James Franklin, Penn State football impress top 5 2025 EDGE on first visit

When the first visit is also a player’s official visit, it has to wow the student-athlete. That’s where the Penn State football team found themselves this weekend. The Nittany Lions hosted 2025 recruiting class DE Iose Epenesa for his first and official visit to Happy Valley. Based on the feedback from Iose’s father, James Franklin and his coaching staff made a great impression.

James Franklin and Penn State impress top 5 2025 EDGE on first trip to Happy Valley

It was announced on May 10th that Iose Epenesa would work an official visit to Happy Valley in his busy schedule. Epenesa made the trip to visit the Penn State football team this past weekend with his family. Which led to a heartfelt message from Iose’s father on Twitter/X Sunday evening.

“Thank you, Coach Franklin, for the amazing hospitality and the opportunity for our son and my family to learn more about Penn State football,” Eppy Epenesa wrote. “Such an honor to finally shake your hand and meet you and your amazing staff. We enjoyed our time and thank you for having us in Happy Valley!”

Thank you @coachjfranklin for the Amazing hospitality & the opportunity for our son & my family to learn more about @PennStateFball 🤙 Such an honor to finally shook your hand & meet you & your amazing staff! We enjoyed are time & thank you for having us in Happy Valley! #WeAre pic.twitter.com/ho7q7HjG5N

— Eppy Epenesa (@EEpenesa) May 19, 2024

Iose Epenesa is a four-star EDGE in the 2025 recruiting class. According to the On3 Industry Ranking, Epenesa is a top 5 edge rusher and a top 50 prospect in the country. The Edwardsville, Ilinois native will take his remaining official visits throughout June. He will visit Missouri, Iowa, Utah, and Miami ahead of his college decision.

Epenesa’s tie to Iowa

While it appears that James Franklin made a great impression this weekend, the Nittany Lions are not out of the woods yet. Iose Epenesa is the brother of AJ Epenesa who played his college football at Iowa. AJ was a 2nd round pick in the 2020 NFL Draft to the Buffalo Bills where he plays to date.

On3 has the Hawkeyes listed as the favorite to land Iose Epenesa with a 32% chance of landing the talented prospect. However, it’s possible that the Penn State official visit was enough to swing momentum in favor of the Nittany Lions. Currently, Penn State has the 16th-best 2025 recruiting class in the country according to On3.

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