Penn State was hoping for a big commitment in the Class of 2025 from one of the top players in the state on Thursday. Unfortunately for the Nittany Lions, the top quarterback in Pennsylvania has decided he will head to the SEC rather than suit up in blue and white in Happy Valley.
Matt Zollers, from Royersford, PA, announced his commitment to Missouri on Thursday. He chose the Tigers over offers from in-state powers Penn State and Pittsburgh, and his new SEC opponents, Georgia and Alabama.
“It was pretty difficult,” Zollers said when asked how challenging it was to ultimately pick Missouri over Penn State, according to Johnny McGonigal of PennLive, via X (formerly known as Twitter). “It’s intriguing to go to college only [two] hours away. But I fell back on what I look for most out of a school, and ultimately Missouri was my best fit.”
The decision by Zollers to pick Missouri was surprising to some, but the lack of crystal ball predictions favoring Penn State (or any other school) leading up to his commitment announcement suggested this was a pretty wide-open recruiting process with a lack of inside information to lean any one way.
For Penn State, the pursuit of two quarterbacks in the current recruiting cycle hit a massive speedbump from one of the top players in the state. Penn State does have a commitment from Bekkem Kritza, who is transferring high schools back to the Miami area for his senior season. Penn State will now have to shift its focus at quarterback in the current recruiting cycle after missing out on the top quarterback in its own backyard.
Asked Spring-Ford QB Matt Zollers, after committing to Missouri, if it was hard not to pick Penn State: “It was pretty difficult. It’s intriguing to go to college only 2 hours away. But I fell back on what I look for most out of a school, and ultimately Missouri was my best fit.” pic.twitter.com/Wked31oAac
— Johnny McGonigal (@jmcgonigal9) April 4, 2024
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