Roman Catholic edge rusher Jameial Lyons among top recruits in Penn State signing class

Penn State set up its 2023 signing day NFL draft style, introducing its recruits from a podium — complete with the NFL draft jingle — along with a video from a notable Nittany Lions alum announcing each pick on Wednesday.

The 21st pick in the “2023 Penn State national signing day draft:” Roman Catholic’s Jameial Lyons.

Lyons, a 6-foot-5, 250-pound edge rusher who orally committed to Penn State in April, is the second-best Pennsylvania recruit in the 2023 class according to the 247Sports composite rankings. Three of the top four ranked Pennsylvania recruits in the class signed with Penn State, led by J’ven Williams, a five-star offensive lineman from Wyomissing High in Berks County. Ta’Mere Robinson, an edge rusher from Brashear High near Pittsburgh, also signed with the Nittany Lions.

“Obviously keeping the best players home is always a priority for us,” Penn State coach James Franklin said.

Lyons played his junior and senior seasons at Roman Catholic after his original high school, Bishop McDevitt, closed its doors following Lyons’ sophomore year. He left McDevitt as a 6-1 safety who had barely reached 200 pounds. He bulked up and grew at Roman Catholic into a four-star edge rusher whom Rick Prete, Roman’s coach, called an “elite pass rusher.” Lyons had 47 tackles and six sacks for the Cahillites during his senior season.

He chose Penn State over West Virginia, and also held offers from the likes of Pittsburgh, Illinois, and Cincinnati.

» READ MORE: Jameial Lyons committed to a position switch and becoming Penn State’s edge rusher of the future

“This is going to be a different class,” Lyons said on Penn State’s signing day show. “Penn State has been building over the last decade. I’m proud to be part of this class.

“Penn State is known for having that defensive edge, dog mentality. Coming from Philly, you have to have that dog mentality, every day, 24-7. I’m coming to Penn State ready to rock and roll, bringing that Philly mindset.”

No. 9 Penn State, which finishes its 2022 season in the Rose Bowl vs. Utah on Jan. 2, has the No. 13 recruiting class in the country, according to 247 Sports. Lyons is the seventh-ranked player among the 22 Nittany Lions recruits who signed letters of intent Wednesday.

Williams, a 6-4, 285-pound lineman, is the top-ranked player in Penn State’s class. 247Sports ranked the five-star tackle 30th nationally and fifth at his position. The Nittany Lions also signed Alex Birchmeier, a 6-5, 285-pounder Virginia native who is ranked as the top interior offensive lineman in the country.

Penn State had success recruiting in Virginia in this cycle. Joining Birchmeier in making the short trip from Virginia to State College are two four-star linebackers, Tony Rojas and Kaveion Keys, the sixth- and 21st-ranked linebackers in the class, respectively, as well as four-star wide receiver Carmelo Taylor, four-star “athlete” Mathias Barnwell, and three-star interior offensive lineman Anthony Donkoh.

Franklin said that he liked the balance of the class — the Nittany Lions signed 10 players on offense and 12 on defense — and that many of the players could eventually play multiple positions. Eleven of the players signed Wednesday are expected to be early enrollees and arrive on campus next month, Franklin said.

The Nittany Lions signed all but one of the players who had orally committed during the early portion of Wednesday’s signing day. Four-star safety Conrad Hussey, who committed to Penn State in the spring, did not plan to sign his letter of intent Wednesday, according to a report from Rivals. The Florida native has recently visited Miami and Florida State.

If Hussey flips, Franklin said the defensive backfield is an area in which Penn State will look to continue to add in the late signing period as well as the transfer portal. Other positions the Nittany Lions will be looking to add talent to, according to Franklin, are offensive line, wide receiver, defensive tackle, and defensive end.

» READ MORE: Signing day live blog: Follow along with our coverage of signing day

It was a bittersweet day Wednesday in State College. The excitement of signing a new recruiting class was mixed with the university mourning Franco Harris, the Hall of Fame running back and former Penn State star from South Jersey who died overnight.

Franklin opened his afternoon news conference by calling Harris an “unbelievable human being, ambassador for the university and the football program.” Harris’ death, Franklin said, is “a huge loss for football in general, college football, NFL, Penn State and really Pennsylvania.”

“It feels strange to kind of move on to this topic right now, but this is a really important day for a bunch of young kids and their families, about their futures,” Franklin said as he moved forward with the news conference to talking about the recruiting class.

» READ MORE: Mike Sielski: Franco Harris was more than a Steelers icon. He was a cultural touchstone.

Here’s a look at all the players the Nittany Lions signed Wednesday, ranked in the order of their 247Sports composite ranking.

OT J’Ven Williams, 6-4/285, Reading

IOL Alex Birchmeier, 6-5/285, Ashburn, Va.

LB Tony Rojas, 6-1/200, Fairfax, Va.

S King Mack, 5-11/180, Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

S Elliot Washington, 6/195, Venice, Fla.

TE Andrew Rappleyea, 6-5/225, Milton, Mass.

EDGE Jameial Lyons, 6-5/250, Philadelphia

S DaKaari Nelson, 6-3/203, Selma, Ala.

EDGE Ta’Mere Robinson, 6-4/225, Pittsburgh

LB Kaveion Keys, 6-3/205, Richmond, Va.

TE Joey Schlaffer, 6-6/215, Reading

WR Carmelo Taylor, 5-11/160, Roanoke, Va.

RB London Montgomery, 5-10/180, Scranton, Pa.

ATH Mathias Barnwell, 6-6/250, Fredericksburg, Va.

CB Zion Tracy, 5-11/180, Hempstead, N.Y.

EDGE Joseph Mupoyi, 6-5/230, Washington, D.C.

IOL Anthony Donkoh, 6-5/310, Aldie, Va.

CB Lamont Payne, 6-1/170, Bridgeville, Pa.

DL Mason Robinson, 6-4/230, Owings Mills, Md.

QB Jaxon Smolik, 6-2/200, West Des Moines, Iowa

DL Tyriq Blanding, 6-3/275, Middle Village, N.Y.

ATH Cameron Wallace, 6/180, Mount Vernon, Ga.