Franklin and Penn State Football Completes Top 5 Class
Nittany Lions’ class has the highest ranking since rankings began in 2000
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; February 7, 2018 – Head coach James Franklin completed the 2018 Penn State Football recruiting class today with the addition of offensive lineman Rasheed Walker. Penn State’s Class of 2018 is ranked fourth nationally by 247Sports and Rivals and fifth by ESPN, as of Wednesday afternoon.
Walker is the 23rd member of the 2018 recruiting class. Twenty-two student-athletes signed National Letters of Intent to join the football program in December. Of those 22 signees, six have already enrolled in Penn State – Trent Gordon, Isaiah Humphries, Zack Kuntz, Jesse Luketa, Micah Parsons, Nick Tarburton.
The newest Nittany Lions have an average star ranking of 3.74, which is the highest for the Penn State program since the 2010 class had a 3.89 average star rating, according to 247Sports Composite. The average star ranking for the last four years under Franklin has been 3.53.
The Nittany Lions signed the No. 1 prospect in the state of Pennsylvania each of the last three seasons – Micah Parsons in 2017, Lamont Wade in 2016 and Miles Sanders in 2015. This is the first time since 2004 (Anthony Morelli), 2005 (Justin King) and 2006 (Jared Odrick) that Penn State has signed the No. 1 recruit in Pennsylvania in three consecutive classes. The Nittany Lions inked four recruits ranked No. 1 in their respective states in Parsons, Pat Freiermuth (Massachusetts), Justin Shorter (New Jersey) and Ricky Slade (Virginia) per ESPN.
Penn State inked a trio of 247Sports Composite 5-star recruits in Parsons, Justin Shorter and Ricky Slade. Parsons (No. 5) and Shorter (No. 7) mark the first time since 2000 (when 247Sports recruiting rankings began) that Penn State has signed two top-10 recruits in the same class. Parsons, who is the No. 5 overall recruit according to the 247Sports Composite, is the highest-ranked recruit since Derrick Williams was the No. 4 recruit in the 2005 class.
Penn State again found success in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast regions with 13 of the 23 players coming from within a 250-mile radius of State College and seven of 23 are from a 200-mile radius. Penn State also had a national reach with five of the 23 signees come from more than 950 miles away from State College. The Nittany Lions’ class lay claim to hometowns in 12 different states and provinces, spanning from Pennsylvania to Iowa to Massachusetts to Ontario to Texas. Penn State had six signees from Pennsylvania, three from Maryland, two each from Florida, Texas and Virginia and one apiece from Connecticut, Iowa, Illinois, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Ohio and Ontario.
The Class of 2018 features 11 offensive signees, 11 defensive and one special teams. There are five players that have won at least one State Championship, four Under Amour All-Americans, three Army All-Americans and one Gatorade State Player of the Year. Additionally, 21 of the signees served as their team captain during their high school career.
The newest Nittany Lions feature three five-star recruit (Parsons, Shorter, Slade) and 11 four-star signees. According to 247Sports Composite, Penn State has had 46 four- or five-star recruits in the last four classes (89 total commits) as compared to 16 four- or five-star recruits in the previous four classes (81 total commits).
Penn State Football Class of 2018
Nana Asiedu
OL | Stafford, Va. | North Stafford High School | HS Coach: Joe Mangano | 6-5, 275
Judge Culpepper
DT | Tampa, Fla. | H.B. Plant High School | HS Coach: Robert Weiner | 6-4, 275
Jahan Dotson
WR | Nazareth, Pa. | Nazareth High School | HS Coach: Tom Falzone | 5-11, 170
Bryce Effner
OL | Aurora, Ill. | Metea Valley High School | HS Coach: Ben Kleinhans | 6-5, 280
Pat Freiermuth
TE/H | Merrimac, Mass. | Brooks School | HS Coach: Patrick Foley | 6-5, 250
Daniel George
WR | Fort Washington, Md. | Oxon Hill High School | HS Coach: Craig Jefferies | 6-2, 210
Trent Gordon (Early Enrollee)
CB | Spring, Texas | Manvel High School | HS Coach: Kirk Martin | 6-0, 180
Aeneas Hawkins
DT | Cincinnati, Ohio | Moeller High School | HS Coach: John Rodenberg | 6-2, 280
Isaiah Humphries (Early Enrollee)
S | Rowlett, Texas | Sachse High School | HS Coach: Red Behrens | 5-11, 190
Charlie Katshir
LB | Camp Hill, Pa. | Cumberland Valley High School | HS Coach: Michael Whitehead | 6-3, 215
Zack Kuntz (Early Enrollee)
TE/H | Camp Hill, Pa. | Camp Hill High School | HS Coach: Tim Bigelow | 6-7, 235
Will Levis
QB | Madison, Conn. | Xavier High School | HS Coach: Andy Guyon | 6-3, 220
Jesse Luketa (Early Enrollee)
LB | Ottawa, Ontario | Mercyhurst Prep School (Pa.) | HS Coach: Jeff Root | 6-2, 240
Jordan Miner
CB | Wesley Chapel, Fla. | Wiregrass Ranch High School | HS Coach: Mark Kantor | 6-0, 180
PJ Mustipher
DT | Owings Mills, Md. | McDonogh High School | HS Coach: Dominic Damico | 6-4, 300
Jayson Oweh
DE | Howell, N.J. | Blair Academy | HS Coach: Jim Saylor | 6-5, 240
Micah Parsons (Early Enrollee)
LB | Harrisburg, Pa. | Harrisburg High School | HS Coach: Calvin Everett | 6-3, 245
Jake Pinegar
K | Ankeny, Iowa | Ankeny Centennial High School | HS Coach: Jerry and Ryan Pezzetti | 6-2, 195
Frederick “Juice” Scruggs
OL | Erie, Pa. | Cathedral Prep School | HS Coach: Mike Mischler | 6-3, 270
Justin Shorter
WR | Monmouth Junction, N.J. | South Brunswick High School | Coach: Joe Goerge | 6-4, 220
Ricky Slade
RB | Woodbridge, Va. | C.D. Hylton High School | HS Coach: Tony Lilly | 5-9, 185
Nick Tarburton (Early Enrollee)
LB | Green Lane, Pa. | Pennridge High School | HS Coach: Jeff Hollenbach | 6-3, 250
Rasheed Walker
OL | Waldorf, Md. | North Point High School | HS Coach: Tom Petre | 6-6, 295