miranda.
Hamler has since had a dramatic impact on Penn State’s football program. He was the Nittany Lions’ leading receiver this past season with 42 catches for 754 yards and five touchdowns.
Wade saw action in all 26 games during the 2017 and ’18 seasons, playing on special teams and in the secondary. He was looking like a candidate to replace Nick Scott at free safety until early January when he turned up in the NCAA’s transfer portal.
Miranda will enter spring practice as the leading contender to replace Connor McGovern at right guard following McGovern’s decision to leave early for the NFL.
As for Faison-Walden, the decision to enroll early didn’t end up accelerating his career the way he had no doubt hoped. In December, the North Carolina native announced that he was transferring to UNC Charlotte to be closer to his family.
In 2018, Penn State boosted its contingent of January enrollees to six. The players who arrived early were linebackers Micah Parsons, Jesse Luketa and Nick Tarburton, defensive backs Trent Gordon and Isaiah Humphries, and tight end Zack Kuntz.
The arrival of three box linebackers was particularly noteworthy. With veteran Jason Cabinda having graduated and the status of Manny Bowen in question due to a suspension, James Franklin and his assistant coaches knew they needed to recruit some blue-chip linebackers and get them up to speed as quickly as possible.
That is exactly what happened. Parsons, a five-star prospect coming out of Harrisburg (Pa.) High, ended up being Penn State’s leading tackler this past season with 82 stops, including four tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks. He received honorable mention All-Big Ten honors.
Luketa was a standout on the punt- and kickoff-coverage units and should compete for quality playing time at the Will and Mike linebacker positions next season.
Tarburton didn’t end up seeing action at linebacker this past season, but he will be someone to watch in the coming months. After arriving on campus last January, he was moved to the weakside defensive end position and practiced at that spot throughout the year. With starter Shareef Miller having left for the NFL, Tarburton is likely to stay at defensive end, but there is a chance he could end up growing into a part-time role at the three-technique defensive tackle position, just as Ryan Buchholz did his redshirt sophomore year in 2017.
Tarburton was listed at 6-foot-3, 246 pounds this past season, but he’ll be looking to add weight during winter workouts and could enter spring practice at 260 to 265 pounds. That is something we will closely monitor in the weeks ahead. For now, though, we expect Tarburton to be a full-time defensive end.
The other early enrollees in Penn State’s 2018 recruiting class had quiet debuts. Kuntz saw action in one game – a 63-10 rout of Kent State last September – totaling one reception for 8 yards. Listed at 6-7, 235 pounds, he will enter spring practice behind Pat Freiermuth and Nick Bowers and will battle Jonathan Holland and 2019 early enrollee Brenton Strange for the chance to earn playing time.
Gordon played in four games and recorded one tackle. He’ll be battling for a backup role at cornerback next fall.
Humphries did not see any game action in 2018 and announced in November that he was planning to transfer. He announced last week that he's headed to the University of California, Berkeley.
All of which brings us to Penn State’s Class of 2019. Franklin and his coaching staff signed 18 players in December, and that total could grow by four or five prospects when signing day arrives on Feb. 6.
The Nittany Lions have a chance to finish with their second consecutive top-10 class, as rated by Rivals.com, but what really sets it apart from its predecessors is that 11 of its members have already enrolled. That’s more early enrollees than in the two previous classes combined.
Noteworthy, too, is the quality of those January enrollees. All 11 had four-star ratings from Rivals.com as of mid-January. The players in question are linebackers Brandon Smith and Lance Dixon, quarterbacks Michael Johnson Jr. and Taquan Roberson, defensive backs Tyler Rudolph, Marquis Wilson and Keaton Ellis, offensive lineman Anthony Whigan, defensive end Adisa Isaac, running back Noah Cain, and Strange at tight end.
With the NCAA now allowing freshmen to play in up to four games without losing a year of eligibility, most of these early enrollees will see some sort of playing time during the 2019 season. This past year, two January enrollees – Parsons and Luketa – played in more than four games, meaning that they will be sophomores next fall. But I could see that number being easily doubled for the January arrivals in the Class of 2019.
Which true freshmen are most likely to see more than four games’ worth of action? Here are five possibilities:
1. NOAH CAIN Cain is the No. 5 running back in the country as rated by Rivals.com and the No. 73 overall prospect in the Class of 2019. In his four years of high school football, he rushed for 3,936 yards and 46 touchdowns.
What I like about Cain is his ability to fill every role that running backs are required to perform in Penn State’s offense. I particularly like his potential as a target in the passing game.
With the departure of Miles Sanders, Cain will have an excellent chance to compete with Ricky Slade, Journey Brown, C.J. Holmes and fellow Class of 2019 running back Devyn Ford. Enrolling in January and participating in spring practice is a big bonus for the 5-10, 209-pound Cain, as Slade is the only running back on the current roster with any real college experience.
2. BRANDON SMITH Two internet recruiting services have rated Smith a five-star prospect, and he has been described as the top overall player in Penn State’s incoming class. Rivals.com ranks him second nationally among outside linebackers and 57th among all prospects. He totaled 375 tackles, including 62 tackles for loss and 27 sacks, during his high school career. As a senior, he was Virginia’s Gatorade Player of the Year, totaling 128 tackles, six sacks and 16 tackles for loss.
Reported by the Harrisburg Patriot-News to have 4.4-second 40-yard speed, Smith will likely play middle linebacker. He will face plenty of competition in spring practice, as the Lions return senior Jan Johnson, redshirt sophomore Ellis Brooks and Luketa, but I believe he could see significant playing time next fall. At 6-3, 225 pounds, he has the athletic ability to play all three linebacker positions.
3. KEATON ELLIS Even though he’s a consensus four-star recruit, Ellis is, in my opinion, the most underrated member of Penn State’s class. He did not receive his four-star rating until after a sensational senior season. Ellis missed over half of his junior year with a thumb injury that required surgery, but last fall he totaled 51 tackles, four interceptions, nine pass deflections and three fumble recoveries. He also played offense and caught 50 passes for 888 yards.
Ellis ran a 4.39-second 40-yard time at a Penn State summer football camp. At the very least, I see him making the kind of impact on special teams that Luketa did this past season.
“He’s a completely dominant football player,” Penn State cornerbacks coach Terry Smith said in December. “You watch his film, and to me, I think he’s got the best corner film in the country – and we watched them all.”
4. ANTHONY WHIGAN The 6-4, 292-pound Whigan was rated by Rivals as the No. 13 juco prospect in the Class of 2019. With Ryan Bates entering the draft and Chasz Wright graduating, Whigan will get a chance in spring practice to compete with redshirt freshman Rasheed Walker, and redshirt sophomore Des Holmes for the starting spot at right tackle.
5. LANCE DIXON Rivals.com ranked Dixon as the 20th-best outside linebacker in the Class of 2019. As a senior, he totaled 95 tackles, 11 tackles for loss, 11 quarterback hurries, five sacks and five passes defended.
When Dixon attended a Penn State summer camp, he ran a 4.4-second 40-yard time. At 6-1, 205 pounds, he could be a good fit at the Sam OLB position or the star linebacker spot in the Lions’ 4-2-5 alignment.
Cam Brown will enter spring practice with a firm grip on the starting position, but with a good showing during winter workouts and spring practice, Dixon may have a chance to challenge for the No. 2 spot, where his potential competitors would include redshirt freshman Charlie Katshir.
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There is one additional player who I believe could potentially join this list. That player is Adisa Isaac. There are those who believe he is one of the top three early enrollees in Penn State’s Class of 2019. Rivals.com ranks him sixth nationally among weak-side defensive ends and 178th among all prospects in the class. He had a spectacular 2018 season with 77 tackles, 34 tackles for loss and 22 sacks.
The competition that Isaac will face in spring practice at defensive end will come from redshirt freshman Jayson Oweh and redshirt juniors Shane Simmons and Shaka Toney. This past season, Toney was fifth on the team with 7.5 tackles for loss and had five sacks. It would take a tremendous performance in spring practice for Isaac to challenge Oweh, Simmons and Toney for quality playing time in the fall, but it would be premature to rule out that possibility.
Elsewhere, it will be interesting to see five quarterbacks take part in spring practice with the arrival of Johnson and Roberson. The primary competition will be between Tommy Stevens and Sean Clifford, provided that Stevens is healthy after having surgery following the regular season for an undisclosed injury. Even if Stevens isn’t ready to go, Penn State will be looking to give redshirt freshman Will Levis some reps, so it only seems logical that Johnson and Roberson will redshirt in 2019.
The same appears to be true for Rudolph and Wilson in the secondary and Strange at the tight end position.
With more prospects enrolling early and fewer restrictions on the amount of playing time those prospects can receive in their first year on campus, it wouldn’t be surprising if as many as 25 true and redshirt freshmen were to see action every season at Penn State from now on.
Nor would I be surprised if Penn State averaged 10 or more early enrollees per year going forward. That’s the wave of the future in college football recruiting.
What else is in the latest issue of Blue White Illustrated's magazine? Let's take a closer look at some of the feature stories, news and notes, here!
THE RUNDOWN:
FOOTBALL - Missed opportunities doomed Penn State throughout the season, but BWI editor Matt Herb asks if this will be a team more suited to seize their chances when they come next year. Features on Trace McSorley and the Nittany Lion quarterbacks, Justin Shorter, and our cover story on Micah Parsons help round out our post-Citrus Bowl coverage and look ahead to winter workouts and spring practice.
RECRUITING - As always, BWI has you covered for the latest news and insight on Penn State's recruiting. This month, we look at the Class of 2019 as it wraps up, check in on another Class of 2020 prospect to commit to the Nittany Lions, and a complete Q&A with Derek Wingo. Additionally, we've got our monthly Up Close and Personal section devoted to Adisa Isaac and Brenton Strange.
HOOPS - BWI men's basketball beat writer Nate Bauer has the latest on the Nittany Lions as they get off to a rocky start in Big Ten play.
And these are just a few of the many stories and features that come with every edition of Blue White Illustrated's magazine, including Varsity Views, a special feature from Penn State historian and BWI contributor Lou Prato, and more!