The Penn State football program is a national brand and therefore, their recruiting map is anywhere in the United States.
A perfect example of that is 2023 recruit Gabe Tahir, a junior defensive back from Kennewick, Washington.
Back in May, Terry Smith and the Nittany Lions were the first school to extend Tahir a D-1 offer. This past weekend, Tahir took the next step in really getting to know more about the Penn State program and coaches as he made an unofficial visit to State College. Tahir had to travel across the country, which showed a real commitment on his part to learn about James Franklin’s program.
Nittany Sports Now spoke on Tuesday evening with Tahir and got his thoughts on his visit and what he experienced at Penn State.
“Coach Terry Smith has been recruiting me since my sophomore year and while we were talking recently, he really wanted me to make the trip out to Penn State, so I went ahead and did it,” Tahir said. “It was 100% worth it. I loved it. When I arrived, the coaches just showed me major love and I instantly felt that the Penn State coaches didn’t just care about me as a recruit, they cared about me as a person and as a human being, which was really nice. They took the time to try and get to know me and I loved that about them.”
Happy Valley found out what time it is! ⌚️ @PennStateFball
• @GabeTahir
• @ChenKyle13 @BrandonHuffman @ErikRichardsUSA @flyguyhuey5 pic.twitter.com/FfhoYVKPWp— Team Lillard Football (@teamlillard7on7) January 23, 2022
“I got the chance to talk with Coach Smith, he’s such a nice guy,” Tahir said. “It was nice to be able to meet him in person and to really see how his personality really is. I found out that he’s really a funny guy. When he says something to you, I can tell that he really means it.”
This was Tahir’s first major college recruiting visit and Penn State is a pretty big place to take your first visit. Tahir talked to us about what stood out to him most about the university.
“What really stood out to me was how much Penn State really cares about their academics,” said Tahir. “About how the coaches really care about their players graduating in three years and earning their degree and being able to move onto life if you don’t make it to the NFL. That really stood out and actually surprised me about I thought they were all about football, because they’re such a big-time football program.”
Courtesy of Gabe Tahir
Speaking of big-time, Tahir is a big-time player in the state of Washington. This past season, he was named to the First Team All-State team as a cornerback. For the season, the 6-foot-2 physical defensive back allowed the receiver he was covering to catch only four passes for 19 yards.
“What I hear from coaches that impresses them the most is my ability to play press coverage and my man-to-man coverage skills,” Tahir said. “I’m also able to read the quarterbacks eyes and I’m a 100% effort player.”
Tahir tells NSN that he believes that both UCLA and Washington could be on the verge of offering him. This coming weekend, he’ll be making an unofficial visit to Washington.
“I can say that after my visit, I know that I would be 100% comfortable at Penn State if I were to choose them,” Tahir said “I absolutely loved it there, I loved the coaching staff and would have no problem going there.”
Tahir has no exact timeframe set for when he could make his college decision.
