Both major Internet recruiting networks currently rank Penn State's class among the top eight nationally for 2010.
Rivals.com ranks 10 of the Nittany Lions' 15 recruits as four-star prospects - and that doesn't even include a non-ranking for Texas wide receiver Levi Norwood, who didn't play football last year. Scout.com has Penn State with 12 prospects at least with four stars, including two (QB Paul "P.J.'' Jones, WR Adrian Coxson) as five-star recruits.
That list could be get even better with highly-rated talent like South Carolina RB Marcus Lattimore, Philadelphia DT Sharrif Floyd, Connecticut LB Khairi Fortt, New York DE Dominque Easley, Maryland FB Zach Zwinak and Michigan DE C.J. Olaniyan still in play for Penn State, which still probably has four or five scholarships left to give.
However, sometimes getting all those commitments early can have a negative side. Unlike in other sports, the NCAA hasn't instituted an early signing date for college football. All these commitments are verbal and aren't worth the paper they are printed on because there won't be any paper until the first Wednesday in February.
Therefore, any prospect can change his mind at any time, and it's up to the respective colleges to determine whether or not to honor a player's commitment to another school - they can continue to recruit them if they so choose.
So recruiting doesn't end with an early commitment. It actually can often turn the recruiting process from being on offense to defense as programs have to in effect "baby sit'' the players they've already convinced to join.
Penn State has gained more from this than it has lost over the years, but the Lions have already gone through their share of ups and downs in this class. In a Web interview a couple of weeks ago, Coxson stirred up fans by declaring he intended to take all five of his official visits despite committing to Penn State in April.
That, though, was nothing compared to the rumors that Jones was feeling under-loved and reconsidering his commitment last week. It's the second time the highly-regarded Sto-Rox QB has reportedly wavered on his choice of the Nittany Lions, although follow-up reports had that he and the staff had ironed things out.
Penn State even got some bad news recently with an unsigned recruit, Floyd. The defensive tackle from George Washington High School appeared to be favoring the Lions, but that interest dropped around the time he made a trip to Florida.
Floyd has been difficult to reach, but apparently his tune changed when someone got in his ear with negative comments about the Lions. Penn State is still in the running, but Floyd has said publicly the Lions are not leading for his services.
