Penn State's recruiting coordinators discuss 2022 class, busy summer, more

Even if you're not into recruiting all that much, you probably know by now that Penn State is having one of its best years on the recruiting trail in over a decade.

Currently, the Nittany Lions rank No. 2 in the nation according to Rivals.com. With 24 players currently committed, they have more than any other Power Five school, 14 of whom hold a four-star rating or better.

Most of those commitments came just last month, with Penn State adding 12 new players to its Class of 2022, as well as 2023 offensive lineman and top 100 prospect Alex Birchmeier. When you also include Harvard transfer Spencer Rolland, July will have a major impact on what this program looks like in the years to come.

But the road Penn State took to go on that run was paved in June. Hosting more than 1,300 campers, 120 prospect visits, plus one of the region's biggest 7-on-7 tournaments, which saw more than 50 schools attend, June was one of the busiest months you'll ever see in the world recruiting.

To get a better feel for it, BWI's Ryan Snyder caught up with Penn State's two recruiting coordinators during media day, Terry Smith and Taylor Stubblefield, to discuss the summer, the class and so much more.

Note: Due to NCAA rules, coaches cannnot discuss specific players

Snyder: What was June like this year? Take me through that month. It was one of the busiest we’ll ever see.

Smith: We had thousands of kids on our campus, so it was definitely busy. You basically sleep in Lasch. Our recruiting staff, I believe, Andy Frank and those guys, basically slept there overnight. We're talking six in the morning to 10 or 11 o'clock at night. It was incredibly busy, but we were doing what we had to do to make sure the program continues to grow and get better.

Snyder: How important was it to get camps back up and running? Having accurate measurables was a struggle for everyone last year.

Smith: That was big. We got the chance to see these guys in person. We get to get measurements on them, height, weight, speed, strength, all those things that are critical factors in helping us in the evaluating process. Getting the chance to see all of those kids, it helped us big-time.

Snyder: Did you expect to go on the run that you did in July? I think you expected good things, but did you expect that many commitments?

Smith: We thought in July that we would certainly get a few, but that's how recruiting is. When you get some momentum, it starts to snowball and we rode the wave. It was a great July.

Snyder: What are your general thoughts on the class?

Smith: We're really happy. We feel like we've answered critical pieces to the puzzle that we need. We feel like we got a lot of guys that can come in and have some immediate impact for us. We're excited about the group. It's incredibly talented, maybe as talented of a group as we've ever brought here. So, our job now is to make sure that those guys sign in December.

Snyder: With the class nearly done, does that take pressure off your shoulders as preseason starts? Does that allow you to focus on the team a bit more?

Smith: We just got to multitask now. Both are important. Obviously, the team is here now, and the best way to have a great recruiting class is to win games. So, we got to make sure that we're taking care of our guys here to win games. On the other hand, we also got to make sure these guys we're recruiting still feel special, still feel as if they're important to the program.

Snyder: How much can you turn the page now to next year’s class? Can you do that a bit more than in previous years?

Smith: Yeah, we do get an opportunity to flip the page a bit. We obviously got to do what we have to do for the current class first, but that next class is already up now for us. September 1 is coming fast. We'll be able to start reaching out to those guys then, and we're excited to hit the ground running, keep carrying our momentum and make sure we back this class up with another great class.

Snyder: What was June like for you? What can you share from that experience?

Stubblefield: That month was fun and exciting. It was a grind, for sure, but it was a great opportunity for us to host several of our top guys and have our current players interact with some of them. You know, we've been recruiting some of these 2022s for 14 to 15 months and never met them. So, it felt like we had known them for a long time, but June was an opportunity for us to meet them for the first time.

Snyder: What were your days like in June?

Stubblefield: We were organized, I'll say that. Destiny Rodriguez and the whole recruiting staff did a great job keeping us organized. We knew who was going to come in that day, as far as for an unofficial visit. We knew what our workouts were going to be like, in terms of the individual workouts. We went over the camps. We had a lot of camps and got to see a lot of young guys. So, there were some days that were longer than others, but [Coach Franklin] tried to take care of us.

Snyder: You mentioned the individual workouts, which were allowed this year only. Would you like to see that continued by the NCAA?

Stubblefield: Yeah, I would love to see it continue. Then, you don't have to truly fight over what camps kids are going to go to. Sometimes other schools around the country, other big schools like us, will have their camps the same time you do. So, then you got to fight over which kids are going to which camp. Having some of those daily workouts that we could have were a great opportunity to work individually with some guys and see some things in a more specific setting.

Snyder: What were one of the biggest takeaways, in your eyes, from getting players back on campus?

Stubblefield: Here's the thing: we're gonna work our tails off. People are gonna see how genuine we are as people. The facilities, the fans, they speak for themselves. So this is a great place that I think people truly want to be a part of.

Snyder: Can you guys fit anymore players into this class? Any positions you still want to address?

Stubblefield: We got to figure that out still. We got to make sure the numbers all fit, with the whole team goal, and make sure that we don't go over, but also make sure that we fill any needs that remain.

Snyder: Can you spend more time focusing on the team now compared to most years, when the class wasn’t all but finished? Does that help you guys going into preseason now?

Stubblefield: There's always a switch. When you get into season mode, there is a switch where we're like, "alright, we got to focus on the guys that are here," but you're always going to devote that time to recruiting. Not only that, but you form deeper bonds with your [commits] then just a recruit. I have some relationships with my 2022 receivers that they're not just recruits. I really truly feel like they're part of our room already, so it's just different. It's a different vibe, a different feel, going into the season.

Snyder: How much time do you actually spend recruiting in August compared to previous months?

Stubblefield: It's whenever. Again, you just have to be organized. We have a pretty big department, so we have people in those roles that help keep us organized in terms of who we're gonna contact, who we need to watch, who's gonna get on a call with us, which Zoom calls we may need to have. So, it's always happening.

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