Penn State recruiting in great shape entering season

ALTOONA, Pa. -- With so much excitement looking ahead to Saturday's season opener at Wisconsin, Penn State fans also have plenty to be excited about with the future of the program when it comes to recruiting.

The Nittany Lions have the No. 1 recruiting class in the nation, according to 247Sports, with 24 commits in what is one of the largest classes assembled so far of any program in the country.

Penn State will not finish with the No. 1 overall class, simply because some teams close by in the rankings still will add a bunch of commits before signing day, while PSU can only add a couple more. For instance, Notre Dame is barely behind Penn State at No. 2. and the Fighting Irish have 21 commits. Georgia (16 commits) is at No. 3, Ohio State (14) at No. 4 and Alabama (14) at No. 5.

When all is said and done, Penn State likely will finish around 5th to 7th in the recruiting rankings.

James Franklin promised to dominate the state in recruiting, and PSU certainly is doing that this year. The Lions have commitments from the No. 2, 3 and 4 players in the state, as well as six of the top 10. Here's a breakdown of PA's top recruits and where they are headed:

PA's top-rated recruits from 247Sports:

1. DE Enai White, Imhotep Charter -- Undecided

2. RB Nick Singleton, Governor Mifflin -- PSU

3. WR Mehki Flowers, Central Dauphin East -- PSU

4. OT Drew Shelton, Downingtown West -- PSU

5. DE Tyreese Fearbry, Perry Traditional Academy -- Undecided (initially committed to PSU before decommitting)

6. WR Anthoney Ivey, Manheim Township -- PSU

7. S Keenan Nelson Jr., St. Joseph's Prep -- South Carolina

8. LB Anthony Johnson, Neumann Goretti -- Rutgers

9. DE Ken Talley, Northeast -- PSU

10. LB Abdul Carter, La Salle College -- PSU

Penn State's national ranking is so high not just because it already has so many commits, but also because 14 of the 24 commits are 4-star prospects. The Lions don't have any 5-stars and also have 10 3-stars.

Here's a breakdown of PSU's class by stars, listed in order of their 247Sports rating:

4-STARS

* DL Dani Dennis-Sutton (6-5, 250), McDonogh School, Owins Mills, Md.

* Kaden Saunders 5-10, 172), Westerville South, Westerville, Ohio

* RB Nick Singleton (6-0, 210), Governor Mifflin, Reading, Pa.

* QB Drew Allar (6-4, 228) Medina HS, Medina, Ohio

* WR Mehki Flowers (6-1, 190), Central Dauphin East, Harrisburg, Pa.

* RB Kaytron Allen (5-11, 220), IMG Academy, Bradenton, Fla.

* OT Drew Shelton (6-5, 290), Downingtown West, Downingtown, Pa.

* WR Anthony Ivey (6-0, 190), Manheim Township, Lancaster, Pa.

* WR Cristian Driver (5-11, 185), Liberty Christian, Argyle, Texas

* TE Jerry Cross (6-6, 257), King HS, Milwaukee

* DE Ken Talley (6-3, 230), Northeast HS, Philadelphia

* CB Cam Miller (6-0, 180), Trinity Christian Academy, Jacksonville, Fla.

* LB Abdul Carter (6-4, 235), La Salle College, Glenside, Pa.

* DL Zane Durant (6-1, 251), Lake Nona, Orlando

3-STARS

* QB Beau Pribula (6-2, 215), Central York, York, Pa.

* S KJ Winston (6-1, 190), DeMatha Catholic, Hyattsville, Md.

* DL Kaleb Artis (6-4, 290), St Francis Prep, Fresh Meadows, NY

* OT JB Nelson (6-6, 310), Lackawanna Community College, Scranton, Pa.

* S Jordan Allen (6-0, 182), Lafayette Christian, Lafayette, La.

* WR Tyler Johnson (6-0, 175), Magna Vista HS, Ridgeway, Va.

* LB Keon Wylie (6-2, 210), Imhotep Charter, Philadelphia, PA

* OT Maleek McNeil (6-7, 340), Walter Panas HS, Cortlandt Manor, NY

* S Tyrece Mills (6-0, 205), Lackawanna Community College, Scranton, Pa.

* P Alex Bacchetta (6-3, 200), Westminster School, Atlanta

Lastly, here's a look at how the Big Ten recruiting ranks stack up so far:

1. Penn State (1 nationally)

2. Ohio State (4 nationally)

3. Michigan (15 nationally)

4. Rutgers -- The Scarlet Knights are No. 17 nationally, which is remarkable, really, and shows that coach Greg Schiano and his staff are making a strong push at a lot of good prospects

5. Michigan State (19 nationally)

6. Indiana (25 nationally)

7. Northwestern (33 nationally)

8. Purdue (39 nationally)

9. Illinois (42 nationally)

10. Wisconsin (46 nationally) -- A low ranking for one of the Big Ten's best programs

11. Minnesota (47 nationally)

12. Maryland (57 nationally)

13. Iowa (60 nationally) -- A very low ranking for the Hawkeyes

14. Nebraska (65 nationally) -- Nothing is going well these days for the Cornhuskers

By the way, Pitt has the nation's No. 53 recruiting class.

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BASKETBALL SCHEDULE

Penn State announced the non-conference schedule for men's basketball Thursday afternoon. Here's a look at who the Nittany Lions will play in coach Micah Shrewsberry's first season, and it's not exactly a murderer's row of opponents.

Nov. 10: vs. Youngstown State

Nov. 15: at UMass

Nov. 18: vs. St. Francis Brooklyn

Nov. 22: vs. Cornell

Nov. 26: vs. LSU in Emerald Coast Classic (Fla.)

Nov. 27: vs. Wake Forest or Oregon State in Emerald Coast Classic (Fla.)

Dec. 1: vs. Miami in Big Ten/ACC Challenge

Dec. 8: vs. Wagner

Dec. 18: at VCU

Dec. 22: vs. Quinnipiac

Dec. 29: vs. Delaware State

As you can see, there are a good number of games against smaller conference teams, which should allow the Lions an opportunity to pick up some wins and build some confidence heading into Big Ten play.

One disappointing part of the schedule is that the game against Miami in the Big Ten/ACC Challenge represents the only power program that will visit Bryce Jordan Center in the non-conference.