REPORTS: Two top Penn State football 2024 targets now trending elsewhere

Penn State football has put together an impressive month on the recruiting trail. James Franklin and the Nittany Lions have received six commitments so far in June and appeared to be in good position to land several more coming out of last week. But things move quickly in the recruiting world. New reports indicate that Penn State may be on the outside looking in for two of its top remaining targets in the class of 2024, wide receiver Nick Marsh and defensive lineman Benedict Umeh.

Nick Marsh leaning toward Big Ten foe

Wide receiver had been a position of need for Penn State in the 2024 cycle for a long time, with no commitments from the position at the start of last week. But then, the Nittany Lions landed three wideouts over 49 hours, including a flip of four-star Tyseer Denmark from Oregon.

While ultimately a net positive, last week’s string of wide receiver commitments may have put Penn State in a difficult spot with one of its other top targets at the position. Four-star Michigan prospect Nick Marsh has been on Penn State’s radar for a while, picking up speed after he decommitted from Michigan State in March.

While recruiting insiders have been conflicted about where Marsh would decide to go to school, the Nittany Lions appeared to be the slight favorite following Marsh’s official visit at the start of June. But Marsh closed out his month of visits in East Lansing this past week, and things went very well for Michigan State by all accounts. Our sister site, Spartan Shadows, is now reporting that Nick Marsh could be leaning toward an impending Michigan State commitment.

New predictions have Benedict Umeh landing at Stanford

Penn State was predicted to land several new commitments after a jam-packed visitor weekend starting on June 17. One of the top names on this list of predictions was four-star Benedict Umeh, the top player in Connecticut and a top-10 defensive lineman in the class of 2024. Following his visit last weekend, On3 put in a prediction for Umeh to become a Nittany Lion.

But in a similar trend to Nick Marsh, the final official visit of the month appears to have left a strong impression on Umeh. Following Umeh’s trip to Palo Alto this past weekend, Stanford seems to be the leader in the clubhouse for his commitment. Since Monday, Stanford’s On3 site and several experts from 247Sports have placed projections for Umeh to become a Cardinal.

Penn State football class of 2024 is still in good shape

Despite the negative turn for Nick Marsh and Benedict Umeh, Penn State’s class for the 2024 cycle is still in solid shape coming out of June. The Nittany Lions have a top-10 class nationally, according to 247Sports, On3, and Rivals. While several recruiting powerhouses, like Alabama and Texas, are positioning to go on commitment runs in the cycle’s closing months, Penn State should still have a respectable top-15 class when all is said and done.

Commitments from Marsh and Umeh would certainly help Penn State’s push to remain inside the top 10. However, the Lions are still in play to land other notable prospects, such as T.A. Cunningham, De’Andre Cook, and Jaylen Harvey, in the coming weeks. So, while this recent turn of events stings for James Franklin, the sky is certainly not falling for the Nittany Lions.

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