PSU Nittany Lions

NittanyNation takes a look at this past week's Penn State football news and what you might have missed:

• PSU welcomed two new commits on Friday, landing safety Marcus Allen and then linebacker Jared Wangler later on. Allen has come a long way since playing JV linebacker, while Wangler's coach said his work ethic helps separate the linebacker. Wangler also later recounted his commitment day in depth.
• Five-star CB Jabrill Peppers is down to just four schools -- and it turns out PSU is one of the remaining choices. He'll visit Penn State on May 18.
• The coach of Penn State recruit Daquan Worley called his player fast, tough and physical . Worley also talked about his commitment and said he wasn't always a lock for PSU .
• 2015 CB John Reid already has double-digit scholarship offers , but he said he's nowhere close to naming any favorites.
• ESPN 150 CB Dravon Henry hasn't seen his recruitment get any easier since he named a top four about two months ago.
• Joe Schad reports that Steven Bench is considering a transfer to NC State in addition to Mississippi State and South Florida.
• Bill O'Brien said fans should not expect a "mass exodus" anytime soon. And Adam Rittenberg writes that O'Brien is also embracing his role in PSU's outreach.
• Jared Shanker took a lighthearted look at recruiting pitches in the Big Ten, including what each team is selling and what each team is missing.
• PSU is the first major program to start recruiting 2015 QB Ryan Brand , and the rising junior is thrilled.
• 2015 LB Jerome Baker may live in Ohio, but he said he actually grew up a Penn State fan in this past week's edition of "5 Questions."
• Incoming run-on kicker Chris Gulla addressed his chance at starting and what fans can expect from him at the position.
• DT Jeremiah Clarke named his top six schools and PSU made the cut.
• Like a lot of B1G teams, PSU is after a 2015 OT who is already 6-foot-8 and 295 pounds .
• We took a closer look at Penn State's big board when it comes to DBs .

NittanyNation takes a look at this week’s Penn State football news and what you might have missed:

• Former Georgia State coach Bill Curry said in a Q&A that PSU's new safeties coach, Anthony Midget, is a great recruiter who's destined to be a great coach.
  
• Penn State picked up its second commitment of the class in Nick Scott, an athlete from Fairfax, Va., during junior day. Four players also picked up scholarships on Saturday.
• PSU might have cracked the top five of ESPN Watch List prospect Jabrill Peppers. His Paramus (N.J.) Catholic teammates, OT Juwann Bushell-Beatty and QB Steve Shanley, also enjoyed their visit.
  
• Besides those three, four other Paramus Catholic players plan to visit PSU in the near future. Here's a brief overview of all seven.
  
• We talked about 2014 prospects and position battles in our bi-weekly chat.
  
• 2014 DT Antoine White talked about his interest in PSU before his junior day visit and marveled at PSU's weight room in "5 Questions."

• Our "Meet the run-ons" series continued with OG Tom Devenney, OG Justin Norman, RB Adam Geiger, K Chris Gulla, LB Kyle Searfoss.
  
• RB Shai McKenzie has brought some pride back to the blue-collar town of Washington, Pa., and given the locals something to brag about.
  
• Video: Jared Shanker spoke with OT Mike Grimm about his recruitment and his future visits.
  
• Tanner Hartman's coach said he was a bit of a late-bloomer and came on strong in the second half of his senior season.
  
• Linebackers coach Ron Vanderlinden is keeping close tabs on 2014 LB Tyler Burke, who said he's lost count how many times the coach has visited.

With the Super Bowl just a few hours away, NittanyNation decided to poll some of Penn State's committed run-ons to get their take on the game. We asked for them to give the winner, the score -- and their reasoning.

Overwhelmingly, it appears as if Penn State's preferred walk-ons believe the San Francisco 49ers will win the Super Bowl. And the consensus is by a field goal:

• WR Gregg Garrity Jr., Wexford (Pa.) North Allegheny: 49ers, 27-17. No answer for Kaepernick and not enough weapons for Baltimore. San Fran will shut down Ray Rice, forcing them to pass. Flacco will have a long day.

• QB Jack Seymour, Indianapolis (Ind.) Park Tudor: Ravens, 31-24. I think Flacco is a much better overall quarterback with a really efficient offense that played really well in the past playoff games. He's really stepped up and shown himself to be an elite quarterback. I also picked them because Ray Lewis will carry their defense and is their source of motivation. And he will stop at nothing to win. Ravens all the way! This will be San Francisco's first-ever loss in a Super Bowl!

• WR Chris Geiss, Malvern (Pa.) Great Valley: 49ers, 27-24. I don't think the Ravens' D can stop the option.

• OG Evan Galimberti, State College (Pa.): 49ers, 27-13. I just think the defense of the 'Niners is too good and Kaepernick could outrun the Ravens.

• LS Sean Corcoran, Kankakee (Ill.) Bishop McNamara: 49ers, 27-24. I think their pistol offense is extremely dangerous, and I think their defense will be able to stop Ray Rice to make the Ravens too reliant on the pass game. But I'm still rooting for Corey Graham and Brendon Ayanbadejo on the Ravens because they're former Bears!

• LB Kyle Searfoss, Lewisberry (Pa.) Red Land: 49ers, 24-17. Their defense is too good, and Colin Kaepernick is too good.

• S Tom Pancoast, Kennett Square (Pa.) Unionville: 49ers, 24-21. Colin Kaepernick has a big game and wins Super Bowl MVP.

• K Chris Gulla, Toms River (N.J.) Toms River North: Ravens, 24-21. I'm thinking a little game-winner from Justin Tucker.

• RB Brian Tomasetti, Scranton (Pa.) Old Forge: Ravens, 24-20. Their defense is too good. Kaepernick is going to get shut down, and I believe Joe Flacco will have the game of his life. Position-by-position, I feel the Ravens are better -- especially at running back with Ray Rice. Also, Ray Lewis will not lose his last game.

• RB Cole Chiappialle, Beaver Falls (Pa.) Blackhawk: 49ers, 27-24. As a diehard Steelers fan, I will be rooting for the 49ers. No way I will cheer for the Ravens!

• SB Von Walker, Mill Hall (Pa.) Central Mountain: 49ers, 24-17. Ravens can't stop Gore running or the Kaepernick passing attack.

• OT Austin Fiedler, Turbotville (Pa.) Warrior Run: No idea. I think the score for each team will be in the high 20s, and it will be very close -- within six points. OK, I don't really know who will win. Both teams have a lot going for them. The Ravens have the bigger fan base, and that will give somewhat of a homefield advantage. But, on the other hand, I think the 49ers are overall a more solid team. I can't wait to watch the game actually, even though I'm not a big NFL fan.

Every week, NittanyNation will pose five questions to a recruit, player, alum or coach about all things Penn State.

This week's subject is Chris Gulla, a kicker out of Toms River (N.J.) North who decided to accept an invitation to become a preferred walk-on at Penn State. He chose Penn State over Maryland, Rutgers and South Carolina.

He can also punt, but Penn State is currently focusing on his field-goal kicking.

NittanyNation: Was it an easy decision for you to walk-on to PSU, or was it something you were struggling with for awhile?

Chris Gulla: It wasn't much of a difficult decision for me; that's where I always wanted to play. I got accepted into the business school and I have a great chance at playing time, which is awesome.

Most of my family is actually from the Lehigh Valley, and they're huge Penn State fans, so I've pretty much been raised a Penn State fan. They offered me the preferred walk-on a long time ago. I kicked for them over the summer and that's when they offered me. I just wanted to keep all my options open [in case of a scholarship]. I couldn't be happier with my decision.

NN: What do you like most about Penn State?

CG: It's a combination. Playing at Beaver Stadium is an incredible experience, and so's having a great education with a great networking system. That's hard to pass up.

Walking out of the tunnel, you can't even really picture it until you actually do it. It's going to be really great for the next four years running out on that field.

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