Tag: Jon Mitchell

Penn State’s Class of 2024 called ‘most underrated nationally’

Did Penn State just sign one of the most overlooked recruiting classes in the Class of 2024?

Penn State had a relatively quiet February national signing day this week after locking up its Class of 2024 back in the early signing period in December. But the pieces came together and Penn State put together another good quality class that should provide some key players for future success and add to the quality depth across the roster. It may not have been loaded with blue-chip talent like some other schools, but Penn State’s Class of 2024 should serve its role fairly well and is widely regarded as one fo the top 15 recruiting classes in the nation.

And according to College Sports Wire, it just may be the most underrated recruiting class in the nation.

“In total, six of the top twenty classes overall came from the Big Ten. That included Penn State, which came on at No. 15,” noted College Sports Wire. “While that is a solid ranking, the Penn State class could have an argument to be the most underrated overall class in the country on paper.”

Penn State’s recruiting class for the Class of 2024 ranks third in the Big Ten behind Oregon and Ohio State and holds the no. 15 ranking in the nation according to the updated 247Sports composite rankings.

College Sports Wire singled out the additions of tight end Luke Reynolds, offensive lineman Cooper Cousins, and cornerback Jon Mitchell. See what College Sports Wire had to say about Penn State’s Class of 2024 and star players coming into the program.

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Penn State’s cornerbacks coach discusses potential contributing freshmen

Could any of these freshmen find a role in Penn State’s defense in 2024? An assistant coach offers his opinion.

Penn State had a fantastic signing day, locking up all 25 of their commits and having no drama surround their program on a day that can become filled with potential commits signing elsewhere.

On the recruiting front, the Nittany Lions’ coaching staff will turn their attention towards future classes and continue to try and build another elite class that has become the norm under [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag].

As far as the on field product goes, the next question that presents itself is which one of the incoming freshman could become impact players in their first season in the program?

Penn State had five players, all on the defensive side of the ball, forego their redshirt seasons during the 2023-24 campaign. Linebacker [autotag]Tony Rojas[/autotag], defensive end [autotag]Jameial Lyons[/autotag], safety [autotag]King Mack[/autotag] and corners [autotag]Zion Tracy[/autotag] and [autotag]Elliott Washington[/autotag] all contributed in limited roles.

Cornerbacks coach, Terry Smith, was asked which players in the 2024 class could follow that mold and become contributors immediately in their first year by Ryan Snyder of On3 (paid subscription required).

He immediately looked to his position group as the Nittany Lions have three players entering the NFL draft.

Smith said that [autotag]Jon Mitchell[/autotag] and [autotag]Antoine Belgrave-Shorter[/autotag] are two players to watch since they are enrolling in January and will get to work within the program as soon as possible.

He notes that it will come down to if they can make the transition from the high school level to high-major Power 5 football and adjust to the processing speed it takes to recognize what is happening during the play.

Talent-wise he thinks Mitchell and Belgrave-Shorter have the tools to be contributors, but it will come down to making that adjustment.

As far as the offensive side of the ball, he has his eye on running back, [autotag]Quentin Martin[/autotag], who is a Top-100 player.

Even in a loaded running back room with [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag] and [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag] coming back, Martin is an explosive playmaker and could be used in the passing game early on as he is considered the best receiver in the room already.

Biggest theme of Penn State’s 2024 class: balance

Penn State’s 2024 class offers one of the more balanced recruiting hauls in the country.

With the first and busiest day of the college football early signing period behind us, we can confirm that Penn State signed all 25 of its Class of 2024 commits earlier today. It was a “drama-free” signing day according to [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] who spoke after all the commits had signed. The class is now locked in for next year so let’s break it down.

Penn State returns a boatload of starting-caliber players from last season but will lose several starters to the NFL with more expected to announce in the coming month. Penn State has never been a heavy transfer portal school and relies mainly on keeping its returning players intact while reloading with a strong freshman class.

This years’ class is ranked 14th in the country by 247Sports Composite and 16th by On3. With 12 offensive commits and 13 defensive commits this year’s group is evenly balanced eluding to the fact that Franklin and his staff want to add quality depth around the board and fill in any neccessary holes from departing players.

From a positon standpoint is was more of the same type of balance across the board:

  • 7 skill players: QB [autotag]Ethan Grunkemeyer[/autotag], running backs [autotag]Quintin Martin[/autotag] and [autotag]Corey Smith[/autotag], wide recievers [autotag]Josiah Brown[/autotag], [autotag]Tyseer Denmark[/autotag], and [autotag]Peter Gonzalez[/autotag], tight end [autotag]Luke Reynolds[/autotag]
  • 5 offensive lineman: [autotag]Eagan Boyer[/autotag], [autotag]Caleb Brewer[/autotag], [autotag]Cooper Cousins[/autotag], [autotag]Donovan Harbour[/autotag], [autotag]Garrett Sexton[/autotag]
  • 6 defensive lineman: [autotag]Liam Andrews[/autotag], [autotag]DeAndre Cook[/autotag], [autotag]T.A. Cunningham[/autotag], [autotag]Xavier Gilliam[/autotag], [autotag]Jaylen Harvey[/autotag], and [autotag]Mylachi Williams[/autotag]
  • 5 secondary players: cornerbacks Antoine Belgrave-Shorter, Kenneth Woseley, Jon Mitchell, and safties Dejuan Lane, and Vaboue Toure
  • 2 linebackers: Kari Jackson and Anthony Specca

No one position or side of the ball dominated the 2024 recruiting cycle for Penn State, but thats a good thing because it shows that Penn State has talent everywhere. Three wide recievers were added to arguably the worst room in 2023 and a playmaking running back was added to a room featuring two former 5-star recruits. The trenches were reloaded with talent and many of the offensive line commits should challenge for starting spots in their first year.

In the time of the transfer portal and NIL perhaps a early signing day like the one Penn State had today is not exciting, but it does not matter Franklin’s method of “underpromise, overdeliver” method still produces wins. It has in the past. Penn State’s 2024 class is balanced, solid, and most importantly adds talent across the board which is key for sustained success.

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Which Class of 2024 players will enroll early at Penn State?

It looks like a good percentage of Penn State’s Class of 2024 will be on campus in January to get a jump with offseason workouts.

Now that Penn State has officially signed its Class of 2024 on the first day of the early signing period, or at least all of the commitments they had lined up, the page is quickly turning forward. Not to look past the upcoming Peach Bowl against Ole Miss later this month, but winter workouts and spring football will be here before you know it! And it seems a good percentage of Penn State’s Class of 2024 is expected to be on campus and ready to get started working with their new teammates and coaches.

Here are the players in Penn State’s Class of 2024 that are reportedly expected to enroll early in January and get started with the program:

  • DL [autotag]Liam Andrews[/autotag]
  • DB [autotag]Antoine Belgrave-Shorter[/autotag]
  • OL [autotag]Eagan Boyer[/autotag]
  • WR [autotag]Josiah Brown[/autotag]
  • DL [autotag]De’Andre Cook[/autotag]
  • OL [autotag]Cooper Cousins[/autotag]
  • DL [autotag]T.A. Cunningham[/autotag]
  • DL [autotag]Xavier Gilliam[/autotag]
  • QB [autotag]Ethan Grunkemeyer[/autotag]
  • DL [autotag]Jaylen Harvey[/autotag]
  • LB [autotag]Kari Jackson[/autotag]
  • RB [autotag]Quinton Martin[/autotag]
  • DB [autotag]Jon Mitchell[/autotag]
  • TE [autotag]Luke Reynolds[/autotag]
  • OL [autotag]Garrett Sexton[/autotag]
  • DB [autotag]Vaboue Toure[/autotag]

Every other member of Penn State’s Class of 2024 will join the program in the summer.

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Early Signing Day Tracker: Say hello to Penn State’s Class of 2024

The early signing period for college football is officially open as schools around the country are locking in their entire, if not the vast majority, of their recruiting classes for the Class of 2024. Penn State will be among the schools expecting …

The early signing period for college football is officially open as schools around the country are locking in their entire, if not the vast majority, of their recruiting classes for the Class of 2024. Penn State will be among the schools expecting to receive signed National Letters of Intent from their verbal commitments to make things official. There could always be a player or two who hold off until the traditional signing period in February for one reason or another, but Penn State is hoping for a pretty simple and straightforward opening to the early signing period.

Here is a look at each player who committed to Penn State in the Class of 2024 recruiting calendar and an update on which players have signed in the early signing period.

Updated On3 recruiting rankings gives big boost to Penn State commits

Penn State’s Class of 2024 gets a boost form updated On300 player rankings from On3.

Penn State’s Class of 2024 lineup of commitments continues to impress in the national rankings with a consensus top 10 class being put together. But on Monday, a number of Penn State commitments saw a nice boost to their individual recruiting ranking from On3, with three players moving up into the top 100 in the nation.

Offensive lineman Garrett Sexton moved up nearly 70 spots in the 2024 recruiting rankings by going from no. 112 overall in the nation up to no. 44. The newest member of the Class of 2024 lineup, defensive lineman Mylachi Williams, cruised all the way up to no. 79 from no. 205. And tight end Luke Reynolds saw a massive surge by jumping all the way up to no. 81 after not being ranked in the On300 rankings previously.

Other notable risers in the On300 rankings from On3 included quarterback Ethan Grunkemeyer (no. 176), offensive lineman Cooper Cousins (no. 215), and defensive back Dejuan Lane (no. 274). All three players were previously out of the On300.

Penn State has a few other players in the Class of 2024 On300, of course. Quinton Martin (no. 109), Vaboue Toure (no. 206), and Jon Mitchell (no. 155), Josiah Brown (no. 297) are among the commits ranked inside the On300.

The updated recruiting rankings also gave Penn State a boost on the On3 team rankings for the Class of 2024. The updated rankings boosted Penn State from no. 10 in the On3 class rankings up to no. 8.

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Penn State’s 2024 football commitment tracker

An updated look at Penn State’s Class of 2024 following its most recent commitment.

Penn State pulled in a terrific Class of 2022 and got started with its Class of 2023 with some nice additions. But the work is already underway for the Class of 2024. Penn State received its first commitment to the Class of 2024 in January 2022 with some help on the offensive line in the commitment of in-state offensive tackle Cooper Cousins.

We’ll keep track of every commitment to Penn State’s Class of 2024 with this updated commitment tracker. Of course, this being the world of college football recruiting, there are bound to be some decommitments and twists and turns along the way, but we’ll keep track of those as well should they arise.

This tracker will be updated as necessary, with the most recent update being made on April 29, 2023.

Penn State crystal ball prediction for 4-star cornerback

The crystal ball seems to favor Penn State for a key four-star cornerback in 2024.

Penn State has turned into an NFL machine churning out pro players time and again. This year their star draftee will be Joey Porter Jr. and because of that, they are seeing an influx of cornerback and defensive talent during his rise. The latest came in the way of four-star recruit Jon Mitchell committing to Penn State on Saturday and now he may be bringing someone with him.

Jon Mitchell had an official visit to State College on Saturday and while he made that visit he committed to Penn State. His commitment brought Penn State to 14th in 247Sports 2024 class rankings. They currently have five four-star recruits and a lone three-star recruit. According to 247Sports and their crystal ball, they may be on pace to add another.

Mitchell brought a teammate from his high school to visit Penn State with him on Saturday. That teammate is [autotag]Antoine Belgrave-Shorter[/autotag] who happens to be a fellow four-star recruit in the 2024 class. While Saturday served as an unofficial visit he does have an official one lined up for June. Before that official visit, Penn State is looking like the favorite on the 247Sports crystal ball.

Belgrave-Shorter himself even commented stating that Penn State is his “leader” after his unofficial visit with Mitchell. Cornerbacks coach Terry Smith and defensive coordinator Manny Diaz’s system should be able to utilize Belgrave-Shorter in a way that could incentivize him to commit with his teammate to further the growth of the program and the defense.

Belgrave-Shorter has visits lined up still with South Carolina and Miami, he also has received interest from other Penn State Big Ten rivals such as Indiana, Maryland, Michigan State, and Wisconsin.

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Recruiting Roundup: 4 stars commit to Ohio State, Alabama and Penn State

Here are all of the commitments you might have missed from over the weekend.

Michigan made it official with Jadyn Davis on Friday, earning a long-anticipated commitment from the five-star North Carolina quarterback. The recruiting race never ends, though, and three other Power 5 schools have picked up commitments from blue chip recruits since.

Here are all the latest college football commitments you might have missed over the weekend.

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Penn State Class of 2024 snapshot profile: CB Jon Mitchell

Here is a snapshot profile look at Penn State’s most recent commitment in the Class of 2024.

Penn State made an effort to continue bringing in talented cornerbacks for the future of the defensive backfield in the Class of 2024. The addition of [autotag]Jon Mithcell[/autotag] out of Jacksonville was a significant recruiting victory to help that cause for the Nittany Lions.

Mitchell committed to Penn State at the beginning of April 2023 while making a visit to the campus with a high school teammate also on Penn State’s radar, Antoine Belgrave-Shorter. Mitchell committed to Penn State over a large number of offers, including many from Power 5 programs in and outside of the Big Ten. Mitchell was the sixth commitment for Penn State’s Class of 2024 at the time of his commitment.

Here is a snapshot look at Mitchell’s recruiting profile.