Signed: OL Nana Asiedu
WHAT HE DID: Capitalizing on his outstanding athletic ability, North Stafford put Asiedu at tight end during his sophomore season. But he really came into his own after moving to offensive tackle the following season. As a senior, he helped North Stafford finish its regular season at 7-3. After defeating Mountain View in the first round of the VHSL Group 5A playoffs, the Wolverines were upset the following weekend by Brooke Point, 22-20. The Wolverines went 24-14 during his three years on varsity.
WHAT HE WON: Asiedu earned first-team all-conference and second-team all-region honors as a sophomore. He was also first-team all-conference and all-region in 2016 and 2017. He earned earned first-team all-state honors in 2016. Virginia is yet to release its all-state team for 2017. Asiedu was named an Army All-American. A four-star prospect, he's rated 127th in the Rivals250 and is the No. 4 prospect in Virginia and No. 10 offensive tackle nationally.
WHERE HE VISITED: It was believed that Asiedu was leaning heavily toward defending national champion Clemson, but the Nittany Lions made major inroads this past February when they welcomed him for a junior day. He returned in April for Blue-White Weekend and informed James Franklin during an office visit prior to the spring game that he planned to commit with Penn State. Prior to his commitment, Asiedu had received more than 30 scholarship offers, primarily from schools in the Southeastern and Atlantic Coast conferences. In addition to Clemson and Penn State, the list of schools that were pursuing him included Auburn, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, LSU, Texas, Virginia Tech and West Virginia. Charles Huff was one of the coaches who had spearheaded his recruitment at Penn State, but Huff’s departure did not dissuade Asiedu from following through with his commitment and signing with the Nittany Lions. He took five unofficial visits to Penn State in 2017 before using his official visit Dec. 8-10.
QUOTABLE: Asiedu - “My hopes are that this class does something big in the future. Hopefully we win a national championship with this class and we can look back on it as the best class to ever come through.”
PHIL’S TAKE: Asiedu is one of the top two offensive tackle prospects in the ACC region for the Class of 2018. He’s very explosive off the ball, especially in the run game, as he does an excellent job at getting to the second-level with his blocks. Asiedu also has the athleticism to pull from his left tackle position and be a lead blocker. At 6-foot-5, 269 pounds, Asiedu can easily add 25 to 30 pounds at the college level while also maintaining his quick feet off the snap. I expect Asiedu to redshirt his freshman season.
