Keon Wylie calls Penn State his leader, sets decision date following visit
Penn State finds itself as the team to beat for Imhotep Charter linebacker Keon Wylie following this weekend’s official visit.
Despite the fact that he grew up in Philadelphia, Wylie had never actually been to State College until this weekend. He admitted this morning that the Nittany Lions are now not only “leading” his recruitment, but also confirmed that he’ll make a commitment in just under two weeks from now, July 3.
“The coaching staff was definitely the highlight of trip,” Wylie said. “They’re just real genuine people. Real nice.”
Wylie checks in at around 6-foot-3, 220 pounds. The Imhotep Charter prospect is expected to begin his career at outside linebacker, but could potentially move to defensive end depending on how he grows.
“They see me as hybrid player. I went into the linebacker meetings with Coach [Brent] Pry, and I was actually the only one there, so he was showing me a lot of different things.,” Wylie said. “They were showing me how they used to bring Micah [Parsons] down on the line to become that fourth man. They think that would be my role there, so I’d be playing that Will linebacker position.”
Wylie went on to add, “I know Coach Pry knows what he’s doing. He’ll help develop me and get me into the NFL.”
He was hosted this weekend by defensive end Arnold Ebiketie, who only just became a member of the Penn State football program a few months ago. However, in that short period of time, he’s become one of the staff’s go to players for hosting prospects.
“I was hosted by AK, who just transferred from Temple a couple months ago. We had a lot of fun,” Wylie said. “I hung out with a lot of guys. I was with Jamari [Buddin], the freshman linebacker. I was with Jesse Luketa some, too. They’re all fun guys. I feel like I can definitely play with those guys. They said they all really like their position coaches, and that they’re cool with Coach Franklin. They like their coaches a lot."
Before heading home, Wylie was able to meet with James Franklin in his office. The head coach made it clear to him that they need versatile athletes like himself to help the defense in the years to come.
“Coach Franklin was just breaking it down for me, telling me that I can do a lot of different things for them and that they need more guys like me. He thinks they need more guys like me to get them to the next level,” Wylie said.
Wylie, who took an official visit to Pitt last weekend, does have one visit remaining to Kentucky next weekend, June 25-27.
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