Four-star receiver Alex Taylor puts Penn State in top five, sets commitment date
Penn State recently hosted four-star receiver Alex Taylor for an official visit. Now, the 6-foot-3, 175-pound Greensboro, N.C., Grimsley High Class of 2024 recruit has a top five and a decision date. The Lions are in the running ahead of his announcement.
Taylor has shaved his list of nearly 25 suitors down to Clemson, North Carolina, North Carolina State, Penn State, and Virginia Tech. He will make his choice public at his high school on July 29 at a time that is to be determined.
All five of Taylor’s finalists hosted him for an official visit in June. He saw the Tigers and Hokies first, and then saw the Tar Heels, Wolfpack, and Nittany Lions, all between June 16 and June 23. The receiver took many visits as a recruit. On3 tracks him as having taken 31 total trips to eight different programs. He saw N.C. State 10 times, North Carolina seven, Virginia Tech and Clemson five times a piece, and the Lions once. But, despite that, head coach James Franklin’s program continues to be in the running with roughly a month to go before a decision is made.
Where does Penn State stand in Alex Taylor’s recruitment?
The Lions have ground to make up. It goes without saying that North Carolina and North Carolina State being so close to home gives both ACC programs a lead based on geography alone. On3 Director of Recruiting Chad Simmons logged an On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine pick for the Tar Heels on Wednesday, shooting them past the Wolfpack, which started the day in the RPM lead for Taylor.
It all means Penn State is likely running third, at best, at this juncture. It does not have an accumulation of visits on its side. But it did give itself a chance by hosting Taylor for an official visit, where he was able to get in front of first-year receivers coach Marques Hagans and the rest of the program’s staff on offense. Taylor and Hagans are at least familiar, as the assistant pursued the receiver when he was at Virginia.
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“When I first got there, I didn’t really know what to expect,” Taylor recently told BWI. “I’ve been hearing good things about their campus and that Coach [James] Franklin is a great guy, a great coach. I’ve been hearing that from everyone, so it was good to experience that.
“I would say this visit definitely helped Penn State with my recruiting process. They definitely moved up a bit on board.”
Whether it will move them far enough up the board to earn a commitment remains to be seen, however. Taylor is the No. 281 player overall in the Class of 2024 On3 Industry Rankings. He is the No. 47 receiver and No. 8 senior-to-be in his home state.
As of June 28, Penn State has three receiver commitments in the form of Pittsburgh native and three-star Peter Gonzalez, Philadelphia four-star Tyseer Denmark, and New York four-star Josiah Brown. They are part of a currently 20-man Class of 2024 that sits at No. 9 in the On3 Industry Ranking Team Recruiting Rankings.
