Ex-Penn State lineman to visit Big Ten, ACC foes in transfer portal

JB Nelson was the first member of the Penn State football roster to hit the transfer portal. A week after leaving the program, the former Nittany Lions offensive lineman is already drawing significant interest from several power conference schools.

First reported by Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, Nelson is expected to make portal visits to several ACC programs, including Georgia Tech, Syracuse, and Virginia Tech. He is also expected to visit nearby Big Ten rival Maryland.

Ex-Penn State offensive lineman JB Nelson is expected to visit Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, Maryland and Syracuse, a source tells @CBSSports/@247Sports.

The 6-5, 325-pound Nelson played in 27 games at Penn State the last two years and made eight starts.https://t.co/10Sz3YwNKg pic.twitter.com/wCwtEzjPlm

— Matt Zenitz (@mzenitz) April 17, 2025

Nelson was the No. 3 JUCO prospect in the country when he transferred from Lackawanna Community College to Penn State prior to the 2022 season. He is now ranked No. 29 among interior offensive linemen in 247Sports’ transfer portal rankings.

“There’s a lot of competition there. There’s a lot of competition at those positions,” James Franklin said of the Nittany Lions’ offensive guards, where Nelson was battling with Cooper Cousins for a starting role. “Traut [offensive line coach Phil Trautwein] has done a really good job of recruiting and developing guys, so we have depth, which creates some of that [turnover] as well. Right? It’s all of that.”

As of Thursday evening, Penn State football has seen four players enter the transfer portal.

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 and 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.