Penn State offers familiar name who recently entered transfer portal
Just 13 months ago, Penn State offensive line coach Phil Trautwein extended a scholarship offer to junior college prospect Keyshawn Blackstock. The Nittany Lions pushed hard with the Coffeyville Community College tackle but ultimately missed out on his top five following a surge in nearly 40 scholarship offers in the span of just a few months. Oregon, Tennessee, USC and Oklahoma were among his top five, with Michigan State ultimately signing Blackstock last December.
How quickly things change.
Following a season to forget in East Lansing, with head coach Mel Tucker relieved of his duties and the Spartans now just 2-5 on the season with wins over Central Michigan and Richmond, Blackstock decided to enter the transfer portal Tuesday after playing in four games for Michigan State this season. Because of that, he’ll still have two years of eligibility remaining, with 2023 counting as his redshirt season.
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With Blackstock once again looking for another school, Trautwein made it clear Thursday that he plans to make another push with the 6-foot-5, 315-pound offensive tackle prospect, extending an offer this afternoon. Just like last year, the list of suitors is quickly growing, with 15 schools already extending an offer to the Georgia native. Arizona State, California, Houston, N.C. State, Nebraska, Ole Miss, Pitt, Texas Tech and Virginia Tech are among the Power Five schools to offer as of Thursday afternoon.
Last year, Trautwein and Penn State head coach James Franklin made multiple visits with Blackstock. One of those came in early October during the bye week, as both Trautwein and Franklin flew to Kansas to watch his game against Iowa Central Community College. With the Nittany Lions still in the mix as of early December, Trautwein then went to Covington, Ga., on Dec. 4 to meet with Blackstock’s parents for an in-home visit. Keyshawn wasn’t in attendance for that visit, as his team played the previous day in the NJCAA playoffs.
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Blackstock has already locked in his first official visit, as On3’s The Wolfpacker confirmed Wednesday evening that he’ll be in Raleigh, N.C., this weekend for an official visit to N.C. State. Dave Doeren and his staff were the first to extend an offer to Blackstock after he announced his intentions to enter the transfer portal on Tuesday.
A former junior college All-American, Blackstock was the sixth-ranked junior college prospect in the country last year. He played 75 snaps for Michigan State this season, playing in the first four games before missing time due to an injury in the three most recent games.
