9/25/2021 football Edit

Penn State's Class of 2023 adds familiar face in TE Mathias Barnwell

Greg Pickel • Happy Valley Insider

Staff

Penn State football picked up a new commitment from a familiar face.

Fredericksburg, Va., Riverbend four-star tight end Mathias 'Mega' Barnwell has rejoined the Nittany Lions Class of 2023, he announced on Saturday.

Barnwell, who is the nation's No. 119 player overall according to Rivals and its No. 8 tight end, was previously committed from June 8, 2020 until Jan. 20, 2021, when he decided to open it up again because he felt like he had made his choice too soon. He no longer feels that way, as the space between then and now helped remind him of why he picked head coach James Franklin's program in the first place.

"Opening up my recruitment really did help me," Barnwell recently told BWI. "I committed at a young age. I’ve got to see way different coaching styles."

James Franklin and members of his staff pose for a photo with Mathias Barnwell and his family after the 2023 recruit picked Penn State. BWI photo/Greg Pickel

Visits to Kentucky, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and Penn State between June and July helped him decide that the Nittany Lions had all of the ingredients he wants in a future school. The 6-foot-6, 255-pound junior becomes the second recruit in four years to commit, decommit, as Micah Parsons did the same back in 2018.

Barnwell could one day grow into an offensive lineman, and a future along the defensive line shouldn't be ruled out, either, though Penn State sees him on Mike Yurcich's side of the ball at this point in time. Versatile prospects are exactly what the program loves to recruit, and Barnwell is one, which is why it made him a priority even after he opened things up.

If the summer trips didn't lock things in, then a visit for last weekend's White Out game did before he returned to the class for good on a return trip to State College to see the Villanova game and make his decision known.

"They wanted me to see the atmosphere I’d be playing in and how they use the tight ends, and they use them really well," Barnwell said earlier this week.

"They showed a lot of love to my family, and family always comes first, and when family enjoys it, that’s great."

Penn State now has three Class of 2023 commitments and landed two of them on back-to-back weekends, as four-star Pa., cornerback Lamont Payne picked PSU prior to the win over the Tigers. He and Barnwell join four-star Virginia tackle Alex Birchmeier as future Nittany Lions in the next cycle.

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