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Penn State’s talented 2017 recruiting class took a hit on Sunday afternoon when four-star linebacker Dylan Rivers flipped his commitment to Virginia Tech.
Entering the 2017 recruiting cycle Penn State’s biggest need was a box linebacker. For 14 months the Nittany Lions had one of the best box linebackers in the country committed to them. However, that changed on Sunday afternoon.
Respect MY decision! pic.twitter.com/Re9YLFZzde
— Dylan Rivers (@dylan_rivers) January 22, 2017
Four-star linebacker Dylan Rivers has flipped his commitment from Penn State to Virginia Tech. This is a huge blow for the Nittany Lions. As Rivers was their lone commitment at their biggest position of need.
Dylan Rivers originally committed to Penn State in November of 2015. This made him the second member of Penn State’s 2017 recruiting class. However, come February 1st he will now be signing with the Virginia Tech Hokies.
Rivers would have seen playing time as a true freshman in 2017. And, most likely, he would have been Penn State’s starting MIKE linebacker in 2018. So, as I said above, this is a huge blow for the Nittany Lions.
I expect Penn State to now make a late push for 4-star linebacker Ellis Brooks. The Nittany Lions extended a scholarship offer to Brooks on Sunday shortly before Rivers de-committed. And the coaching staff will try and get him on campus for an official visit this weekend.
With the de-commitment of Rivers, Penn State’s 2017 recruiting class now has 18 members. It now checks in as the 14th best in the country according to 247 Sports composite rankings. However, the Nittany Lions should be getting good news from defensive back Tariq Castro-Fields Monday. His commitment would bring this class back to 19 commitments.
Additionally, even without Rivers the Nittany Lions are still poised to sign yet another top-15 recruiting class. So, things are still in pretty good shape in Nittany Nation.
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