Photo by Marc EstradaNoah Spence, Bishop McDevitt DE
It's been a pretty wild, unpredictable year in Pennsylvania high school football recruiting. Much of it stems from the tumultuous Penn State situation, and its subsequent coaching change.
A number of players the Nittany Lions seemed to have locked up, like
U.S. Air Force All-American and No. 3-rated
Noah Spence from
Bishop McDevitt (Harrisburg, Pa.), No.38-rated
J.J. Denman of
Pennsbury (Fairless Hills, Pa.) and quarterback prospect
Skyler Mornhinweg of
St. Joseph's Prep (Philadelphia) all changed their minds.
Spence, the top-rated DE, considered Penn State one of his favorites before Penn State's administration fired legendary coach Joe Paterno, throwing the program temporarily into chaos.
Spence, instead, opted to commit to Ohio State and new coach Urban Meyer. Denman, a hulking 6-foot-6, 310-pound guard, had already changed his mind and decided on Wisconsin before the tumult at Penn State and on Jan. 21, changed it again to Rutgers when Wisconsin offensive coordinator Paul Chryst took the Pittsburgh job.
"When I sit down on Wednesday, I will be signing with Rutgers," Denman said. "It has been a little wacky with all the changes, but my parents are cool with it. I know there's one thing that's good about it, they're happy to know I'm a lot closer to home. Penn State came back to me again, even after I committed to Wisconsin. But all the stuff Penn State is going through right now, it's not a good situation. [New Rutgers coach Kyle] Flood was still in contact with me the whole time, even after I committed to Wisconsin. This came down to Rutgers, Wisconsin, Pitt and Penn State. I'm happy with my choice."
More info at MaxPreps 2012 National Signing Day page Mornhinweg seemed locked into Penn State this summer, after decommitting from Stanford when Jim Harbaugh took the San Francisco 49ers job. But when Penn State's new coach, Bill O'Brien, started recruiting over him after promising that he wouldn't, Mornhinweg took visits to Florida and Virginia Tech.
He committed to Florida coach Will Muschamp instead.
Despite the coaching change at Pitt, No. 11-rated
Rushel Shell of
Hopewell (Aliquippa, Pa.), Pennsylvania's all-time leading rusher, is remaining a Panther. No. 54
Greg Garmon, the talented running back from
McDowell (Erie, Pa.), has committed to Iowa, and No. 130
Jesse James, a tight end from
South Allegheny (McKeesport, Pa.), is one of the few players Penn State convinced to stay in state.
Demetrious Cox, a safety from
Jeannette (Pa.) rated No. 133, announced Jan. 30 that he will commit to Michigan State, and No. 165
Drew Harris of
Downingtown East (Exton, Pa.) is a running back still bound for Virginia Tech.
PIAA Class AAA state champion
Archbishop Wood (Warminster, Pa.) will see six players commit to Division I schools: tight end
Colin Thompson (Florida), center/defensive lineman
Brandon Arcidiacono and running back
Desmon Peoples (both to Rutgers),
Brandon Peoples (Temple) and
Frank Taylor (Boston College). Wide receiver
Nate Smith had originally committed to West Virginia, but is very close to changing his mind and looking at other options.
Brendan Nosovitch of
Allentown Central Catholic (Pa.), ranked No. 18 among combo quarterbacks, is staying with his choice of South Carolina.
