Paterno's class of 29 ranks among top 10

By Brent Seberhagen
Collegian Staff Writer

In a field goal attempt, Nov. 18, 1995, Penn State wide receiver Joe Nastasi received the snap, and was about to place the ball in position for place kicker Brett Conway's boot through the uprights. But instead of placing the laces out, Nastasi sprung to his feet and blazed into the endzone, securing a huge Nittany Lion victory.

That November Saturday was Nastasi's day, as he solidified his contribution to the Penn State football program in the eyes of the fans.

A little more than five years later, Nastasi is preparing to work out for a roster spot with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

But while Nastasi is no longer with the Penn State football team, his contributions to the program continue to pour in. In the late spring/early summer of 1994, Nastasi would revolutionize the world of big time college football recruiting. Nastasi has the distinction of being the first high school star to verbally commit his services to a major school, and recruiting has never been the same since.

This year, Penn State shot out of the recruiting gates before most schools were aware of any race in the first place. In the late winter of 1999, just after National Signing Day, the Penn State coaching staff had a very good idea of which high schoolers they wanted to invite to be a part of the team. And just after the class of 2003 was all signed up, a flurry of scholarship offers went out to prospective members of Penn State's next class.Linebacker B.J. Evangalista, from the Pittsburgh area, and defensive end Ellery Moore were the first two members of this year's class to verbally commit to Penn State. Following their lead, a landslide of prospects committed to Penn State, including QB Zach Mills and fullback Paul Jefferson.

"Penn State came down here and offered Zach a scholarship very early," Urbana coach Dave Carruthers said. "They knew exactly what they wanted. Most schools come here and ask 'So who else is interested in this guy?' It doesn't say a lot about their scouting abilities."

Penn State was the first to offer Mills a scholarship, with Pitt offering about a week after he had committed to the Lions. The Lions had the inside track on virtually every player who signed with Penn State, yesterday, on National Signing Day.

But how did Penn State get such an early jump? The answer is easy. Every summer, the coaching staff hosts a football camp that brings in more than 3,000 high school players, and this is how they discovered Nastasi. Several accomplished high school coaches are invited to help run the camp. The camp helps to establish a relationship between not only these high school football players, but the coaches who might be more inclined to point their own players in the direction of State College, as well.

In a sense, attending the camp is an audition for a scholarship offer to play football at Penn State.

"It's really beneficial for us and the kids," Penn State tight ends coach Jay Paterno said. "They get to see campus. And you see more things at camp than you do on tape."

But during the camp, the Penn State coaches see a lot that goes on that several "recruiting gurus" will never see. The camp aided in Penn State's ability to secure a record 19 verbal commitments before the football season even began. And while some were concerned Penn State hadn't landed a bunch of players considered "elite" by the recruiting gurus, the coaches could barely refrain from bursting into laughter. The Lions finished with a total of 29 commitments -- four more than the Big Ten allows per recruiting class. So there are four prospects who will have to enroll in Januray of 2001. The only problem is identifying the four players, as the coaching staff is unable to discuss these prospects. Linebacker Jesse Neumyer, coming off an ACL injury, is a very likely candidate. Another is defensive lineman John Bronson, from Washington. Bronson nearly chose to break with his commitment with Penn State to sign with Washington State, but Paterno sealed the deal yesterday afternoon. Discovering the other two players would be pure speculation.This year, Penn State did an excellent job of addressing its needs. Paterno indicated there are opportunites to play on defense, but it may be more difficult to break in on the offensive side with virtually everybody returning.

After last year's failure to land cornerback Dexter Reid, who signed with North Carolina, it became critical that the Lions to land several defensive back prospects. Adam Taliaferro, Scott Sanden and Gerald Smith all expect to come in and battle for a lot of playing time. They will likely compete for the nickle-back position, and definitely spots in the two-deep rotation. The only competition at cornerback is senior-to-be Bhawoh Jue and junior-to-be Bruce Branch, and possibly sophomore-to-be Bryan Scott (possible move to safety). Watch for one of these prospects to get significant playing time.

Penn State brought in six to seven defensive linemen, and Paterno indicated that a freshman could make a sizeable impact at defensive end. Look for the Lions highest-rated defensive end recruit, Sam Ruhe (6-feet 5-inches and 245 pounds), to push for considerable playing time.

Moore (6-feet 3-inches, close to 260 pounds) could be physically ready for the rigors of the Big Ten season. Senior-to-be Justin Kurpeikis will surely man one defensive end position. But the departure of Courtney Brown leaves one spot up for grabs. Sophomore-to-be Michael Haynes looks to have the inside track, showing nice agility and closing speed. Backups will be needed, as Penn State likes to rotate its linemen to keep legs fresh late in the season.

At linebacker, there are at least two prospects likely to earn playing time. Middle linebacker Tim Johnson might be too good to keep off the field. But junior-to-be Shamar Finney is deservedly eager to strut his stuff after after backing Brandon Short and Mo Daniels for two years.

Outside linebacker Derek Wake's stock accelerated rapidly as the recruiting season came to a close. Many are intrigued by Wake's potential, and he is known to posess outstanding pass-rushing abilities. While seniors-to-be Eric Sturdifen and Aaron Gatten will return at LaVar Arrington's vacated position, it will be difficult to keep Wake's abilities off the field.