Penn State football commit, WPIAL standout catches fire to start 2024 season

The 2024 high school football season may still be young, but Penn State football commit Alex Tatsch is already in midseason form. The future Nittany Lions linebacker is quickly validating that he is not only among the best players in Pennsylvania, but that he is one of the top prospects in the 2025 recruiting class.

According to Mike White of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Tatsch already has an eye-popping stat sheet through Greater Latrobe’s first two games this season.

Defensively, the 2025 linebacker already has 19 tackles, two tackles for loss, one interception, and two forced fumbles. On the other side of the ball, Tatsch has 227 yards on the ground, an average of 14.2 yards per carry. He also has three receptions for 56 yards.

Latrobe's Alex Tatsch @AlexTatsch5 is a Penn St. recruit reputed to be one of the best players in the state. I'd say he's kind of proving that.

Two games: 227 yds rushing (14.2 ypc), 3 receptions for 56 yards, 19 tackles (10 solo), 2 TFL, 1 INT, 2 forced fumbles.

Not too bad. pic.twitter.com/uGAoyAuO5h

— Mike White (@mwhiteburgh) September 2, 2024

Alex Tatsch committed to James Franklin and Penn State football in early February. Since then, Tatsch has skyrocketed up the On300 rankings. The WPIAL prospect now ranks as the No. 81 player and the No. 5 linebacker in the country. He’s the third-ranked recruit in Pennsylvania per On3, behind Matt Zollers and Andrew Olesh.

Elsewhere, James Franklin and Penn State football appear to have reached the flip portion of the 2025 recruiting cycle. On Monday, the Nittany Lions flipped wide receiver Matthew Outten from Virginia Tech.

Franklin and his staff are also believed to still be pushing hard for in-state Ohio State defensive end commit Zahir Mathis, who visited Happy Valley in July.

Thank you for reading Basic Blues Nation, one of the fastest-growing outlets covering Penn State athletics. Part of the Full Ride network, we are an alumni-owned, community-operated, credentialed media outlet dedicated to providing you with updated and reliable insights for all your favorite Nittany Lion sports. Whether it’s Penn State football, basketball, wrestling, or anything in between, you can find it all on Basic Blues Nation!

Please follow us on our social channels, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube, and subscribe to our newsletter on Substack for breaking news and notifications. For feedback, questions, or concerns, please email us at [email protected] or direct message us on social media.