Posted on Mon, Nov. 15, 2004
Report: America's No. 1 DB prospect to say yes to PSU
By JERRY KELLAR
[email protected]
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. - A potential big key to the future of Penn State's football program is going to make his college choice public tonight.
For Gateway (Pittsburgh) High School star Justin King, it's apparently come down to the Nittany Lions, Michigan, Ohio State and Florida, with the former two the heavy favorites.
Sources with ties to Michigan say the Wolverines believe they are a lock to land the blue-chip running back/corner/kick returner, but in Sunday's edition of the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, high school football writer Kevin Gorman predicted King will choose Penn State.
The 6-foot, 185-pound senior from Monroeville is considered the top defensive back prospect in the nation. He was on hand at Beaver Stadium last weekend for Penn State's 14-7 loss to Northwestern.
King, whom the Lions covet as a corner, came away impressed, despite the outcome.
"I saw some things I liked," King told the Trib-Review. "I was worried about the players being down, but they really weren't. They're real upbeat. They're not quitting."
Gorman reported King made up his mind upon his return from State College. King's high school coach and stepfather, Terry Smith, was a starting wide receiver at Penn State from 1988-91.
Smith called King's official visit to his college alma mater last week "an enlightening trip," according to the Tribune-Review.
Should the Lions land King, it could possibly lead to several other top prospects coming to Happy Valley.
Two of them - Greenbelt, Md., WR/ATH Derrick Williams and Lompoc, Calif., WR/CB Lydell Sargeant - are close to King and the three reportedly have considered attending the same college.
Williams is regarded by most recruiting services as the No. 1 prospect in the land - at any position. Sargeant, like King and Williams, has blazing speed and is a superb kick returner.
Yet another top recruit on PSU's radar screen - Brooklyn, N.Y., wide receiver Nyan Boateng - might choose to play basketball instead.,
The addition of one or all four would give Penn State instant credibility at whatever position they play.
Getting King tonight, however, would be a major first step for the Lions. It also would be a feather in the cap of Tom Bradley, PSU's defensive coordinator and the chief recruiter in the western Pennsylvania region.
Interestingly, it was Bradley's name that was tossed around by a Pittsburgh radio sports show last Thursday as a possible successor to Joe Paterno's throne at Penn State.
Bradley is widely considered the Lions' top recruiter and many followers of the program believe he would be an ideal choice to take over the program's reins, should Paterno ever decide to give them up.
Bradley made light of the situation when he met with reporters following Penn State's 22-18 victory at Indiana Saturday - a win secured by a dramatic goal-line stand by Bradley's defense.
"I knew it was just one of those things that was presented as a rumor. And it took off," he said.
With a wink, he added: "I gave a lot of good salaries away. A lot of guys are disappointed."
