Top 5 2026 QB considering Penn State with early decision looming

Will Penn State secure a major quarterback commitment for the Class of 2026?

There is still plenty of work for [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his staff to get accomplished in the class of 2025 as they are working on securing another top group of recruits.

With the expanded Big Ten, maintaining a stronghold in recruiting is imperative to ensure they have success.

But while their main focus is still on the 2025 class, that’s not going to prevent them from going after their favorite targets in the class of 2026 and beyond.

Penn State already has one commitment in [autotag]Messiah Mickens[/autotag] and will be looking to add another.

According to Chad Simmons of On3, quarterback [autotag]Dia Bell[/autotag] is targeting a commitment date this summer after visiting multiple schools this spring. He feels like he’ll give out a list of his finalists before deciding, but wants to give an early commitment in his process (subscription required).

It was previously reported that the Nittany Lions impressed the 6-foot-3, 190-pound quarterback from Florida coming off his most recent visit in March.

Rated as the No. 12 overall player and fourth-best quarterback in his class by On3’s Industry Ranking, this would be a huge get for Penn State.

The coveted four-star has around 40 scholarship offers from different teams around the country, including multiple Power 4 conference teams who are some of the best programs in the country.

It’s interesting that Bell is targeting such an early commitment date considering how much time is left in his recruitment before he has to sign and make things official.

That will make it difficult for any program to hold onto the elite quarterback prospect throughout this time period, no matter who he commits to this summer.

For what it’s worth, On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine has Penn State with the second-best odds to land Bell at 15.3%. They follow only Ohio State who sits at 17.5%.

Penn State hosts No. 1 2026 quarterback for visit

Penn State hopes to have left a solid impression on top-ranked QB in 2026 on recent visit.

Penn State is looking to lock up their 2025 recruiting class for the quarterback position still, but that’s not stopping [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his offensive staff from looking ahead to the next cycle.

Right now, the Nittany Lions have already secured one commit for the 2026 class in elite Pennsylvania running back [autotag]Messiah Mickens[/autotag].

There is no rush as the 2025 class is still being worked on as spring and summer camps are underway or are getting finalized with participants, but coaching staffs across the country are starting to host recruits from younger cycles.

Penn State is doing just that when they welcome elite 2026 quarterback [autotag]Faizon Brandon[/autotag] to campus on March 26.

The North Carolina native is ranked as the 46th-best recruit in his class according to On3’s Industry Rankings, but On3 themselves have him listed as the top quarterback and No. 12 overall player.

According to their database, the Nittany Lions haven’t offered Brandon, but that likely changes during his visit. The talented quarterback has amassed just under 20 offers from elite schools across the country.

Brandon is a 6’3″ 185-pounder who finished his last high school season with over 3,500 passing yards and 45 touchdowns.

Penn State will try to jump into consideration for the North Carolina quarterback as he has started visiting schools. There is a real focus on this position early in this class as the Nittany Lions have hosted two other top quarterbacks for visits as well.

With new offensive coordinator [autotag]Andy Kotelnicki[/autotag] and quarterbacks coach [autotag]Danny O’Brien[/autotag] running the offense, it’s more important than ever that they start getting guys who fit their system onto campus and develop future relationships.

It looks like that’s what the class of 2026 will be for the quarterback position.

Penn State recruiting notebook: Ethan Grunkemeyer’s big night and Mylachi Williams wins in Ireland

Penn State QB commit Ethan Grunkemeyer thrashed Drew Allar’s alma mater and this PSU commit scored a victory in Ireland.

For some high school football players, this week has been the first chance to put on the pads and play a game. For a few others, this was Week 2 of the high school football season. Whatever the case may have been, and wherever the game may have been played, it has been a big weekend already for some of Penn State’s commits in the Class of 2024 and beyond.

Penn State quarterback commit [autotag]Ethan Grunkemeyer[/autotag] led his team to a massive non-conference victory on Friday night. One of Grunkemeyer’s recruiting classmates in the Class of 2024, [autotag]Mylachi Williams[/autotag], helped lead his team to a victory in Ireland. And one of Penn State’s newest commits, Class of 2026 running back [autotag]Messiah Mickins[/autotag], was on fire in his season-opening performance on Friday night.

Here is a quick roundup of some of the top high school football notes involving some future Nittany Lions.

Penn State lands elite 2026 running back in surprise commitment

Penn State lands surprise elite running back commitment for 2026

Wow! When it’s going good, sometimes things just keep getting better.

That seems to be the case for Penn State right now on all fronts. They’re ranked seventh in the country heading into the 2023 season. Their 2024 recruiting class is top 10 nationally and they’re flying up boards for important prospects in 2025.

Now, [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his staff got more good news with a surprising commitment coming from 2026 running back [autotag]Messiah Mickens[/autotag] on Saturday.

The 5’10” 200 pound prospect is from Camp Hill Trinity High School in Pennsylvania and is rated as the number one player in the state for the class of 2026.

After one season of high school football, he was on Penn State’s radar early as they became the second team to offer him in January 2023. In June, Mickens attended a camp at Happy Valley and took an unofficial visit later in July.

Apparently the time spent on campus around the program and coaching staff was enough to convince the talented prospect to give his commitment to Penn State.

He chose the Nittany Lions over notable schools like Alabama, Ohio State and Michigan.

Mickens becomes the first prospect from the 2026 class to commit to the Nittany Lions. It’s a surprise timeline wise because he has so much time remaining in his recruiting process.

“How they treat me and family when we come up,” he told On3 when asked why he committed to Penn State.

It’s unclear right now how hard of a commitment it is by Mickens and if he’s going to shut down other schools that try to reach out. However, right now he has a strong connection to the school and coaching staff.

“Also my position coach, I love what he does with his running backs and how he uses them. Also, just being in my hometown, my family can make most of all the games and play for your state when it’s big time football. Just feels like home everytime I go and I’ve been around a lot of colleges. My heart is just in state college,” he tells On3.

It’s a major signing for Penn State. Right now, Mickens is the 30th overall prospect in the 2026 class according to 247Sports. He is an incredible building block to start creating a class around when they focus more of their attention on that class.

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Make it a dozen: Messiah Mickens gets offered by Rutgers football

Messiah Mickens was offered by Rutgers football this week.

One of the top underclassmen in the nation was offered by Rutgers football this week. Messiah Mickens, off a strong freshman season, now has 12 offers from Power Five programs.

Mickens was offered by Rutgers on Monday during a visit to the Big Ten program.

A class of 2026 recruit, Mickens plays for Trinity High School (Camp Hill, PA). He holds an impressive offer list that includes Alabama, Duke, Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue and Syracuse among others. The offer from Rutgers now represents his twelfth Power Five offer.

He tweeted about the offer on Monday, tagging Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano, offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca and running backs coac Damiere Shaw:

 

Last season, Mickens had 1,161 yards of total offense (961 rushing yards), averaging 7.8 yards per carry. He also had 18 touchdowns as a freshman.

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On the defensive side of the ball, playing in the secondary, he had 25 total tackles.

Trinity finished the season 10-5.

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MSU football offers 2026 ATH Messiah Mickens of Camp Hill, Pa.

Michigan State football is the latest big-time program to extend a scholarship offer to 2026 athlete Messiah Mickens of Camp Hill, Pa.

Michigan State football is the latest big-time program to extend a scholarship offer to 2026 athlete Messiah Mickens of Camp Hill, Pa.

Mickens announced the offer from the Spartans over the weekend. He is listed as an athlete and plays for Trinity.

Mickens is yet to be ranked on 247Sports but that’ll change in time. He already has captured the attention of numerous big name programs. Mickens has received offers from Michigan State, Alabama, Ohio State, Penn State, Texas A&M, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Kent State.

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on Twitter @RobertBondy5.

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