Penn State release wideout Kersey from commitment

Wide receiver Shawney Kersey had visions of catching touchdown passes and leading his team to victory when he signed with Penn State in February 2009. He just didn't know those experiences would be limited to this spring's Blue-White game.

Apparently dissatisfied with his limited playing time with the Nittany Lions, Kersey, a 6-1, 197-pound redshirt freshman from Woodbury, N.J., has asked for his release, which has been granted. He will immediately transfer to another school, according to a report by Lions247.com. Indications are that he has expressed an interest in Connecticut, Cincinnati and possibly Rutgers.

If Kersey chooses to transfer to a Football Bowl Subdivision member institution, NCAA rules stipulate that he would have to sit out the 2011 season. He will be eligible to play next season if he goes to a Football Championship Subdivision (formerly known as Division I-AA) or lower school.

Kersey caught a pair of 18-yard touchdown passes from freshman quarterback Paul Jones to lead the Blue team past the White in the spring contest. Redshirted in 2009, he never caught a pass in an actual game, although he did run 24 yards on a reverse in a 24-3 loss at top-ranked Alabama on Sept. 11.

Kersey was part of a deep Penn State receiving corps that included seniors Brett Brackett and Graham Zug, junior Derek Moye, sophomores Devon Smith and Justin Brown and fellow redshirt freshman Brandon Moseby-Felder. That list does not include sophomore Curtis Drake, the former West Catholic High star, who has not played to date while rehabbing a broken left tibia and might be redshirted. *

- Bernard Fernandez