Penn State football still battling for major Michigan target

We are just about a month away from the Nittany Lions’ annual Blue-White Spring Game in Happy Valley, and with spring football comes heavy recruiting efforts from James Franklin and his coaching staff. One target that Penn State football continues to battle for is four-star cornerback Alex Graham, who is a Detroit native and a major 2025 target for the Michigan Wolverines.

Penn State football among top contenders for Alex Graham

With the expansion of the Big Ten and the College Football Playoffs comes increased expectations for James Franklin and Penn State football. Sure, another 10-win season would be nice, but that’s not enough for most Nittany Lions fans; in fact, there was much general disgruntle over Penn State’s 10-2 season last fall, which resulted in a top-15 finish and another New Year’s Six bowl bid.

On the other side of Ohio sits the Michigan Wolverines, who were once behind Penn State football for a number of years — 2016-2020 — though turned things around and won a national title last fall. While Michigan is still under NCAA investigation (and the FBI is looking into ex-staffers) for cheating, no punishment has been levied from the NCAA just yet. With recruiting season upon us, Michigan and Penn State are two of the top remaining teams for Alex Graham out of IMG Academy in Florida.

Can James Franklin lock down this major Michigan Wolverines recruiting target?

Per the On3 Industry Rankings, Alex Graham is a four-star cornerback who ranks as the No. 169 overall prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, the No. 21 cornerback in the country, and the No. 23 player in the state of Florida. He recently cut his school list down to seven remaining programs, leaving Penn State football, the Michigan Wolverines, and five others still in the running for his commitment heading into spring ball. Also included in his top-seven is Alabama, Colorado, Oregon, Utah, and Georgia.

😤 @PennStateFball TOUCHDOWN!

Drew Allar takes it himself 🔥#FOXFieldPass pic.twitter.com/Y5uRVefaQC

— Big Noon Kickoff (@BNKonFOX) November 11, 2023

Right now it appears that Michigan is the team to beat here; however, Penn State football is always a formidable force when official visit season rolls around, and James Franklin has impressed Graham enough to still be in the running.

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