Tag: Nolan Rucci

Penn State RT shares what former Badgers tackle Nolan Rucci said about Camp Randall Stadium atmosphere

Nolan Rucci preparing the Penn State OL for their trip to Madison

Wisconsin’s prime-time showdown with No. 3 Penn State on Saturday will see former Badgers offensive tackle Nolan Rucci return to Madison, Wisconsin.

Rucci transferred to Penn State before the 2024 season after three years with the Badgers. He notably joined the program as a five-star recruit in the class of 2021. He was ranked as the second-highest-rated commit in Wisconsin program history.

Related: 10 stats that will define Wisconsin Badgers vs. Penn State football

The Pennsylvania native played sparingly during his three years with the Badgers. His top moment with the program was actually a touchdown reception — a game-winner in the final moments of the team’s win over Illinois in 2023.

Established starters Jack Nelson (left tackle) and Riley Mahlman (right tackle), both back in 2024, blocked any clear path to Rucci earning a starting job. He entered the transfer portal with two years of eligibility and committed to Penn State.

Rucci enters Saturday’s big game at Camp Randall Stadium as Penn State’s primary backup right tackle. Redshirt freshman Anthony Donkoh (No. 68) won the job out of training camp and has held it throughout the season. The former Badger’s game action has been limited to jumbo formations, late-game scenarios and in relief of Donkoh, who has battled minor injuries throughout the year.

Aug. 31, 2024; Morgantown, West Virginia; Penn State Nittany Lions running back Kaytron Allen (13) celebrates with Penn State Nittany Lions offensive lineman Anthony Donkoh (68) after scoring a touchdown during the second quarter against the West Virginia Mountaineers at Mountaineer Field at Milan Puskar Stadium. Ben Queen-USA TODAY Sports

Donkoh is healthy entering Saturday. So Rucci’s snaps are expected to be limited, barring injury. The former Badger has helped the starter prepare for what projects to be a raucous Camp Randall Stadium atmosphere. Donkoh described that exchange when meeting with the media earlier this week:

“He was telling me that the fans are crazy, it’s a super cool place to play at,” Donkoh said.

Those fans are expected to be especially energized on Saturday night given the weight of the matchup between the Badgers and Nittany Lions. Wisconsin enters as the winner of three straight games and with significant momentum. Penn State, meanwhile, has a No. 3 next to its name on the scoreboard. Fans will enter the gates hoping that Luke Fickell’s team can pull a program-defining victory.

We will see how much playing time Rucci, who now wears No. 72, gets on Saturday. It is an interesting sub-plot in what projects to be a fantastic on-field matchup.

Wisconsin and Penn State will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET, 6:30 p.m. CT on Saturday night. The game will be on NBC and stream on Peacock.

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Wisconsin facing former Badgers OL transfer, who is now on Penn State

Wisconsin facing former Badgers OL transfer, who is now on Penn State

The Wisconsin Badgers will play against former Wisconsin offensive lineman Nolan Rucci on Saturday when the team hosts the No. 3-ranked Penn State Nittany Lions.

Rucci played at Wisconsin from 2021-2023 before transferring to Penn State before the 2024 season.

Related: Ranking the biggest storylines entering Wisconsin’s premier matchup with Penn State

The offensive lineman originally joined the Badgers program as a five-star recruit in the class of 2021 — ranked as the No. 16 overall player in the class and No. 5 offensive tackle. His 0.9918 247Sports rating was good enough to rank No. 2 among the all-time highest-rated recruits in Wisconsin program history.

Nolan Rucci, the younger brother of former Badgers tight end Hayden Rucci (2019-2023), went on to redshirt during the 2021 season before playing sparingly in 2022. His role remained limited in 2023, with Jack Nelson and Riley Mahlman back as the team’s starting left and right tackles, respectively. He was a part of a defining moment of that season, however, as he caught a game-winning touchdown pass from QB Braedyn Locke in the Badgers’ narrow win over Illinois.

https://twitter.com/CFBONFOX/status/1715866823537623510

Nelson and Mahlman both returned in 2024 to lead a Wisconsin offensive line that is among the best in the conference. Rucci opted to enter the transfer portal, and went on to commit to Penn State.

The former top recruit currently plays a reserve role for the 2024 Nittany Lions. He primarily sees the field in jumbo packages and other heavy-personnel formations. Otherwise, he is the team’s primary backup right tackle — and has seen some game action at the position in relief of starter Anthony Donkoh.

Donkoh should be healthy exiting the Nittany Lions’ Week 8 bye, which means Rucci is likely to see the field only in specialty situations on Saturday.

Former Wisconsin linebacker Jordan Mayer (2023) also transferred to Penn State before the 2024 season. He has yet to see the field with the Nittany Lions.

Wisconsin and Penn State will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET, 6:30 p.m. CT on NBC and streaming on Peacock. Rucci, who now wears No. 72, should see at least some game action against his former team.

Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes, and opinion.

13 Penn State players appear on Senior Bowl watch list for 2024

A large number of Penn State players are on this year’s Senior Bowl watch list.

Penn State has historically been productive when it comes to manufacturing talent for the next level in the NFL, and this year’s roster is not short on potential NFL talent. One of the highlights of the draft cycle is the Reese’s Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama, which invites the nation’s top seniors to participate in one of the premier scouting events outside of the annual NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis. An invite to the Senior Bowl is cherished and must be earned, and is a sign of the respect the NFL draft and scouting community holds for a player. It is a great tryout in front of the NFL world and can dramatically impact a player’s draft stock.

The Senior Bowl released its watch list of players for the upcoming season, and Penn State was well represented with players that could eventually be invited to participate in the top senior all-star game leading up to the NFL draft.

The full list of Penn State players appearing on the watch list includes:

  • [autotag]Drew Allar[/autotag], QB
  • [autotag]Kaytron Allen[/autotag], RB
  • [autotag]Abdul Carter[/autotag], DL
  • [autotag]Dani Dennis-Sutton[/autotag], DL
  • [autotag]Julian Fleming[/autotag], WR
  • [autotag]Kobe King[/autotag], LB
  • [autotag]JB Nelson[/autotag], OL
  • [autotag]Jaylen Reed[/autotag], DB
  • [autotag]Nick Singleton[/autotag], RB
  • [autotag]Tyler Warren[/autotag], TE
  • [autotag]Kevin Winston Jr.[/autotag], DB
  • [autotag]Sal Wormley[/autotag], OL
  • [autotag]Nolan Rucci[/autotag], OL

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Wisconsin’s game-winning touchdown pass vs. Illinois is now a penalty, and Bret Bielema is not pleased

Wisconsin’s game-winning touchdown pass vs. Illinois is now a penalty, and Bret Bielema is not pleased

There is a new rule entering the 2024 season that directly addresses Wisconsin’s game-winning touchdown pass to beat Illinois in 2023.

The rule notes that changing a player into a different jersey during the game to complete a tackle-eligible pass is now considered an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty.

Related: 10 developing opinions entering year two of the Luke Fickell era at Wisconsin

This is, of course, exactly what Wisconsin did in switching backup left tackle Nolan Rucci from No. 66 to No. 93, then running him out on a swing route to catch the game-winning touchdown pass with 30 seconds left in the game.

Illinois HC Bret Bielema went to X to react to this rule change, posting ‘Isn’t it crazy how rules are emphasized on a yearly basis after a year in review.’

For those who need a refresher, here is the play in question, plus Bielema’s full reaction to the rule change:

We can confidently say that we probably witnessed one of the last instances of a tackle changing his number to catch a touchdown pass. We’ve definitely seen the last one that’s worked without being a 15-yard penalty.

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Four-star offensive lineman puts Penn State in his top six

Penn State is in some competition for a commitment as this four-star offensive lineman trims down his options.

Penn State continues to look at offensive line options in their 2025 class as they currently have just two commitments at that position group from [autotag]Owen Aliciene[/autotag] and [autotag]Michael Troutman[/autotag].

They’ve done an incredible job at recruiting and developing offensive linemen since [autotag]Phil Trautwein[/autotag] joined the program in 2020.

The Nittany Lions picked up five offensive line commits in the 2024 class and also got transfer [autotag]Nolan Rucci[/autotag], so it’s unclear how many they are targeting in this cycle.

However, one player they’re interested in is four-star [autotag]Max Buchanan[/autotag].

The 6-foot-4, 270-pounder recently cut his list to six schools and included Penn State. Others he’s still considering are Florida State, Clemson, Miami, Ole Miss, and UCF.

The Florida native is coming out of an official visit to Ole Miss this past weekend.

According to Chad Simmons of On3, those will be a major factor in his decision making.

“What is going to separate a school for me will be based on how my visits go. I want to see how honest and truthful the people are at each school. Getting along with the players and the people on campus is so important to me. I will only be around the coaches when I am at the facility or practice, so I want to see how I get along with the players. That will be very big for me,” Buchanan said.

Penn State will be the last official visit he takes as he’s scheduled to come to Happy Valley on June 21.

This has been a recruit on the radar of [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his staff for a while as they were the second school to offer him a scholarship and have maintained consistent contact with him throughout the process.

It may be a bit of an uphill battle, though.

On3’s Recruiting Prediction Machine currently lists Penn State with the worst odds out of the six schools he’s considering with an 8.2% chance. Florida State are the leaders with a 22.7% chance.

Based on the amount of time that the coaching staff has put into this process, they’ll likely make a major push to land him prior to him taking his official visit in June.

Penn State football transfer portal tracker

The transfer portal is open. Stay on top of every Penn State transfer coming and going with our updated tracker.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year. Sure, the holiday season is in full swing, but the transfer portal for college football is officially open, and Penn State will once again look to be active in the portal activity in an attempt to bolster a couple of positions in need of improvement.

Of course, a number of players on the football roster will take this opportunity to explore some other opportunities to find a new environment that will allow them to embrace a fresh start, pursue more playing time with another program, or simply just move closer to home.

The first day of the transfer portal being open led to a couple of Penn State players entering their names in the transfer portal. And we are ready to keep track of all of the transfer portal activity this month.

The transfer portal opened on Dec. 4, 2023 and closes on Jan. 2, 2024. Here is a look at the latest developments with the portal and Penn State with a review of what players are currently in the transfer portal, who has committed elsewhere, and what players are coming to Penn State out of the portal.

Penn State players in transfer portal: 3

Penn State players who have committed elsewhere from the portal: 4

Players coming to Penn State from the transfer portal: 6

Penn State lands former 5-star Georgia transfer A.J. Harris from transfer portal

Penn State lands former five-star CB out of the transfer portal

Penn State has been busy in the transfer portal this offseason as they’ve started to address some of the holes that became open with the departures of those declaring for the NFL draft and graduating.

[autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his staff have been able to get some blue chip talent in the portal as well, landing five-star high school talents like wide receiver [autotag]Julian Fleming[/autotag] and offensive tackle [autotag]Nolan Rucci[/autotag].

Now on Thursday, they have secured a commitment from another elite talent in former Georgia cornerback A.J. Harris according to BlueWhiteIllustrated.

“Harris did not make a public announcement, but BWI confirmed on Wednesday that the former Bulldog is on campus and attending classes at University Park for the spring semester,” writes Sean Fitz.

This is a huge get for the Nittany Lions.

247Sports rated the 6’1″ 190 pound corner as a five-star recruit in the class of 2023. He was able to play as a freshman at Georgia, although in a limited role, recording eight tackles in seven games.

After not playing in November, he decided to look at other schools where will play the remaining three seasons of his college football eligibility.

Harris was the 12th overall player in On3’s Transfer Portal Rankings and the No. 1 cornerback.

Penn State only has one upperclassmen in their cornerback room next year in [autotag]Cam Miller[/autotag], so the former five-star recruit gives the Nittany Lions more talent, depth and options heading into the spring.

After landing Harris, this has become one of the best offseasons that Penn State has had in the transfer portal to date, getting three former five-star recruits and players who should immediately be able to help.

Penn State gets another addition with Florida transfer cornerback

Penn State adds defensive back from SEC school out of transfer portal.

Penn State has things absolutely rolling in the transfer portal during the early cycle.

Wide receiver was the biggest need they had to address and they were able to land [autotag]Julian Fleming[/autotag]. Then two players from Wisconsin decided to come to Happy Valley with offensive tackle [autotag]Nolan Rucci[/autotag] and linebacker [autotag]Jordan Mayer[/autotag] transferring to Penn State.

The good news continued to come when former five-star cornerback and Georgia Bulldog, [autotag]A.J. Harris[/autotag], committed to the Nittany Lions.

Now, [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] has landed another defensive piece by getting Florida cornerback transfer [autotag]Jalen Kimber[/autotag] to flip his commitment from Louisville to Penn State on Thursday.

The 6’0″ 185-pound corner initially enrolled at Georgia coming out of high school as a four-star rated prospect and the No. 105 player in the 2020 class.

He then transferred to Florida in 2022 and spent two seasons there, playing in 25 games and recording 36 tackles with one interception.

Kimber will spend his final year of eligibility with Penn State and could become an immediate starter with only one upperclassman in the cornerback room.

Initially, it looked like he was headed to Louisville after he committed to them early on in his process without ever visiting their campus.

Kimber still decided to see Penn State and that’s where his thought process started to change after meeting with the coaching staff and developing a relationship with cornerbacks coach [autotag]Terry Smith[/autotag].

The next steps will move quickly for the Nittany Lions.

Greg Pickel of BlueWhiteIlustrated reports, “Kimber is likely to enroll for the spring semester and start classes next week. That, of course, will allow him to participate in spring practice.”

Getting him involved in spring practices will be an important step to ensuring he can be a starter on this team heading into next season as he’ll get a full offseason of work with new defensive coordinator [autotag]Tom Allen[/autotag].

It’s been a great transfer season so far for Penn State and it doesn’t seem like they are done adding yet.

Where experts rank Penn State in their way-too-early Top 25 projections

Experts rank Penn State in their way-too-early Top 25

The college football season reaches its pinnacle tonight, with Michigan and Washington facing off in the CFP National Championship game. However, it is never too early to look at the 2024 season, especially when predicting what the Top 25 will look like this August.

Penn State ended its 2023 season on a sour note, losing to Ole Miss in the Peach Bowl. With several players off to the NFL and two new coordinators now in the fold, it will be an exciting offseason to watch from a fan’s perspective. Some interesting pieces have come in through the transfer Portal, including [autotag]Julian Fleming[/autotag] and [autotag]Nolan Rucci[/autotag]. Can they be difference-makers? Only time will tell.

The Nittany Lions opened up this past season as the nation’s seventh-ranked team. If I had to guess, that would be the ceiling for a preseason Top-25 ranking, the more likely spot being between 10 and 12. Let’s see where some college football experts rank Penn State in their way-too-early Top 25 projections.

Former five-star Wisconsin offensive tackle commits to a Big Ten rival

Former five-star Wisconsin offensive tackle commits to a Big Ten rival

Former Wisconsin offensive tackle Nolan Rucci committed to Penn State earlier today. He had entered the transfer portal just two days ago, so no time was wasted in finding a new home.

Rucci was a five-star recruit in the class of 2021, ranked as the No. 17 player in the entire class, No. 5 offensive tackle and No. 1 recruit from the state of Pennsylvania. His older brother, Wisconsin tight end Hayden Rucci, recently opted out of the ReliaQuest Bowl to prepare for the 2024 NFL Draft.

He commits to a Penn State program where his father, Todd Rucci, played during the 1990s. The connection was an easy one to make, as Penn State was a top contender during his high school recruitment a few years ago.

The former top recruit finished his Wisconsin career without much on-field action, though did catch the Badgers’ game-winning touchdown at Illinois.