UA All-America Game: Penn State lands top remaining target

ORLANDO – Penn State landed its top remaining target in Rivals250 defensive end Jayson Oweh when he announced his decision during the Under Armour All-America Game. The Blairstown (N.J.) Blair Academy star picked the Nittany Lions over Ohio State.

IN HIS OWN WORDS:

"I chose Penn State because they’ve been there since the beginning," Oweh said. "I really believe in my relationship with coach (James) Franklin and I think we can do something really big there. It’s really close to home too so that was big.

"Coach (Sean) Spencer is young but I see the way he’s developed defensive linemen," he said. "A lot of people don’t give him credit for that, but I see it. There is a good chance for me to play early because Penn State doesn’t have a lot of pass rushers. They have defensive ends but they don’t have many pure pass rushers so I can add that to the defense.

"PJ Mustipher, Micah Parsons, Zack Kuntz, Jesse Luketa, and Fred Hansard are just some of the guys I’m close with," said Oweh. "They’ve been telling me we’ll have a chance to do something special and take Penn State to the next level."

HOW IT HELPS PENN STATE

Oweh is a project because he is relatively new to football and his technique still needs to be developed but there is no denying his athletic ability. Pairing Oweh with five-star Parsons gives Penn State two elite pass rushers that will terrorize opposing offenses for years to come. Signing more pass rushers was a big priority for Penn State in this recruiting class and they accomplished that goal with the additions of Oweh and Parsons.

HOW IT HURTS OHIO STATE

This is a blow for Ohio State. They really wanted Oweh and the opportunity to learn under defensive line coach Larry Johnson was very appealing to Oweh. The Buckeyes needed to reload along the defensive line and they were counting on Oweh to be a major contributor down the line.