From the looks of things, Penn State football will be looking to take one, possibly two, defensive tackles in their Class of 2025.
Coincidently, Penn State’s top two targets are both from the state of Florida.
Highly rated 4-star recruits Randy Adirika and Jarquez Carter sit very high on the Nittany Lions recruiting board for defensive line prospects.
Carter (Newberry, Florida) made his Penn State official visit the weekend of June 7th and Adirika (Miami, Florida) was in State College over the weekend.
Adirika is another highly rated national recruit that Penn State is trying to lock up. Currently, Rivals.com ranks this 6’4″, 265-pound defensive tackle as the No. 6 defensive tackle and the No. 132 overall prospect in the Class of 2025. Along with Penn State, Adirika holds offers from Auburn, Colorado, Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Louisville, Maryland, Miami, Pitt, Rutgers, Tennessee, Central Florida, USC and West Virginia.
“I liked what I saw in terms of Penn State’s campus, their football facilities and it felt like a college town,” Adirika tells NSN. “It was cool, and it wasn’t too crazy, and I could really have the chance to concentrate on football.”
“The players on the team really got along well. They messed around with each other and had a good time with each other. After practice, they hung out with each other, they eat together and really got along. I know that if I pick Penn State, I’d like it and I wouldn’t be distracted by anything.”
Along with enjoying themselves, a huge part of an official visit for any player is to try and learn as much and ask as many questions as they have about their possible new home and football program. Akirika came prepared with some things he wanted to find out about the Nittany Lions program.
“I needed to know more about their defensive philosophy,” said Adirika. “What their defensive tackles do and what their defensive philosophy is built off of. I was able to have great conversations with their defensive line coach about football and non-football stuff. It was also important for me to try and really get to know their defensive staff.”
Adirika is being pursued by some of the top programs in the country and with players only getting a handful of official visits, what did he see from the Penn State program originally that got them an official visit?
“Definitely, it was them being so consistent with them showing that they want me. That played a role in it along with the way that they offered me. They came to a practice of mine and watched me work. It wasn’t like one of those offers that teams just throw at a player. Those were the main things for me. Those things really showed me that they were serious about me and that they really wanted me there.”
“On my exit interview with the coaches, they really emphasized how they can make me get better as a player and as a student-athlete,” said Adirika. “They were really big on school and football, a student-athlete. They let me know that I would be developed into a top prospect and would be drafted.”
Adirika has now made official visits to Penn State along with USC. Plus, he’s very familiar with the Miami Hurricanes program.
Keep an eye on Akirika because he plans on making a decision in the near future.
“I definitely have a top three schools: USC, Penn State and Miami. I will be making a decision by the end of June.”
