Tuesday Recruitin': Ok, no more 'silent verbal' talk

JoePa cares not for your fancy recruiting talk... Does this photo ever get old? We think not.

Recruiting fans are a unique lot. That much we know. What I apparently should have also known is to study the handy recruiting dictionary before I wrote last week's update.

If I had done just that, I probably could have avoided the push back against my use of the words "silent verbal" when describing East Stroudsburg CB prospect Kyshoen Jarrett. But now I know.

After a few seconds of Googling "silent verbal," I came across a pretty basic description at Visual Box Score of what that term actually means, and why there is even the necessity of its existence in the first place:

"To understand how "silent verbals" occur, just remember the rules that apply in recruiting. The NCAA does not allow coaches to discuss a recruit until the athlete and his family have signed and returned a valid LOI, and until the official NCAA signing period has opened. Prior to that, a school could hypothetically get a verbal commitment from the #1 prospect in the nation, but they couldn't announce it publicly. Prior to the NCAA's official signing period, all public announcements must come from the athletes themselves. Sometimes their families or their friends may leak something to a member of the media.

However, the school and its coaching staff cannot talk about prospects in public until the kid returns a signed LOI on or after the official signing date. Doing so constitutes a violation of NCAA rules."

So this is a rules thing, above all else. The reason we even have silent verbals is due to the fact that its up to the athletes to announce their own verbals, because the coaches can't speak a word to anyone about any recruit until that letter is faxed to the Lasch Building.

Hey, I think I actually learned something this week. Whaddya know!

Visits 'n such...

Speaking of Jarrett--he went to Wisconsin last week.

Dominique Noble will visit next week, July 27. WV RB prospect Allan Wasonga (Rivals/Scout/ESPN) will also come to Happy Valley that day. Wasonga doesn't have an offer yet, but depending on how things shake out in other areas (read: Savon Huggins), it could happen.

Ishaq Williams will go to Ohio State in mid-August. This is one of those *cringe* visits for Penn State fans, because you just know the Buckeyes will come out guns-a-blazin' for this kid.

Quinta Funderburk is cousins with Kevin Newsome. Huh, I did not know that.

"I found out last week that I am cousins with Kevin Newsome. I went to a cookout with my aunt and Kevin was there so we spent some time passing the ball around with each other there. He said some stuff but really wasn't in my ear too much."

Darius Jennings had to reschedule his planned July 31 visit to Penn State.

Happy Trails...

Terrell Chestnut will play in the Big East. That means no Penn State. If Jarrett verbals to PSU, no one with a shred of sanity will remember Chestnut.

Outside the Valley...

IN RB D'Angelo Roberts became Indiana's 20th commitment last week. I only mention this because a while back Roberts was rumored to be waiting on a scholarship offer from Penn State. We never heard anything beyond that, so take it for what it's worth. Penn State was interested in this guy, making it interesting that IU was able to keep him within the Hoosier State.

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Big-Ass 2011 Recruiting Update, Part 2 of 4

The second of four big recruiting updates coming the rest of this week...

Lawrence Thomas
RB/LB
Detroit, MI

Thomas has been committed to play for Michigan State since early spring. Don't expect that to change. Thomas is an elite recruit--the No. 1 MLB nationally according to most services--who could end up playing early in his career with the Spartans.

Ben Koyack
TE
Oil City, PA

Koyack committed to play for Notre Dame on April 25. Penn State had been very high on Koyack's list of finalists, but fell away just before he made his decision between Ohio State and the Fighting Irish. It should be noted that Koyack had originally planned to wait until later this summer to make a college choice. He seemed to catch everyone by surprise (by choosing earlier than expected; not his pick of ND), including Penn State.

Travis Hughes
LB
Virginia Beach, VA

Penn State hasn't been in Hughes' top choices since late winter, but the scholarship offer is still out there, just as the offers still stand for the other already-committed recruits. On a recent visit to Maryland, Hughes made no mention of the Nittany Lions, pointing to Virginia Tech, North Carolina, and the Terps as his top three colleges.

Terrell Chestnut
CB
Pottstown, PA

Can Penn State hold its early lead with Pottstown defensive back Terrell Chestnut?

Chestnut now holds just over a dozen scholarship offers from nearly every major program in the Big Ten-ACC footprint. Boston College, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, South Carolina, Syracuse, and West Virginia are all among those going after the Keystone cornerback. But following a heavy dose of official visits in March and April, and a heavier concentration on his track season, Chestnut said he wanted to cool down the recruiting process for a little while.

When it comes to Penn State... The Nittany Lions are still in great shape. One of those latest visits came in mid-April, when Chestnut traveled to Happy Valley. On that visit, his host was Brent Carter (not returning for '10), but that shouldn't make a difference. Chestnut said he had a very good time at Penn State. And as long as he keeps his recruitment this wide open through the summer, the Lions have a fantastic shot of landing the top-20 cornerback.

Mike Caputo
LB
Imperial, PA

Caputo's recruitment started off quietly enough, but has been a rising tide since first arriving on our radar in early February. The West Allegheny star is now the No. 9 outside linebacker on Scout.com's rankings, and holds about 10 very solid scholarship offers. I say solid to emphasize that, right now, while there aren't a lot of schools with official offers out to Caputo, the ones he holds can forecast how much attention he will surely get later this recruiting season. Boston College, Michigan State, North Carolina State, Ohio State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, and Wisconsin all sent written offers.

When it comes to Penn State... Of course, being the premier college football program in Caputo's home state helps here. Penn State is looking at Caputo potentially as a safety, as is Pitt. But the junior has just as much talent on offense, breaking 2,500 yards carrying the ball in 2009. We all know how Penn State loves to turn great running backs into great defenders.

Maika Polamalu
LB/RB
Pottsgrove, PA

Although Polamalu (Troy's cousin) hasn't yet committed to a team, it seems unlikely that he will chose the Nittany Lions. Penn State was one of his first scholarship offers, coming all the way back last fall. But Polamalu said he doesn't feel Penn State is the right fit defensively for his skill set. His offers numbers haven't exactly been skyrocketing, so we won't call this one dead until something concrete happens. For now, however, the interest level for Polamalu isn't all that high.

Jay Whitmire
OT
Alexandria, VA

The offensive tackle prospect from T.C. Williams holds about 14 scholarship offers, all in that familiar Big Ten-ACC footprint. Hailing from the DC-metro area, schools like Maryland, Virginia, Virginia Tech, West Virginia, North Carolina, and Duke are pushing hard to keep the star lineman in the Mid-Atlantic region. But others like UConn, Boston College, Notre Dame, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, and Cincinnati are all right in the mix.

Whitmire had been rumored to be leaning towards North Carolina, then Notre Dame, but nothing has really come of any of that. He seems to want to stay close to home, at least within a few hours drive. Naturally, the two Virginia programs (UVA and VT) would love to keep Whitmire from going out of state.

When it comes to Penn State... Whitmire was up for the Blue-White Game, one of his few visits so far in the recruiting process. He said he came away impressed, but didn't sound anywhere near ready to make a decision. The Nittany Lions have indicated to Whitmire that they would really like to have him as a defensive lineman, positioning Penn State as the only program to recruit him on that side of the ball. If Whitmire has any interest in defense, Penn State could have the edge.

Next up: Part 3

Part 1

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Wednesday Recruitin': 'Spacey,' the Terrelle Pryor repellent

Visit the Linebacker-U.com recruiting board for the latest tally of recruits claiming offers from Penn State for 2011.Nittany Lions recruiting coordinator has been running non-stop to ensure Penn State's 2011 recruiting class packs enough punch

Well, it's finally posted, so here's what normally would have been your Tuesday Recruitin' fix.

I simply could not fathom how many contacts Mike McQueary must have on his cell phone. I realize that he does not contact every recruit Penn State is going after; that's up to the regional recruiters, like LJS and Scrap. But the guy has to be ready to talk with any one of those recruits, at any time. Think about it.

Anyway, on with the update...

(Rivals/Scout/ESPN)

New Offers

• Defensive lineman Shawn Oakman (Rivals/Scout/ESPN) out of Lansdowne (PA) picked up a written scholarship offer from Penn State. He currently has the Nittany Lions as a heavy favorite, citing the tradition in Happy Valley. Oakman is also a stud on the basketball court, as you would expect from a guy who stands 6-foot-8, but a lean 240 pounds. Ron Vanderlinden is apparently on his trail.

• All-purpose athlete prospect Darius Jennings (Rivals/Scout/ESPN) was sent his written scholarship offer last week. So, we can officially mark him down.

Recruiting Zuggets

• Terrell Chestnut took a big visit to Rutgers last Thursday. The trip included the full deck of pitches, from facilities to academics. Chestnut told ScarletReport.com:

“It’s definitely a school I was interested in, and we’d been in contact with the coaches for a while,” Chestnut said. “I wanted to give my family a feel where I could possibly stay the next four years, and to meet the coaches I would be around.”

Rutgers is an interesting situation to watch this year, not only because of their possible invitation to the Big Ten, but how that might influence recruits along the eastern seaboard. That's pure speculation, sorry. But it's an interesting point to follow over the next 10 months or so.

• Marquise Wright was supposed to visit Penn State this past weekend, but plans fell through for no apparent reason. He said that contact with the Nittany Lions' coaching staff has tapered off, but Wright's own coaches were still in touch often with Penn State. This doesn't look like anything serious, especially since he said just two weeks ago that Penn State was his “dream school.”

• Running back Savon Huggins swung south this week, visiting Georgia, Alabama and the rest of the SEC. He does plan to visit Penn State for a practice this spring, but probably won't be at the Blue-White Game on April 24.

• Small planet Cyrus Kouandjio told BWI that he liked Happy Valley because, "I really like the campus, it's nice and big, spacey*, that's what I like about it." But that was only from his Nike Camp workout last year. Kouandjio hasn't been back to Penn State, but all is not lost. His race is still wide open.

*Spacey - adj. "too country"

• Tight end Ben Koyack just received a scholarship offer from LSU. He has been putting together quite a list of suitors. But Penn State is still up top for the Oil City prospect. Right now, Koyack likes Penn State, Notre Dame and Ohio State the most, even though Pitt and Florida are closing the gap.

• Red Bank Catholic tight end Jack Tabb (Rivals/Scout/ESPN) revealed last week that Penn State was his No. 1 team, even though the Nittany Lions haven't extended an offer. There was a rumor floating around that Penn State was verbally hinting at an offer, but that turned out to be false.

2012. Already?

This is what you get with recruiting. There's never a prospect too young to scout. Of course, this isn't nearly like USC's 13-year-old commit, but not exactly what we're used to from Penn State.

• James Ross, Jr. (Rivals/Scout/ESPN) is already being heavily recruited by in-state rivals Michigan and Michigan State. He told the Detroit News:

“There is another school, Penn State, that we're looking at,” Ross Jr. said. “They recruited (quarterback) Rob Bolden from our school and he committed to them. So (Penn State assistant) Coach (Ron) Vanderlinden has been talking to me. I actually sent him my highlight tape and he said he really liked it.”

Ross is a 6-foot-0, 200-pound linebacker who's raised eyebrows early in his career, led his Eaglets' defense with 103 tackles, five sacks, five forced fumbles, seven fumbles recovered and an interception.

• Eddie Goldman (Rivals/Scout/ESPN) from Edison-Friendship Public Charter in Washington, DC, was told by Larry Johnson, Sr., that a scholarship offer will be extended to him when the time comes. For now, it's just a verbal offer. The 6-foot-4, 300-pound rising junior made more than 40 tackles and three sacks last season, and already runs a sub-five-second forty. Goldman is very, very high on the local team, Maryland, having visited the campus four times.

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Wednesday Recruitin': Early 2011 Offers

What, you thought recruiting was over just because Signing Day is over? With spring practice weeks away, and the basketball team quickly flushing itself down the drain, getting ready for the 2011 recruiting season is one of the few things that won't give Penn State fans a headache. In today's Wednesday Recruitin' we'll take a broad look into who's on Penn State's offers board in 2011.

Offered

Penn State has set its sights on a bunch of prospects currently rated very highly at their respective positions. We will run down a few who currently hold scholarship offers.

Lawrence Thomas out of Detroit's Renaissance High School. He is already rated the No. 1 overall linebacker by Scout.com--the other two services haven't ranked individual players by position yet--and has been included in the Rivals250 and ESPNU 150 watch lists.

In the early going, most of the recruiting services have Michigan State as the front runner for Thomas. But we all know how quickly, and often, things change with high school kids. The good news for Penn State is that Thomas has the Nittany Lions on his list of top schools, and currently holds a scholarship offer. His recruitment is being handled by Ron Vanderlinden, who has been a real thorn in the side of both MSU and Michigan the past few years.

Other than the Spartans and Nittany Lions, Thomas has shown interest in, and currently holds offers from, Alabama, Florida, Miami(FL), Michigan, North Carolina, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Syracuse, UCLA, Wisconsin, Colorado, Indiana, and Vanderbilt.

Ben Koyack - A Rivals250 and ESPNU 150 watch lists selection, Koyack is pushing for the top tight end spot in the 2011 recruiting class. The Keystone State product from Oil City High School was listed as the No. 2 tight end nationally by Scout.com.

Over the last two seasons, Koyack has caught 88 passes for nearly 1600 yards and 15 touchdowns.

Penn State is just one of nearly a dozen schools to have already extended a scholarship offer to Koyack. Other programs with offers on the table are Pittsburgh, West Virginia, California, Virginia Tech, Ohio State, North Carolina, Duke, South Carolina, Rutgers and Notre Dame.

Travis Hughes - The second linebacker on Penn State's current offers list, Hughes is a speedster on the defensive side of the ball, as most of his 40 times have hovered around 4.55. Hughes has been named to the Rivals250 and ESPNU 150 watch lists, and is currently the No. 3 inside linebacker according to Scout.com.

Out of Virginia Beach's Kempsville High School, Hughes falls well within Penn State's recruiting comfort zone in southeast Virginia. Former quarterback Michael Robinson, current quarterback Kevin Newsome and defensive lineman Chimaeze Okoli, and incoming freshman Evan Hailes are all products of the Tidewater region. Bill Kenney is in charge of Hughes' recruitment.

Of the increasing number of scholarship offers so far, East Carolina, Maryland, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Virginia, Virginia Tech, and West Virginia have all sent letters to Hughes. Oregon is reportedly also in the mix, but have not extended the official scholarship offer.

Terrell Chestnut - It's a bit surprising that Chestnut is so far the only defensive back prospect to hold a scholarship offer from Penn State. With a log-jam of junior Penn State defensive backs ready to be seniors in 2011, you would think this position would be priority number-one for the Nittany Lions in this recruiting class. But Chestnut is definitely a start. The Pottstown native has been named to the Rivals250 and ESPNU 150 watch lists, and is currently the No. 4 cornerback according to Scout.com

Over the last two seasons, Chestnut has thrown for about 1,500 yards and 13 touchdowns, run for 2,150 yards and 39 touchdowns, while on defense he's collected 180 tackles, six interceptions, three fumble recoveries. To top it off, Chestnut is a star special teamer, returning a punt and a kickoff for touchdowns his sophomore season.

Aside from the Nittany Lions, Chestnut holds offers from Connecticut, Maryland, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Villanova, and West Virginia. Other teams that are in the mix, but have not offered yet, are Buffalo, Syracuse, South Carolina, Purdue, Northwestern, Duke, and Temple.

One interesting nugget, Chestnut said during a visit to Rutgers last year that he was not sure if he was ready to get away for college.

Michael Caputo - You would be hard pressed to find two recruiting services that could agree on which position Caputo will star in college. From West Allegheny High School in Imperial, Caputo is the No. 9 outside linebacker according to Scout.com. Rivals has him as a safety prospect. ESPN likes Caputo as a running back.

As a junior, Caputo recorded 104 tackles, but also ran for 2,500 yards, scoring 38--THIRTY EIGHT--touchdowns along the way. Penn State loves linebackers that are excellent running backs. He currently has offers from Ohio State, Pittsburgh, and Purdue, besides from Penn State. Boston College, Syracuse, West Virginia, and Wisconsin are also gaining Caputo's interest.

Maika Polamalu - Maika is more than familiar with what it means to play top-level football. Maika is the cousin of All-Pro Steelers safety Troy Polamalu, while his father, Al, was a Nittany Lion in the 1980s. But Maika is making quite a name for himself as a standout teammate of Terrell Chestnut at Pottsgrove High School.

Polamalu was named third-team All-State by Pennsylvania Football News in 2009. From the backfield, Polamalu ran for 2,800 yards, 28 touchdowns the last two seasons. But it was along the defensive front where Polamalu is gaining attention. The linebacker/end hybrid raked in 50 tackles and five sacks. Scout.com has Polamalu as an unranked running back prospect. Rivals lists Polamalu on its Rivals250 watch list, while he is an ESPNU 150 watch list athlete.

Right now, Polamalu only holds two scholarship offers, from Penn State and Villanova. However, Clemson, Illinois, Michigan, Michigan State, Pittsburgh, Rutgers, Syracuse, UCLA, and West Virginia are all on the radar.

Jay Whitmire - The lone offensive lineman in Penn State's early offers crop, Whitmire is gaining steam as a prospect. A tall, but athletic hog, the 6-6, 287-pound T.C. Williams junior fits the mold Penn State sets for its offensive linemen.

One of the top overall recruits out of Virginia for 2011, Whitmire has been named to the Rivals250 and ESPNU 150 watch lists, but is unranked by Scout.com.

Whitmire holds scholarship offers from Maryland, North Carolina, Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Virginia. Home-state power Virginia Tech is also expected to make an offer soon.

Coming up: In next week's edition of Wednesday Recruitin', we will look at prospects that are expected to get scholarship offers from Penn State.

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