Penn State Football has been one of the hottest programs on the recruiting trail for the past three cycles, but recruiting still needs to improve at one key position.
Wide receiver has been a struggle for the Nittany Lions lately, and the lack of recruiting success played a role in the departure of position coach Taylor Stubblefield.
His replacement, Marques Hagans, needed to hit the ground running to get the program some momentum going.
One of the top targets for the Nittany Lions in the 2024 cycle is 4-star Keylen Adams from Virginia.
Penn State dominated the state of Virginia in the 2023 cycle and it’s back for more in 2024. Adams visited Penn State multiple times over the past couple of years and considering Hagans has roots in Virginia, there was reason to believe this one would end positively for the Nittany Lions.
That will not be the case though.
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Adams released a top five on Saturday afternoon and Penn State did not make the cut. Ohio State, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Pitt and South Carolina are his finalists. This isn’t an ideal outcome for Penn State at all.
Now that Adams is off the board, attention will have to turn elsewhere.
Penn State Football Remaining WR Targets
Nick Marsh from Michigan seems like the No. 1 priority at the moment. The former Michigan State commit is a top 100 recruit and could be an instant-impact guy wherever he ends up.
After him though, the board is not too clear. Jarrae Hawkins, a 4-star currently at IMG Academy, is a name to monitor. The speedster is listed at just 5-foot-9 and 165 pounds, but Penn State had plenty of success with a player of similar build in KJ Hamler.
Hagans certainly has his work cut out for him this summer. Penn State Football needs a quality wide receiver haul in the 2024 class with the likes of Dante Cephas and KeAndre Lambert-Smith moving on after the 2023 season.