By Bill Kurelic, NN Recruiting Analyst

bkurelic@nittanynetwork.com

July 8, 2009

When I debuted my Pennsylvania class of 2010 top 10 prospects in late May, Joe Paterno had not lost a single prospect on the list to another school.  Six weeks later, that is still the case.

Not only has Paterno not lost anyone out of the top 10, he since added commitments from two prospects on the list.  Kyle Baublitz and Miles Dieffenbach committed to Penn State, giving Paterno pledges from four of the Keystone State’s top 10 prospects.  Paterno has also landed my No. 11 prospect in the state, offensive lineman Luke Graham.

Paterno may be on the verge of landing a fifth member of my top 10 as linebacker/defensive end Dakota Royer plans to soon select a college and I like Penn State’s chances in that battle.

Here is a rundown of my current top 10 and where things stand with each:

1. RB Corey Brown (Springfield/Cardinal O'Hara)
Schools considering:  Penn State, Ohio State, Rutgers, Florida, Boston College, Michigan State, Florida State, Pitt, Maryland, West Virginia, Miami and others
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Florida, Ohio State and Rutgers seem to be at the top of Brown’s list.  Brown one may be the toughest one for the Nittany Lions to land in my top 10.
Previous Ranking:  1

2. DE/LB Dakota Royer (Manheim/Manheim Central)
Schools considering:  Penn State, Pitt, Notre Dame, Michigan State and Oregon 
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Royer has narrowed his list down to five schools and plans to soon select a college.  I will be surprised if Royer does not select Penn State.
Previous Ranking:  3

3. LB Mike Hull (Canonsburg/Canon-McMillan)
Schools considering:  Committed to Penn State
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Hull committed to the Nittany Lions in November over scholarship offers from Michigan, Pitt and West Virginia.
Previous Ranking:  2

4. DL Sharrif Floyd (Philadelphia/George Washington)
Schools considering:  Penn State, Florida, Miami, Rutgers, UCLA, Wisconsin, Pitt, Temple, West Virginia, Boston College, Syracuse and a few others
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Floyd is going to take official visits and I would not be surprised if he takes all five.  One of his visits will be to Penn State.
Previous Ranking:  4 

5. WR Alex Kenney (State College/State College)
Schools considering:  Penn State, Illinois, Stanford, Virginia, Northwestern, Temple, Minnesota and others
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Kenney would like to select a college before the start of his senior football season.
Previous Ranking:  5

6. QB P.J. Jones (McKees Rocks/Sto-Rox)
Schools considering:  Committed to Penn State
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Jones committed to Penn State over scholarship offers from Pitt, West Virginia, Stanford, Iowa, North Carolina State, Duke and a few others.
Previous Ranking:  6

7. DE Kyle Baublitz (York/Central York)
Schools considering:  Committed to Penn State 
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Baublitz committed to the Nittany Lions over scholarship offers from Pitt, Rutgers, Michigan, Michigan State, Illinois, Northwestern, West Virginia, Boston College, Virginia, Wisconsin, Maryland and others.
Previous Ranking:  7
 
8. QB Anthony Gonzalez (Bethlehem/Liberty)
Schools considering:  Penn State, Pitt, Illinois, Maryland, Florida State, West Virginia, Stanford, Vanderbilt, Clemson and a few others
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Paterno would like to add another quarterback to his 2010 recruiting class and Gonzalez and Robert Bolden (Mich.) are the targets.  Of the two, Bolden seems most likely to decide first.
Previous Ranking:  8

9. OL Miles Dieffenbach (Pittsburgh/Fox Chapel)
Schools considering:  Committed to Penn State
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  Dieffenbach committed to Penn State over scholarship offers from Pitt, Syracuse, Florida State, Boston College, Minnesota, Northwestern and a few others.
Previous Ranking:  10

10. WR/DB Brandon Ifill (Pittsburgh/Penn Hills)
Schools considering:  Penn State, Michigan, Pitt, West Virginia and Maryland are Ifill’s top choices
Penn State offer?:  Yes
The Skinny:  If Brown isn’t going to be the toughest in-state prospect for Paterno to land, Ifill will be.
Previous Ranking:  9