By Bill Kurelic, NN Recruiting Analyst

bkurelic@nittanynetwork.com

July 23, 2009

With the Penn State summer football camps having come and gone and the dog days of August fast approaching, it is time to take a look at what ‘should’ happen for the Nittany Lions on the recruiting front.  Here are my six thoughts on the topic.

1.  Wrap up a commitment from tight end Kevin Haplea. 

Joe Paterno wants to sign one outstanding tight end each for the 2010 and 2011 recruiting classes.  The guy at the top of the list this recruiting season is Haplea, and it appears the New Jersey star is ready to announce a commitment to Penn State any time now. Assistant Coach Bill Kenney is recruiting Haplea.  The sooner he can get things wrapped up with Haplea the better, and then Kenney can move on to other prospects.

UPDATE (7-27): Kenney can move on to other prospects. Haplea is in.

2.  Continue to do everything possible to land defensive end/linebacker Dakota Royer and linebacker Khairi Fortt.

I believe the Nittany Lions lead for both impact defenders. Getting them would take this recruiting class to a new level.  As long as the staff keeps on top of things with these two, I see them playing home games at Beaver Stadium.

3.  Focus on defensive lineman Sharrif Floyd.

In addition to Royer, the other two in-state guys the Nittany Lions would love to land are running back Corey Brown and Floyd.  I will be very surprised if Brown picks Penn State.  I would not give up on him, but my greatest efforts would be towards landing Floyd.  The star lineman has already said he is going to make an official visit to Penn State.  I don’t expect him to select a college until at least sometime in December.  The staff needs to keep their push on and wait as long as it takes to land Floyd.  In the end, I like Penn State’s chances.

4.  Stay in close contact with quarterback P.J. Jones. 

Jones opened his recruitment back up once, then said he would be staying with his Penn State commitment.  I don’t think he changes his mind or opens his recruitment up again, but a little preventative medicine never hurts.  With Jones and Orchard Lake (Mich.) St. Mary’s standout Robert Bolden, Paterno has a dynamic duo coming in at quarterback.

5.  Get a head start on 2011.

The way things are going, the Nittany Lions are going to have most of their 2010 recruiting class wrapped up by the beginning of the college football season.  So the staff is going to be able to do plenty of work on 2011.  This will give Paterno and Co. a great opportunity to land two outstanding recruiting classes in a row.  The coaches are already making every effort to land Oil City, Pa., tight end Ben Koyack.  Getting a head start on 2011, especially within Pennsylvania’s borders, is something the Nittany Lions need focus on.

6.  Add two more impact skill players.

Landing a great running back and one more outstanding wide receiver in this recruiting class would be fantastic.  Even if they can only get one of the two, the staff would have to be ecstatic.  My gut feeling is they do not land another wide receiver.  In addition to Corey Brown, the other running back Paterno has offered is Marcus Lattimore.  Landing him won’t be easy either.  So a back-up plan may be needed.  However, if Paterno can’t secure a great running back, I would either use the scholarship at another position or bank it until next year.