The list of commitments to the Penn State football isn't quite complete yet.

There's at least one name missing from the incoming group.

Penn Hills quarterback Anthony Morelli, one of the nation's top overall prospects and strongest arms, has yet to officially name the college that will receive
his services next season as of press time.

Whether he ends up making that final list of Nittany Lions' freshman for the 2004 season remains to be seen.

Morelli, who committed to Pittsburgh in August, has since rescinded his verbal commitment and took an official visit to Penn State two weeks ago. As of Monday evening, Morelli made his decision between the Lions and Panthers, but will wait until this morning to make it public.

From a historical perspective, Penn State fans should have every reason to believe Morelli will choose the Lions.

Over the last few years, numerous high school prospects that have verbally committed to a program and then gone elsewhere on official visits almost always decommit from their original choice.

It's gone both ways for Penn State; the program has lost players and gained players.

Levi Brown originally committed to Virginia Tech, took an official visit to Happy Valley, then chose Penn State. Both Donnie Johnson and J.R. Zwierzynski initially chose Illinois but after visiting Penn State became Nittany Lions. Josh Hannum is a Notre Dame decommit as is Lavon Chisley of Maryland. All changed their minds after making a trip to Penn State.

It also works the other way.

Last year, highly recruited Georgia running back Jason Evans committed very early on to the Nittany Lions,
but ultimately signed with Stanford after taking a visit to Palo Alto.

So where will Morelli ultimately end up?

Quite frankly, I don't know.

And if anyone tells you that they know, whether it be with 100, 99 or 98.6 percent certainty, chances are they are full of it.

But if you're one for unsubstantiated rumors and Internet gossip, the word is Morelli has selected Penn State.

Hold your applause because until the letter of intent is signed, and faxed to Joe Paterno, nothing is official.

Still, if Morelli indeed becomes a Nittany Lion, he will be a final piece to an otherwise unprecedented 2004 recruiting class. Even if he sticks with Pittsburgh, the Lions' 2004 recruiting class remains solid nonetheless. Either way, there are certain contexts that need to be remembered when considering what an amazing feat it was to put together a class of this caliber.

First, didn't Penn State finish 3-9 just recently? Yes.

And isn't Joe Paterno obsolete on the recruiting trail? Apparently not.

Let's assume that the Lions don't finish with a top-10 class nationally. Worst case scenario, let's assume that Penn State, heaven forbid, lands with a top-15 class instead. All things considered, the recruiting class of 2004 is nothing short of stellar.

To make a comparison, look at another program that has mimicked Penn State's fall from grace in football recently: Notre Dame.

The Fighting Irish ended the season better off than Penn State did. Notre Dame finished 5-7 and has since been unable to recruit a highly touted class of incoming freshmen.

According to rivals.com, Notre Dame's 16 commitments garner it a weak No. 34 ranking nationally. The Fighting Irish were passed up by numerous blue chip prospects
including Brian Brohm who went to Louisville and Dan Connor to Penn State.

Penn State's recruiting ability has this year proven versatile while Notre Dame's has stumbled.

Regardless, keep in mind that once these incoming prospects reach campus, a handful will fade into obscurity. Another handful will go on to become solid contributors to the Penn State football program. A fraction will go on to the next level.

Morelli might be one of them.

Connor might be one of them.

Then again, they might not.