2021 OL Nolan Rucci will visit Penn State Saturday
Class of 2021 offensive tackle Nolan Rucci will be one of the top sophomores in attendance for Saturday night’s game against Ohio State.
If the name sounds familiar, that’s because the 6-foot-7, 265 pound sophomore is the son of Todd Rucci, who played for the Nittany Lions in the early ’90s before being drafted by the New England Patriots.
“When it comes to Penn State, Nolan has been going up there his entire life. He grew up going to Penn State games,” his father said. “So, of course, that’s a school he’s very familiar with already.
“The last time we went up there for anything football related was in the spring for a spring practice. It was myself, my wife and Nolan. That was a good time for all of us. That’s the last time we really talked to them, but I’m sure we’ll talk to them more this upcoming weekend.”
Rucci’s older brother, Hayden, also recently went through the process, pulling in 18 scholarship offers before committing to Wisconsin’s Class of 2019 in February. Nolan’s recruitment has picked up steam a bit earlier than his brother's, although the fact that the two are so close in age likely played a part, as Nolan has been visiting schools with his family for two-plus years now.
“He’s already earned offers from Wisconsin, Virginia Tech, Syracuse and Michigan State. It’s tough to say at this stage who else is seriously interested, mainly because everything has just kind of started with Nolan,” Rucci said. “The talks we’ve had with coaches so far haven’t been regular or anything like that, so it’s still very early.
“At the same time, we’ve been to a lot of these programs over the past year. I believe we visited over 24 schools with Hayden. Nolan was on all of these visits, so that gives him a leg up on all of this.”
This week’s trip to Penn State is the only visit the family has planned at this time. With Warwick currently 4-1 on the season, the Rucci's are planning for a run in the PIAA state playoffs. That includes dad, who’s been coaching the offensive line now for over a decade.
“We’re going to try and get out to some other schools, but we haven’t planned anything yet. I know Virginia Tech wants him to come down there, and obviously, Hayden wants to get back to Wisconsin, but my focus with Nolan right now is just football and school. I don’t want him to get distracted with all of this. That goes for me, too. I help coach the team, so that’s what we’re all focusing on right now.
“But, depending on when the season ends, we could possibly get out to some other schools in November."
After adding an offer from West Virginia Tuesday night, Rucci is now up to five scholarship offers. It’s still unclear if Penn State will join those schools this weekend, but one thing the family does know is that the youngest Rucci won’t be pressured into following anyone’s footsteps, whether it be his dad or brother.
“Nolan will ultimately go wherever he fits the best,” his father said. “That also has to come on both sides. He has to fit that program, too. So, when he finds that combination and he feels comfortable, we’ll go from there. I think that was one thing that we really learned with Hayden. We let the process play out and he ultimately found his favorite school. We didn’t chase offers. We weren’t in a hurry. Going through all of that will only help Nolan.”