Defensive star commits to Penn State

Penn State has received perhaps its most significant commitment for its freshman Class of 2014, a pledge from consensus four-star defensive tackle Thomas Holley of Brooklyn, N.Y.

The 6-foot-4, 295-pound Holley, who played only two years of football at Abraham Lincoln High School, chose the Nittany Lions over Florida, his other finalist. Holley also visited Ohio State and received offers from the Buckeyes, Alabama, Florida State, Clemson, Baylor, Miami (Fla.), Notre Dame and Southern California.

Holley's commitment was made public Tuesday by several recruiting websites.

Holley was ranked anywhere from the nation's third-best defensive tackle by Rivals.com to No. 7 by ESPN.com. He is the third defensive tackle to commit to Penn State's 2014 class.

The Nittany Lions also received an oral commitment from linebacker Donte Raymond of Rahway, N.J. The 6-1, 205-pound Raymond, rated three stars by 247Sports.com, had pledged earlier to Delaware but switched.

The commitment from Holley and Raymond gave Penn State 18 commitments for 2014. The Nittany Lions' class currently is ranked anywhere from 19th in the country by 247Sports.com to 25th by Scout.com.

One of those commitments, 6-3, 285-pound defensive tackle Tarow Barney of Northwest Mississippi Junior College, signed his letter of intent Wednesday, according to Penn State's official Twitter page, and will enroll at the university in January.

- Joe Juliano