Penn State, like most schools across Division I football, has been significantly impacted by transfers in recent years. During James Franklin’s tenure, an array of scholarship players have opted to leave the program for a variety of reasons, including more than half a dozen over the past six months.
Some of those players include receiver John Dunmore, defensive back Trent Gordon, defensive tackle Judge Culpepper and quarterback Micah Bowens — all of whom hail from outside of Penn State’s traditional regional recruiting area.
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To that point, beginning with Franklin’s initial recruiting class at Penn State in 2014, the Nittany Lions have signed numerous players from outside that region. While some of those players have developed into stars or contributors, seemingly a disproportionate number have exited the program prematurely.
While defining the Nittany Lions’ traditional recruiting region is a bit ambiguous, this article will consider the Northeast and a few of the surrounding states – Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, Washington DC, New Jersey, Delaware, New York, New England, Ohio, West Virginia and Michigan.
In 2014, Franklin came on the job just weeks before
