Commitment breakdown: Rivals250 RB Nick Singleton commits to Penn State
The state of Pennsylvania has produced some really good running backs in recent years and Nick Singleton is one of the better ones. The Shillington (Pa.) Governor Mifflin Senior star did a good job taking some visits before the pandemic shut everything down but he did take a pair of self-guided visits to Penn State during the dead period. Once June hit and recruiting visits were allowed, Singleton took official visits to Alabama, Notre Dame, Penn State, Texas A&M, and Wisconsin. After taking a close look at all of his contenders, Singleton opted to stay close to home for college and play for Penn State.
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IN HIS OWN WORDS
"Obviously it's a good school and I've been talking to them since my sophomore year," Singleton said. "The coaching staff there is just really amazing. Coach Franklin and coach Seider are amazing. The program is amazing too and the running back they produce down there are really good. It was easy choice and it's close to home too.
"The coaches all tell I'm the 'Hometown Hero' and stuff like that," he said. "It's close my family so they can come up for games. My friends and coaches from high school too. It was a good choice."
MORE FROM SINGLETON HERE: RIVALS250 RB NICK SINGLETON GOES IN-DEPTH ON HIS PENN STATE COMMITMENT
WHAT THE NITTANY LIONS ARE GETTING
Singleton is a tough downhill runner with really good vision and surprising quickness and burst for a player his size. Defenders have a hard time getting a good hit on him because he does a good job staying square to the line of scrimmage. Singleton does his best work going north and south but has good enough speed to get to the outside. He posted a 10.8 100-meter time this spring so he has the speed to outrun front seven defenders to the edge. Singleton does a good job making players miss at the second and third levels because he can run over them but he also has some good moves in the open field. It will be interesting to see how his body develops once he gets to Penn State. He has a lot of physical similarities to Saquon Barkely when he was a recruit but he's posted better track times than Barkley did in high school. Everybody remembers how much he developed once he got to Happy Valley and Singleton is hoping to follow that same track.
WHY IT'S BIG FOR PENN STATE
If there was one can't-miss recruit in this class for Penn State, it was Singleton. After missing on the top nine players in the state last year, including players like five-star legacy prospect Nolan Rucci, and Rivals100 players Kyle McCord, Marvin Harrison Jr., Jeremiah Trotter Jr., Elliot Donald, and Derrick Davis, James Franklin and his staff are turning it around. With Singleton onboard, the Nittany Lions now have commitments from four of the top eight in-state players, plus a commitment from Pennsylvania native Drew Shelton, who plays at Bradenton (Fla.) IMG Academy. Singleton's commitment should also help with a few other recruits but the one to keep an eye on is Kaytron Allen. The Rivals250 running back out of IMG Academy is originally from the Tidewater region of Virginia and has some solid ties to the Nittany Lions.
On the field, Singleton should see some early duty but playing time will be at a premium come next fall. Penn State is loaded with talented young running backs but a lot of them see the field. Singleton will help solidify a unit that has been banged up in the past and he's a good fit for the offense. He can run downhill with power and has the vision to big off big runs when he gets a head of steam.