BREAKING: Penn State football beats out Big Ten foes for rising 2025 prospect

Penn State football has been on a recruiting tear to start the month of February with no signs of slowing down. On Sunday afternoon, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions landed a commitment from New Jersey IOL Michael Troutman, a rising prospect in the 2025 recruiting cycle. The third commitment of the week, Penn State beat out several Big Ten rivals to get the three-star recruit.

Penn State football lands NJ IOL Michael Troutman

James Franklin and Phil Trautwein have made a committed effort to build up the offensive front for Penn State football and have been keeping the best offensive line prospects home over the last several cycles. After locking down a solid offensive line class in 2024 headlined by five-star Cooper Cousins, the Nittany Lions are already making inroads for the 2025 recruiting cycle.

On Sunday, Penn State earned a commitment from three-star IOL Michael Troutman. On3 has an early evaluation of Troutman as a top-25 prospect in New Jersey for 2025. The DePaul Catholic product has yet to be evaluated by 247Sports or ESPN.

Penn State football was one of the first programs in on Michael Troutman, offering the IOL in July 2023. Over the last six months, Troutman has been to campus four times, most recently for last week’s junior day on February 3. This week, 247Sports logged a crystal ball for James Franklin and the Nittany Lions to land Troutman, which has now come to fruition.

ALL PRAISE TO THE MOST HIGH, 153% COMMITTED!💙 #WeAre🦁 #FRANCHISE @coachjfranklin @CoachTrautFB @CoachCamp01 @CoachDarrisaw @Coach_Keith__ @dpfootball @PennStateFball @BrianDohn247 @RivalsRichie pic.twitter.com/KjfM9RvIbK

— Michael Troutman III🥷🏾 (@d1_troutman) February 11, 2024

Michael Troutman had eight offers to date in the 2025 cycle. Penn State beat out Big Ten rivals Rutgers and Michigan State for his commitment, as well as former DC Manny Diaz at Duke.

James Franklin and the Nittany Lions have been doing work in the 2025 recruiting cycle this week

Penn State football is off to a strong start in the 2025 recruiting cycle, with Michael Troutman being the third commitment in the past week.

Last Sunday, James Franklin and the Nittany Lions landed Greater Latrobe linebacker Alex Tatsch. A four-star, Tatsch is the third-ranked linebacker in Pennsylvania. The WPIAL prospect is the No. 11 overall player in the state for 2025, according to On3.

Not to be outdone, Penn State then quickly locked down the fourth-ranked linebacker in the state. A fellow WPIAL product, Imani Christian Academy’s Dayshaun Burnett pledged his name to the Nittany Lions on Wednesday. The four-star is a top 15 player in the state.

Michael Troutman becomes the second offensive lineman in the 2025 class, joining OT Owen Aliciene, who committed back in January. Penn State football now has the No. 6 class in the 2025 recruiting cycle, according to 247Sports.

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