SEC program in hot pursuit of Penn State commit

Penn State may have to fend off pressure from this SEC school to keep this commitment on the board.

The thing about recruiting is that it’s really never over until the prospects are officially signed and enrolled at the school, no matter if they’ve given a commitment or not.

Prospects get flipped all the time, especially in this NIL era where money is now legally allowed to get thrown at recruits.

Penn State is currently in the process of trying to flip top instate quarterback [autotag]Matt Zollers[/autotag] back to their program even though he’s already committed to Missouri, but they’re going to have to fend off a program who is heavily going after their four-star running back commit.

According to Hunter Shelton of On3, Auburn is still heavily pursuing [autotag]Alvin Henderson[/autotag] who committed to the Nittany Lions back on April 11.

The Alabama native is listed as the 55th overall player in the 2025 class by ESPN and the fourth-best running back. It was a huge win for Penn State to land someone of this caliber out of state.

But, Henderson is coming off a recent visit to Auburn and there are many people who follow recruiting who believe he is going to wind up staying at home and playing for the Tigers.

“I believe a lot of people close to his recruitment — including myself — believe he’s going to end up at Auburn. Auburn has prioritized him for years, even when Hugh Freeze and Derrick Nix came on. It was kind of a surprise when he committed to Penn State, at least in the days leading up to his commitment,” Auburn insider Jeffrey Lee said on “Inside the Scoop.”

Henderson isn’t the only running back in Penn State’s class as they have two other commitments from [autotag]Tiqwai Hayes[/autotag] and [autotag]Kiandrea Barker[/autotag], but losing him would be a major blow to how strong their 2025 cycle would be on paper.

It will be interesting to see what ultimately comes of this.

The Nittany Lions are schedule to have him on campus for an official visit on June 14 with a chance to firmly lock down his commitment and move him closer to signing.

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Penn State’s 2025 football commitment tracker

We have an updated football commitment tracker for Penn State following Monday’s latest commitment.

Penn State got off to a fast start with assembling its Class of 2025 on the recruiting trail. James Franklin and his staff quickly put together a class ranking in the top 10 of the national recruiting rankings even before the Class of 2024 was wrapping up for good. An early focus on defense was noticeable with Penn State’s recruiting plans for the Class of 2025 and some key players from neighboring states were among the early highlights of the recruiting class.

We will be keeping tabs on the Penn State Class of 2025 all the way through the recruiting cycle up until the commitments sign with Penn State. Should there be any players backing off their commitment, we will track their status as well as their recruiting process plays out.

This tracker will be updated as necessary, with the most recent update being made on February 20, 2024.

Penn State gets commitment from 2025 3-star RB Tiqwai Hayes

Whiteout effect? Penn State received a second commitment in as many days after the whiteout game.

The White Out Game on Saturday was not only a big event on the field, but it’s also one of the most important recruiting weekends on the year for [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and their staff.

They’ve used that game as a big selling point to players across the country they are recruiting.

The gameday atmosphere, the nationally televised game, and the overall spectacle is a huge factor when swaying prospects to the Penn State program.

The Nittany Lions were able to land a four-star 2025 linebacker after the game and now have added another player in that class with a commitment from a three-star instate running back.

[autotag]Tiqwai Hayes[/autotag] announced his commitment to Penn State on social media Monday. He livestreamed the event on his personal Instagram account and posted his announcement.

Hayes is a 5’10” 190 pound running back from Aliquippa, PA. He’s accumulated over 3,700 yards and 56 touchdowns as an underclassmen in high school.

He chose Penn State over Ohio State, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Maryland, Michigan State, West Virginia and Cincinnati.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CxoI51-SBpO/

On3’s Industry Rankings has him ranked as the 10th overall player in the state of Pennsylvania and the number 29 running back.

“I visited everywhere and nothing is like Penn State. I love the crowd, obviously. Their education is also top tier,” Hayes told BlueWhiteIllustrated. “They’re RBU, they’re the Lawn Boyz. They always have successful seasons. I’m excited to be part of that.”

As a freshman, he earned 4A Player of the Year honors for Pennsylvania and has been a top producer for Aliquippa, who was in the state championship last season.

He’s the fourth player committed to Penn State in the class of 2025. He’s the second running back joining [autotag]Kiandrea Barker[/autotag].

Hayes also told Ryan Snyder of BlueWhiteIllustrated that he’ll now be recruiting other players to join the class, saying, “Oh, I’ll be after a lot of guys. They got to come here. How could you not? All the dogs need to come play with us.”

It’s been a good start for Penn State in the 2025 class as they look to potentially add more commitments after the White Out.

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