Fact or Fiction: Penn State will factor in Ernest Willor's recruitment
Rivals national recruiting analyst Adam Friedman, Richie Schnyderite of HappyValleyInsider.com, Patrick Burnham or TheOsceola.com and Jacey Zembal of TheWolfpackCentral.com tackle three topics and determine whether they believe each statement is FACT or FICTION.
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1. Penn State will be a key player in Ernest Willor's recruitment.
Friedman's take: FICTION. Penn State was a major player for Ernest Willor before he moved to Florida but that was early in the process and he's back in Maryland again. Now he has strong relationships with coaches around the country but he hasn’t taken many visits in the last year. He will surely be out on the recruiting trail this fall when he can but don’t be surprised if his recruitment turns into a multi-team battle before all is said and done. Penn State could eventually be an important team in his recruitment again because the Nittany Lions still need depth and potential difference-makers along the interior defensive line. Willor has that kind of potential but there aren’t many spots left in this Penn State recruiting class.
Schnyderite's take: FICTION. Penn State cooled on Willor a little while back and landed several defensive linemen since then, as it currently has five defensive linemen committed with only one priority DL target left in edge rusher Jaylen Harvey.
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2. Florida State commits KJ Bolden and Charles Lester III will dominate the ACC just as Jalen Ramsey and Derwin James did.
Friedman's take: FICTION. Jalen Ramsey and Derwin James only played one year together at Florida State and the results of their time together is awfully impressive. In that 2015 season, the Seminoles ranked in the top 20 nationally in total defense, No. 9 nationally in scoring defense, and 21st nationally in passing yards allowed. James and Ramsey combined for seven sacks, eight pass breakups and allowed just 501 yards receiving with a completion percentage of only 52.
KJ Bolden and Charles Lester are fantastic talents and will have the luxury of the opportunity to play more than one year together but the high marks Florida State posted while Ramsey and James were on the field in Tallahassee are a very hard standard to reach.
Burnham's take: FACT. Bolden and Lester are two of the top overall prospects in the country overall and definitely two of the top prospects at their respective positions. Do they have the potential as football players to be as dominate in the ACC as two FSU legends and all-time greats in Jalen Ramsey and Derwin James? Yes, they certainly look like they have the potential to be dominate players based off the type of athletes and football players they show themselves to be on tape.
The harder comp to me is Bolden vs James. James played at over 210 pounds as a freshman at FSU; Bolden is around 180 pounds. Bolden's game might not resemble James' style of play, but he has the physical attributes, including speed and closing ability, to be a dominant major college safety.
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3. NC State isn't done adding in-state receivers.
Friedman’s take: FACT. Dave Doeren and the Wolfpack landed a commitment from Jonathan Paylor just a few days ago. The in-state standout's commitment is the highest-ranked receiver commitment NC State has ever received and it is hoping to build on that momentum. Receiver Terrell Anderson is announcing his commitment this weekend and NC State is a finalist, along with Michigan and Tennessee. The Wolfpack seem to be the leader and could very well add his commitment on Saturday.
Zembal’s take: FACT. NC State landed senior wide receiver Jonathan Paylor on Friday evening, and expect to do the same with Greensboro (N.C.) Grimsley senior wide receiver Terrell Anderson at 6 p.m. Saturday. The announcements might not have gathered as much publicity due to being in the evening of a weekend day, but both are talented wide receivers.
Anderson and Jimmar Boston of Anderson (S.C.) Westside High are the two receivers left on the 2024 board for the Wolfpack after a long and winding road. Getting Terrell Anderson has been a major priority since he got offered Oct. 28. He was the sixth in-state 2024 receiver NC State had offered, showing how deep the class is this cycle.
The state of North Carolina had 10 receivers who earned high-major offers, and an 11th who grew up in Rockingham (Georgia Tech-bound Trey Horne). NC State has made it a priority to land at least three receivers, and it could be more depending on how the current group develops.
Next year’s roster has 10 receivers coming back, with two graduating. Seven of the receivers are redshirt sophomores, with one true sophomore, so something will give with that massive amount of scholarships being used.