Tag: Alex Bacchetta

Big board: Penn State’s 2022 football recruiting class by position

Breaking down Penn State football’s Class of 2022 position by position.

Penn State’s Class of 2022 has long been recognized as one of the top classes in the nation. The latest (and greatest) recruiting class to be signed by James Franklin looks to add some tremendous quality and depth to various positions across the roster and has some players to really look forward to watching grow almost immediately.

For a long stretch in this recruiting cycle, Penn State had the nation’s top-ranked class, and it continued to be ranked highest among Big Ten schools up until shortly before the early signing period. But there is no disputing the ranking of Penn State’s Class of 2022 is proof Penn State has been hitting it hard on the recruiting trail this cycle.

Here is a breakdown of Penn State’s Class of 2022 broken down by position.

Kicking specialist Alex Bacchetta is a natural successor to Jordan Stout

Penn State Class of 2022 may have the perfect successor to Jordan Stout in the special teams department

Position: Punter

Height: 6-3″

Weight: 200 lb

Hometown: Atlanta, GA

High School: Westminster High School

Twitter: @AlexBacchetta

Committed: May 25, 2021

247 Sports: ⭐⭐⭐

Rivals.com: ⭐⭐

Kohl’s Kicking (Kicker): ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Kohl’s Kicking (Punting): ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Overview:

Like Jordan Stout, Alex Bacchetta excels at both kicking and punting. With Stout leaving, this leaves an opportunity open for a guy like Bacchetta. He was recruited as a punter. Then again, Stout was recruited as a kicker and showed off his leg strength at Penn State after transferring from Virginia Tech.

As it stands, it’s likely Penn State will be with two kickers next season. While we don’t know if kicker Jake Pinegar will be back next season for his extra year of eligibility, Bacchetta has the chance to come in and compete for the starting job.

It isn’t often you find players that can not only kick and punt but also excel at it at the next level. Bacchetta has the talent to do that and hopefully follow in the footsteps of Stout.

Bacchetta is also the number one ranked punter in the nation and it’s clear why. He went to a kicking camp and completely blew the socks off the scouts.

Bacchetta has the talent to develop into a player like Stout, which will be crucial for the Nittany Lions.

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Penn State’s Class of 2022 is now ranked No. 2

Penn State’s latest recruiting efforts continue to pay off in a big way in the recruiting rankings for 2022

After a brilliant week of recruiting news, Penn State’s Class of 2022 continues to move up in the national rankings. And it didn’t have that far it could have moved. After coming out of the July 4th weekend with the nation’s No. 3 recruiting class according to the 247 Sports composite ranking, the Nittany Lions have moved up one spot.

According to the updated composite rankings from 247 Sports, Penn State has moved up to No. 2 in the nation, passing Notre Dame. The Irish fell one spot to occupy the ranking recently held by the Nittany Lions. Ohio State remains the nation’s recruiting leader with the highest-rated class featuring four five-star recruits in the Class of 2022.

Penn State’s recruiting ranking was given a healthy boost over the July 4th weekend with the additions of four-star defenders Tyreese Fearbry and Zane Durant. The weekend also saw the additions of linebacker Keon Wylie and defensive lineman Kaleb Artis. Penn State also added a JUCO commitment from JB Nelson. The big splash continued on Tuesday when four-star running back Nicholas Singleton from Reading, PA announced his commitment to the Nittany Lions.

Penn State’s Class of 2022 already included a number of four-star recruits as well including wide receivers Kaden Saunders, Mekhi Flowers, and Anthony Ivey, offensive tackle Drew Shelton, quarterback Drew Allar and defensive end Ken Talley, just to name a few.

As of the morning of July 9, here is a look at the top 10 in the recruiting rankings from 247 Sports;

  1. Ohio State
  2. Penn State
  3. Notre Dame
  4. LSU
  5. Oklahoma
  6. Florida State
  7. Georgia
  8. Texas
  9. Oregon
  10. Michigan

Asking Penn State to climb to No. 1 is unrealistic at this point, barring a completely unexpected collapse from Ohio State, but the Nittany Lions are easily on track to record the highest-rated recruiting class under head coach James Franklin yet. Keeping everyone in the class still requires work too between now and the early signing period in December. And it’s possible another school may eclipse Penn State at some point. But the Nittany Lions are in a terrific spot in the middle of the summer.

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Penn State ready for recruiting push as NCAA dead period is lifted

James Franklin and his staff have a busy June lined up as the NCAA lifts its nationwide recruiting travel restrictions.

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This is a monster week on the college football recruiting schedule. For the first time since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, official visits will once again be permitted by the NCAA. Penn State is among the many powerhouse programs ready to take full advantage of the opportunity to return to some sense of normalcy in recruiting.

Penn State’s Class of 2022 has already been coming along nicely despite the NCAA restrictions on recruiting out of caution amid the pandemic. According to the latest team composite rankings from 247 Sports, Penn State currently has the No. 6 class in the nation with 11 commitments currently on board. But now that the recruiting game is about to open up, Penn State must work even harder to keep a top 10 class as the competition really heats up.

Penn State has a couple of official visits lined up for this week with Florida running back Kaytron Allen scheduled to visit Happy Valley on Friday. The four-star recruit out of IMG Academy would be a big win for Penn State, who was unable to secure a commitment out of Florida in its scaled-back Class of 2021. Four-star offensive tackle Ryan Brubaker, from Denver, PA, is also scheduled for an official visit that same day.

After the official visits at the end of the week, James Franklin and members of his coaching staff are flying down to Tallahassee to participate in Florida State’s premier football camp. A summer after football camps were prohibited due to the pandemic, this is yet another opportunity to create some interaction with recruits from a fertile football area. Franklin knows the value of Florida recruits, and getting a chance to work with a program like Florida State in this environment could benefit the Nittany Lions moving forward.

Next week, on June 11, will be a significant day for Penn State as 12 players are currently scheduled to make an official visit, including four-star players in Maryland defensive lineman Dani Dennis-Sutton, Philadelphia cornerback Keenan Nelson Jr., Florida linebacker Wesley Bissainthe, New Jersey cornerback Jaeden Gould, Indiana defensive lineman Joe Strickland, Reading running back Nicholas Singleton, and Florida athlete Keon Sabb.

Penn State has 13 more players visiting Happy Valley the following week, including Florida commitment and cornerback Julian Humphrey, from Texas. Penn State commits Drew Shelton (offensive tackle) and Alex Bacchetta (punter) will also be in town. So will Virginia four-star running back Ramon Brown, who previously listed Penn State in his top seven, although Penn State could have some ground to make up in his recruiting process. As of now, Penn State has nine players scheduled to make an official visit to the campus on June 25.

So yes, June is a big month for James Franklin and his staff. But it will also be a challenging one because the NCAA recruiting restrictions are lifted for everybody, from Ohio State and Michigan to Florida and Georgia, and Oklahoma and Texas and beyond. And like Penn State, all of those programs are looking forward to returning to a more standard method of recruiting and sales-pitching.

Game on.

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Nation’s top punter commits to Penn State’s Class of 2022

Penn State’s Class of 2022 just secured a commitment from one of the best players at his posiiton.

Penn State’s Class of 2022 continues to pull together some high-quality recruits. The newest addition to the recruiting haul just so happens to be the nation’s top-rated punter.

Alex Bacchetta of Georgia announced his commitment to the Nittany Lions on Tuesday evening. Bacchetta is the top-ranked punter in the Class of 2022 according to Kohl’s Professional Camps, the go-to resource for rankings of kickers and punters. Bacchetta chose Penn State over offers from Arkansas and Virginia.

“I would like to thank Coach Franklin, Coach Lorig, and Coach Raisbeck for their time and commitment in recruiting me from day one,” Bacchetta said in a released statement on his Twitter account. “After much consideration and thought, I would like to announce my commitment to Penn State University.”

Bacchetta had a standout performance at Kohl’s Underclassman Challenge in January. Here’s what Kohl’s Professional Camps has to say about the newest member of Penn State’s next recruiting class;

His frame and leg speed separates him from the rest of his peers. The ball jumps off his foot. He had an impressive showing in both kicking and punting. Bacchetta’s punting should only get better as he continues to master his drop and rhythm. Bacchetta is currently more mature athletically and just stronger than others his age in both kicking and punting. Bacchetta’s “A” ball is better than anyone else in the 2022 class at this point. He will be a power five scholarship player.

Bacchetta is scheduled to visit Penn State for an official visit on June 18.

While Penn Stae will have to wait until next year to get Bacchetta involved on special teams, he will bring an immediate boost to the punting game for the Nittany Lions. Jordan Stout was used as a kicker and a punter in 2020, and that remains the plan for 2021. Stout averaged 41.55 yards per punt in 2020, but having one dedicated punter isn’t a bad idea.

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