A little over a year ago, I posted a rundown of each of our recruiting classes, from Franklin’s first class (2014) up until 2017. As I recall, I did this shortly after the ’18 class signed. I’m revisiting the list since the '15 class was Franklin’s first, all his own, class at Penn State. Remember, the ’14 class was partially recruited by O’Brien. Keep in mind, we were still suffering the sting of sanctions when this class was recruited, I think it ranked 24th at the time. Feel free to share your thoughts on these players, too.
1. RB Saquon Barkley The no. 1 recruit over Franklin’s career at PSU, bar none
2. OL Ryan Bates Consistent contributor to the offensive line. Worked with a couple different coaches while at Penn State. Played OT even though his best position was probably OG- true team player. Now on to the NFL with the Eagles, signed as an UFA
3. LB Manny Bowen a contributor who just couldn’t keep himself out of trouble, very disappointing recruit (said the same thing last time I did this)
4. TE Nick Bowers injuries have slowed Nick’s progress but expecting significant contributions from him in his final year
5. DE Ryan Buchholz Injuries ended his football career early, what could have been?
6. DT Kamonte Carter knucklehead
7. WR Irvin Charles see Bowen and Carter
8. LB Jake Cooper forced into action early, then injuries, fate wasn’t kind to Jake
9. DT Kevin Givens A late offer and commitment, I’d say he was a positive surprise. Left early for the NFL, good luck to him in San Fran
10. OL Steven Gonzalez 3 plus year starter- often grading out as our best- not bad. Will anchor the line in ’19 as the only senior
11. TE Jonathan Holland Has been beaten out by Freiermuth and Bowers. We’ll see if he contributes this fall
12. OL Sterling Jenkins Never contributed, and has moved on
13. WR Juwan Johnson Never lived up to the hype. Hopefully he has a great final year at Oregon
14. LB Daquain Kelly see Bowen, Carter, Charles… couldn’t even make it through his first preseason camp
15. S Jarvis Miller Never really contributed, hope things work out for him in his final year elsewhere
16. DE Shareef Miller Left early for the NFL and will now be playing on Sundays in his hometown of Philadelphia. Kind of surprised he got drafted but good for him
17. S Ayron Monroe Oft injured, has since moved on
18. OL Paris Palmer (JC, 2016) Important contributor, really wish he had 4 years, I think he could have been a decent starter if he just had had a bit more time
19. S John Petrishen Solid contributor on special teams
20. WR Brandon Polk Another WR who never really did a whole lot at Penn State. Hardly played last year and ultimately left the Program
21. CB John Reid Has been solid throughout his career. Hoping he has a huge final season in ‘19
22. RB Andre Robinson backup to Barkley, then transferred- maybe in a different era, who knows
23. QB Tommy Stevens He’s been talked about enough over the last couple weeks. Hope it works out for him wherever he winds up. It’s Clifford time at Penn State
24. CB Garrett Taylor 2018 was his time to finally start and ’19 wil hopefully be his time to really shine
25. DT Robert Windsor Late offer, 3* from Wisconsin. Important contributor, hopefully will rise to the next level in ’19 and help lead a dominant defense
Unsurprisingly, in this day and age, very few kids from the ’15 class remaining at Penn State and a lot of kids who really didn’t amount to much. The entire class is saved by one Saquon Barkley. Over 15 kids from this class didn’t make it through their entire career with the Lions—a testament to the recruiting success in future cycles, and due to kids who didn’t live up to expectations- or was it that they weren’t all that great to begin with? I’ll leave that debate for the rest of you. Of course, a bit of talent left early for the NFL, too, that’s a positive sign for the program. My thoughts look significantly different today than they did just a little over a year ago- funny how quickly things can change.
1. RB Saquon Barkley The no. 1 recruit over Franklin’s career at PSU, bar none
2. OL Ryan Bates Consistent contributor to the offensive line. Worked with a couple different coaches while at Penn State. Played OT even though his best position was probably OG- true team player. Now on to the NFL with the Eagles, signed as an UFA
3. LB Manny Bowen a contributor who just couldn’t keep himself out of trouble, very disappointing recruit (said the same thing last time I did this)
4. TE Nick Bowers injuries have slowed Nick’s progress but expecting significant contributions from him in his final year
5. DE Ryan Buchholz Injuries ended his football career early, what could have been?
6. DT Kamonte Carter knucklehead
7. WR Irvin Charles see Bowen and Carter
8. LB Jake Cooper forced into action early, then injuries, fate wasn’t kind to Jake
9. DT Kevin Givens A late offer and commitment, I’d say he was a positive surprise. Left early for the NFL, good luck to him in San Fran
10. OL Steven Gonzalez 3 plus year starter- often grading out as our best- not bad. Will anchor the line in ’19 as the only senior
11. TE Jonathan Holland Has been beaten out by Freiermuth and Bowers. We’ll see if he contributes this fall
12. OL Sterling Jenkins Never contributed, and has moved on
13. WR Juwan Johnson Never lived up to the hype. Hopefully he has a great final year at Oregon
14. LB Daquain Kelly see Bowen, Carter, Charles… couldn’t even make it through his first preseason camp
15. S Jarvis Miller Never really contributed, hope things work out for him in his final year elsewhere
16. DE Shareef Miller Left early for the NFL and will now be playing on Sundays in his hometown of Philadelphia. Kind of surprised he got drafted but good for him
17. S Ayron Monroe Oft injured, has since moved on
18. OL Paris Palmer (JC, 2016) Important contributor, really wish he had 4 years, I think he could have been a decent starter if he just had had a bit more time
19. S John Petrishen Solid contributor on special teams
20. WR Brandon Polk Another WR who never really did a whole lot at Penn State. Hardly played last year and ultimately left the Program
21. CB John Reid Has been solid throughout his career. Hoping he has a huge final season in ‘19
22. RB Andre Robinson backup to Barkley, then transferred- maybe in a different era, who knows
23. QB Tommy Stevens He’s been talked about enough over the last couple weeks. Hope it works out for him wherever he winds up. It’s Clifford time at Penn State
24. CB Garrett Taylor 2018 was his time to finally start and ’19 wil hopefully be his time to really shine
25. DT Robert Windsor Late offer, 3* from Wisconsin. Important contributor, hopefully will rise to the next level in ’19 and help lead a dominant defense
Unsurprisingly, in this day and age, very few kids from the ’15 class remaining at Penn State and a lot of kids who really didn’t amount to much. The entire class is saved by one Saquon Barkley. Over 15 kids from this class didn’t make it through their entire career with the Lions—a testament to the recruiting success in future cycles, and due to kids who didn’t live up to expectations- or was it that they weren’t all that great to begin with? I’ll leave that debate for the rest of you. Of course, a bit of talent left early for the NFL, too, that’s a positive sign for the program. My thoughts look significantly different today than they did just a little over a year ago- funny how quickly things can change.
