Where does Penn State stand with 2025 recruit Josh Johnson?

Momentum is building for a possible Penn State commitment from a three-star safety who recently backed out of his ACC commitment.

This past weekend was huge for Penn State on the recruiting trail.

With them not having another game in Happy Valley until Nov. 2 against Ohio State, that made it just over a month that the Nittany Lions would host a home game after they welcomed in UCLA this past weekend.

Because of that, [autotag]James Franklin[/autotag] and his staff used that as a time to get some of their 2025 flip targets on campus before the upcoming early signing day on Dec. 4, as many recruits around the country who were committed to programs elsewhere are starting to change their minds.

Penn State hosted four high-profile players, one of them being cornerback [autotag]Josh Johnson[/autotag] who looked like a lock to join this class before he shockingly committed to Louisville.

But following his trip to campus this past weekend, there is real momentum in the favor of the Nittany Lions as he announced on social media that he’s decommitted from the Cardinals to reopen his recruiting.

Things could move fast now.

Ryan Snyder of On3 already put in a prediction that the 6-foot-2, 185-pound three-star cornerback will now commit to Penn State. Franklin and the staff continued to stay in contact with him when he was committed elsewhere, never giving up despite the frustrating earlier decision. Johnson said he doesn’t want to drag out his recruitment further, so there is a real chance he could announce his decision in favor of the Nittany Lions very soon (subscription required).

Penn State thinks he can be a versatile member of their secondary, potentially having him start at cornerback before moving to safety later in his career when he fills out a bit more.

That would be huge since three-star safety Antonio Branch flipped from Penn State to Colorado that left a void in their class.

Getting Johnson on board would be huge, and based on this intel, it seems like the Nittany Lions might secure their first flip target coming out of this past weekend.