Previewing Cristian Driver's commitment: Will Penn State be the pick today?
It is decision day for four-star Argyle, Tex., Liberty Christian athlete Cristian Driver.
Will he pick Penn State, or is the 6-foot-1, 170-pound Rivals250 standout headed somewhere else?
The Lions enter Thursday with 22 Class of 2022 verbal commitments and are hoping to make it 23 by the end of the day by adding a recruit who head coach James Franklin knows very well.
Where Penn State stands
The Lions already have one commitment from a player who could suit up on either side of the ball in Mehki Flowers, and Driver fits the same mold.
At receiver, four-stars Kaden Saunders and Anthony Ivey plus three-star Tyler Johnson are guaranteed to play for Taylor Stubblefield at the next level. At safety, Tyrece Mills is in and the program hopes to add Maryland four-star KJ Winston this weekend, who announces his choice on Saturday.
Driver clearly wants to be a receiver, or at least have the chance to start his career there. Expect whichever school that lands the four-star to give him practice looks at both spots before making a decision. This is the quintessential "just get him on campus and figure it out later'" recruitment.
The contenders
A top-12 was released in late 2020, and it included Oregon, Nebraska, Texas A&M, LSU, Wisconsin, Ohio State, Florida, Penn State, Alabama, Michigan, Texas, and Oklahoma.
Driver, who never publically trimmed his list any further, wanted to visit Wisconsin before deciding, but the Badgers did not want to host him until September, which took the Big Ten West school out of play. He hasn't officially visited anyone else besides the Lions.
There will be other hats on the proverbial table, but it's hard to truly call anyone a contender besides PSU unless there are quiet visits and behind-the-scenes conversations going on that no one knows about.
What he's said about the Lions
"With the school being so far away, I've wanted to get up there and check it out since my freshman year," Driver told BWI after his June visit. "I ended up having to take my time and wait, and never really expected my first time there would be my official visit. But it was amazing. I really loved the experience up there and everything like that. I appreciate the coaching staff and how they were with me and my family.
"I talked to a lot of players and they said the coaching staff is always like that, they never change. They said the coaches are always real with you and they keep it 100 with you. I think that's what I was looking for out of this recruiting process."
What FutureCast says
In honor of the Olympics being on, it's a perfect 10 for the Nittany Lions, as six predictions from Rivals' publishers and analysts, including BWI expert Ryan Snyder, all favor Penn State to be the pick.
Final word
Class of 2019 signee Joey Porter Jr., was the last son of an NFL great to pick Penn State. There was no FutureCast then, but the corner visited the Lions more than any other school, and it always felt like a matter of when, and not if, he would commit to PSU.
Driver's recruitment feels the same way, in part because Franklin has such a close bond with Donald Driver, even if he only coached him for a season in Green Bay, and partially because Cristian has only officially visited the Nittany Lions.
That said, recruiting can always be full of surprises, and usually at the time fans least expect them. Is that likely the case here?
Far, far, from it, but you'll still want to follow complete coverage of Cristian Driver's announcement here at bwi.rivals.com and inside our Lions Den premium forum.
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