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Who is the new Penn State No. 11? A familiar name will now wear the 'stix' in State College

Greg Pickelby:Greg Pickel•02/13/25•

GregPickel

The No. 11 Penn State jersey. (Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)
The No. 11 Penn State jersey. (Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images)

Penn State needs a new No. 11 now that All-American linebacker Abdul Carter is off to the NFL Draft. The Nittany Lions’ first roster of the 2025 offseason is out. And, a familiar name will now wear the ‘stix’ in State College.

Freshman LaVar Arrington II will sport his father’s old number on his first uniform. A 6-foot-3, 200-pound linebacker who played his prep ball at Charter Oak in California, he was a four-star in the On3 Industry Rankings for the Class of 2025 and one of a number of early enrollees who arrived in January. He follows in the footsteps of Carter and Micah Parsons, who most recently wore it. Brandon Bell and NaVorro Bowman are among the other Nittany Lions who have sported it, as well, along with LaVar Arrington, of course..

“Obviously, LaVar Arrington is a name that jumps out to everybody,” Lions coach James Franklin recently told the Big Ten Network about the Class of 2025 signee. “LaVar, obviously, [has] tremendous genetics and a history with the university. But I would say this: we would recruit LaVar whether he was LaVar’s son or not. I think that’s very, very important.

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“We want LaVar for what he can bring to the table, for what he’s put on tape and the type of athlete he is. You saw in high school, they used him as both a traditional linebacker and as an edge player coming off of the offensive tackle. He’s shown explosiveness there. We think he has a chance to be very, very special. He’s already on campus.”

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Arrington II is one of the top signees in the Penn State Class of 2025

Arrington II was elevated to a four-star in the final On300 rankings for the Class of 2025. He is the third-highest-rated newcomer in the On3 Industry Rankings at No. 259 overall. And, he’s the No. 29 linebacker.

“Arrington is an interesting eval,” On3 Scouting Director Charles Power told BWI. “Obviously, he has the bloodlines. He’s super athletic and productive, too. He played more as a defensive end or pass rusher in high school, so he’s gonna have to make the adjustment to playing off the ball. I think, for us, that’s the main thing I wanted to see, but I also felt like, just based on his overall athleticism and traits, he deserved a fourth star. So, there is a little bit of projection with him in terms of how he’s going to fit and adjust to playing off the ball.”


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