Four-star DE Jaylen Harvey confirms commitment date
One of Penn State’s top prospects in the Class of 2024 is ready to decide.
Following months of speculation from fans, four-star edge rusher Jaylen Harvey announced Tuesday evening that he’ll end his recruitment next Monday, Oct. 16. A native of Potomac, Md., Harvey is expected to pick between Penn State, USC and Maryland.
Listed at 6-foot-2, 245 pounds, Harvey’s recruitment was originally expected to end months ago. Following nine unofficial visits to Penn State in a span of just under two years, the Quince Orchard prospect admitted publicly that he was ready to decide following his official visit to State College, which took place June 2-4.
After telling reporters he didn’t plan to take any more official visits and would announce his commitment later in June, that plan quickly changed within a matter of days, as Harvey went on to take an official visit to Florida the following week, June 9-11. He followed that up with official visits to USC (June 16-18) and Maryland (June 23-25).
The Gators would eventually drop out of contention, narrowing Harvey’s list by mid-August. Although there was some speculation that he could decide in September, Harvey ultimately held off, choosing to not only focus on his season but also see how his top schools performed on the field.
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Which school it will be is also very much up in the air. Since the start of the season, Harvey has taken unofficial visits to all three of the schools he’s considering, beginning with an unofficial visit to USC in late August to watch its Week 0 win over San Jose State. He then attended Maryland’s win over Virginia on Sept. 16 before returning to State College the following week, Sept. 23, for the annual White Out game.
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Most expect this to be a battle between Lincoln Riley and his staff at USC and James Franklin’s staff at Penn State.
“I like Penn State a lot,” Harvey said earlier this year. “My interest is very high in them. My relationship with the coaches, how they make me feel like a top recruit and the way they develop edge rushers have them up there. The way I feel there and how they coach guys like me up makes Penn State a program I would love to be a part of.”
Penn State has been the longtime leader on the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, mainly because both myself and Sean Fitz logged predictions for Harvey almost a year ago in Oct. 2022. However, with how this recruitment has played out, nothing would be a surprise at this point.
Penn State continues to push how successful its defense has been on the field this season, while Riley and his staff have pitched to Harvey that he could make an immediate impact for a defense that’s struggled in recent weeks. Add in NIL and a variety of other factors and this one will truly be one to tune in for next Monday.
