Notebook: Early Reactions from Penn State's official visit weekend

Ryan Snyder/BWI Staff · Jun 13, 2021

I was able to catch up with a pair of sources in between visits and camps. Here's what I got so far:

- Penn State made some serious strides with the four defensive backs who were on campus this weekend. That's the main theme I'm hearing out of this weekend. I already logged FutureCasts for Jaeden Gould and Keenan Nelson Jr. and now I'm seriously considering Jayden Bellamy and KJ Winston. There's part of me that wants to see how Bellamy's visit goes to Notre Dame next weekend, but there was some serious talk about him committing this weekend. He also confirmed that he won't be going to Ohio State in two weeks. A commitment should come in early July. I also had a source tell me today that Gould is aiming for early July as well. Last week, I was told that Gould may move his decision up to around June 20, but sources think it'll be around July 3. UPDATED: Sounds like Gould will decide in the next week or so.

I've been leaning Penn State with KJ Winston for awhile now, so I'm not surprised to hear that Penn State crushed it with him. But overall, I think there's a real chance this visit weekend may have wrapped up Penn State's defensive backfield moving forward. Obviously, they'd take Keon Sabb, too, if all four of these guys do jump on board at some point, but there's a belief inside Lasch right now that these four, plus Tyrece Mills, will be PSU's defensive backs in the 2022 class

- I want to speak with Kaleb Artis before I do it, but I'm probably going to put in a FutureCast for him this week. I heard great things about his visit. Again, I just don't see him going that far away from home to play in college. I don't see him going to Virginia. Right now, I expect him to be a Nittany Lion. Alex VanSumeren's family also enjoyed their trip, but Alex is hard to get a read on. I confirmed that van den Berg's commitment doesn't impact the defensive tackle numbers, so two defensive tackles is possible. Also, Joe Strickland's workout did help him, but I still believe the order remains the same: 1) Artis 2) VanSumeren 3) Durant 4) Strickland.

- I was told that Wesley Bissainthe's mother and aunt really liked the staff. Whether the player is on board with coming north to play is still kind of up in the air, but Brent Pry did a great job impressing his family.

- Ramon Brown is quiet, so it's hard to get a feel for him, but I was told that PSU did a great job with his parents. Penn State was open about wanting two running backs and that they'd love to have him and Nick Singleton rotating in their backfield in the year's to come. I don't have a whole lot to add on Singleton. I think he's coming to Penn State. I've thought that for a few months now and I will be logging a FutureCast pick for him soon. I think James Franklin is the X factor with he and his family. They like Seider, and I don't want to diminish his role, but I get the vibe that Franklin is the one getting this recruitment across the line.

- Nic Anderson and his family are flying back to Texas now, so I'll reach out to him tonight, but I was told he and his family are a great fit for this program. I was told his parents really enjoyed their time. I'm under the impression that he is very much a take, even though a few other wide receivers like Cristian Driver, Andre Greene and Darrius Clemons are considered the top options.

- I want to catch up with Dani Dennis-Sutton myself. Once I'm able to do that, I'll have a better feel for his visit. The same is true with Josh Josephs. Not ignoring them because of anything negative or positive. I just want to learn more.

- Below are the three interviews we'e done so far