James Franklin has Penn State recruiting better than Oregon and Ohio State in one major metric
The Penn State Nittany Lions have been a well-oiled machine on the recruiting trail since James Franklin took over, but they’re not one of the true elites who always end up in the top five. Penn State routinely winds up in the top 15 and gets some high-end four stars with the occasional four-star. Where […]
The Penn State Nittany Lions have been a well-oiled machine on the recruiting trail since James Franklin took over, but they’re not one of the true elites who always end up in the top five. Penn State routinely winds up in the top 15 and gets some high-end four stars with the occasional four-star. Where Franklin truly wins is in developing his talent and maximizing what’s available to him.
That “where” topic is an interesting one. Pennsylvania produces quality recruits, but New Jersey and the Eastern Seaboard are a hotter area. The Nittany Lions have a wide footprint, but not compared to Ohio State and Oregon. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, even if the Buckeyes have had more wins than Penn State throughout the last 30 years.
Nevertheless, there’s one metric where Penn State is blowing its Big 10 foes away. Let’s look at it below.
Penn State recruits close to home at elite level
Rivals recently published a list of the average recruiting class’s commitment distance compared to where the school is. Penn State isn’t the owner of the top spot in the Big 10, but they’re right behind Maryland and Iowa. Their average recruit lives within 300 miles of Happy Valley.
Here’s what Rivals had to say about Penn State’s recruiting strategy. 32% of their recruits are in-state.
“The northeastern part of the country routinely produces a bevy of top football prospects, with states like Pennsylvania very much punching above their weight in that regard. Penn State makes no bones about prioritizing those guys over other targets from across the country, and this class follows that. Five of the Nittany Lions’ top six commitments — all top-250 prospects — hail from the Commonwealth.”
Penn State ranks 16th with its early 2026 class right now. Four-star RB Messiah Mickens, WR Davion Brown, S Matt Sieg, EDGE Jackson Ford, LB Terry Wiggins, and QB Troy Huhn headline Franklin’s haul.
Meanwhile, Ohio State is 12th in distance with 774 miles from campus, and Oregon is dead last at 18th, boasting an insane 1,524 miles mark.
