PA OL Nick Dawkins opens up about Penn State commitment

Penn State picked up its first in-state commitment Monday from offensive guard Nick Dawkins.

Since earning an offer from the Lions back on March 23, the Allentown native has been thinking a lot about the recruiting process. Dawkins visited Rutgers, April 6, and also checked out Northwestern the following weekend, April 13, but when he returned home from each of those visits, the Nittany Lions were still the clear favorite.

When you also add in the fact that Penn State already earned three commitments from offensive lineman, Dawkins wanted to make sure he secured his spot, so he headed back to Happy Valley Monday morning. By mid-afternoon, he was a member of the 2020 class.

“I was thinking about this a lot recently,” said Dawkins. “I didn’t want it to get out there, so I kept it really quiet, but this was something I talked about with my mom a lot. I really want my family to be able to see me play. So, that was important. I love being in the state. I love Pennsylvania and growing up, I always watched Penn State, so I thought of this as kind of like a dream offer. I thought this was just the best place.”

On Sunday, Dawkins also reached out to a friend that went through the recruiting process just a few years ago. He said they talked about a variety of subjects and kept coming back to the same conclusion.

“I had a good talk with one of my [former] teammates, Jahan Worth, who’s now at Duquesne,” Dawkins said. “We just had a really good talk about what’s important and why I need to take advantage of this opportunity. He wasn’t even really just pushing Penn State specifically, but mainly just talking to me about what’s best for me. The more we talked about it, Penn State really is that place for me.”

Dawkins then went on to add, “But also, just talking to Coach Limegrover, Coach Franklin, Coach Spencer, Coach Bowen, Coach Parker, all of those guys, it was just like talking to any other person [that you’re close with]. It never felt like I was talking to coaches or anything like that. I was always very comfortable with them, so that helped a lot. I love that family atmosphere that Penn State has.”

His talk with Worth certainly helped, but there was one person in particular that had the most input on this decision.

“Yeah, mom was definitely pro-Penn State,” said Dawkins. His mother, Janice, explained why she wanted her son in State College for the next chapter in his life.

“That mom instinct just kicked in when it came to Penn State,” said Mrs. Dawkins. “I felt very comfortable and I knew he was very comfortable being around their coaches and in that entire environment that Happy Valley provides.”

Dawkins, who’s the son of former Philadelphia 76ers center Darryl Dawkins, didn’t start on varsity until the third game last season. He recorded 14 pancake blocks in Parkland’s final 10 games, helping the Trojans go 7-5 in 2018.

He's now the ninth-ranked prospect in Pennsylvania, and is looking forward to joining the program he grew up watching.

“If you go up to anyone in Pennsylvania and ask them about Penn State football, they know what it’s about," he said. "It’s a big deal and I’m honored to be part of that. But also, everyone I got to visit with were happy to be there. All the guys were working hard and happy to be there. If you’re always excited and happy to go to workouts, you must love that school. That’s just what I noticed. It felt really good.”