From recruits to redshirts, the work of righting the ship begins now for Penn State interim coach Terry Smith
Smith, who has served as the team's defensive recruiting coordinator since 2014, said he personally recruited three-fourths of the current roster. Now his job is keeping players from leaving.
STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State’s decision to fire coach James Franklin carried major repercussions, both on the football field and on the recruiting trail.
Six recruits have withdrawn their commitments to Penn State, and eight others have reopened their recruitment since Pat Kraft, the school’s athletic director, fired Franklin on Sunday.
Kraft acknowledged that losing commitments was a downside of his decision, but he thought new leadership outweighed the negative consequences. And while the team will undoubtedly lose more players in the transfer portal, Kraft believes in the program’s ability to recover.
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“We’re such a big and historical program that we’re going to weather the storm,” Kraft said. “We have weathered far worse than this.”
The snowball started Friday when Khalil Taylor, a Class of 2027 wide receiver who is ranked as a four-star recruit by 247 Sports, withdrew his commitment. Shortly after Franklin’s firing, the program lost its remaining 2027 commitments.
That included Kemon Spell, 247 Sports’ No. 1 running back in the Class of 2027 from McKeesport, Pa., who noted that he was no longer “100% committed” to Penn State and officially withdrew his commitment one hour after Franklin’s firing.
Two other 2027 recruits, Layton Von Brandt and Gabriel Jenkins, withdrew their commitments shortly after Spell.
Von Brandt, 247 Sports’ No. 8 offensive tackle, had been committed to Penn State since November. Jenkins is the 11th-ranked safety. The program also saw two Class of 2026 recruits withdraw their commitments.
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But Kraft, who previously served at the athletic director at Temple, isn’t worried. He believes in the program, and, most importantly, he believes in interim head coach Terry Smith.
“One of the reasons I was comfortable in [firing Franklin] now is because of Terry,” Kraft said. “Terry is an elite recruiter. He has a great staff that he will lead to deal with the recruiting issues.”
Smith, who has served as Penn State’s defensive recruiting coordinator since 2014, said he personally recruited three-fourths of the team’s current roster. Many players, including Imhotep alums Tyseer Denmark and Kenny Woseley Jr., have lauded Smith’s first-class communication and pursuit on the recruiting trail.
While Kraft remains confident in the school’s ability to attract recruits, keeping in-house talent has become another issue. Kraft said he understands that schools likely started contacting Penn State’s players after Franklin’s firing, which presents another important task for Smith to juggle in his first days in charge.
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On top of players eyeing the transfer portal, the Nittany Lions have 31 redshirt-eligible players who could decide to sit out the remainder of the season to preserve eligibility.
It is now Smith’s job to control the damage, and his message to recruits and current players is simple.
“Remember all the reasons you chose Penn State. This is still a great university [that] offers a first-class education, first-class football,” Smith said. “You only earn opportunity through production on the field. If you’re not productive on the field, it doesn’t matter where you go.”
With so much change surrounding Penn State, its game at Iowa on Saturday (7 p.m., Peacock) feels like an afterthought. But not to Smith, who is focused on turning this season around.
The former Nittany Lions wide receiver wants his players to return to having fun. He wants Penn State to get its swagger, its toughness, and its grit back. That opportunity awaits at Kinnick Stadium this Saturday, when, for the first time since 2014, a new head coach will lead the Nittany Lions onto the field.
“Nothing changes when it comes to the expectation,” Smith said. “We need to stick together, stay focused, [and] keep the standard to standard. We have an opportunity to come together, win this season, [and] shock the world.”
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