More than a game will be on the line on Saturday in Happy Valley. Recruiting will be on the line as well. Joe Paterno and his staff will welcome in an outstanding group of prospects on Saturday as the Nittany Lions take on Ohio State in Beaver Stadium.
Two of the top three 2010 prospects the Nittany Lions are still recruiting, running back Marcus Lattimore from Duncan (S.C.) Byrnes and defensive lineman Mike Thornton from Stone Mountain (Ga.) Stephenson are expected to make official visits to Penn State this weekend.
Lattimore is the No. 16 prospect on the ESPNU 150 and the No. 2 running back. He has narrowed his choices down to Penn State, Auburn, South Carolina, North Carolina, Oregon, Georgia and Florida State.
Thornton is one of the top defensive line prospects in the South. He has close to three dozen scholarship offers including Penn State, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Georgia Tech, Alabama and South Carolina.
The other top senior prospect the Nittany Lions are going after, defensive lineman Sharrif Floyd from Philadelphia (Pa.) George Washington, won’t attend the Penn State-Ohio State game on Saturday. Floyd’s team has a playoff game on Saturday at 6 p.m. Floyd is considering both the Nittany Lions and Buckeyes.
Many of the Nittany Lions’ commitments will be in attendance at the big game as well.
Paterno and his staff will also welcome in many juniors and sophomores to the big game. Unfortunately, one that won’t be in attendance is tight end Ben Koyack from Oil City. Koyack had planned to be in attendance at Saturday’s showdown game in Happy Valley. However, after undergoing surgery on Tuesday to repair cartilage in his right knee, Koyack won’t make it to the game. His doctor does not want him to risk infection in the knee.
Even though Koyack won’t be in Happy Valley on Saturday, the Penn State staff will welcome in many other top juniors and sophomores. Some of those expected in State College on Saturday include defensive back Maika Polamalu and athlete Terrell Chestnut from Pottstown (Pa.) Pottsgrove, and running back Jameel Poteat from Harrisburg (Pa.) Bishop McDevitt. The Nittany Lions have already offered a scholarship to Polamalu and Chestnut.
Kurelic’s Comment: Plenty will be on the line in Beaver Stadium on Saturday including current and future recruiting battles. I don’t necessarily expect any new Penn State commitments this weekend, though certainly groundwork could be laid for that to happen down the road.
Off the field battle
