A former Penn State commit has reportedly entered the transfer portal.
Per Matt Zenitz of 247Sports, a 6-foot-5, 305-pound OL named Ja’Elyne Matthews is hitting the portal before even playing his first season in Piscataway.
This is unusual.
Players entering the portal is, for better or worse, commonplace in 2020s college football. But players doing so before even playing a game at their school? Eh, not so much. For one reason or another, Matthews appears set to move on from Piscataway a little more than nine months after committing to Rutgers.
He will be a wanted talent in the portal.
A BLUE-CHIPPER
Matthews committed, first to Penn State and then to Rutgers, as a blue-chip prospect.
Matthews, a four-star recruit, committed to Penn State in late January 2023.
But throughout his recruitment, he continued to field offers from big-time schools such as Florida State, Georgia and Michigan. Eventually, last September, he de-committed from Penn State.
Interestingly enough, Matthews’ top three, which he revealed less than a week before his announcement, did not include the school he ended up committing to.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.Matthews narrowed his list down to Miami, Georgia and Tennessee. But 247Sports reported this past Thursday that Rutgers “remains a viable option after he finished his official visit there Monday.”
It turned out, Rutgers impressed Matthews enough for him to commit.
IS PENN STATE REALISTIC?
So is Penn State a realistic landing spot for Matthews in the transfer portal? Perhaps. Penn State is quite loaded at offensive line to the point where JB Nelson, a regular contributor, recently entered the portal.
At the same time, Penn State doesn’t necessarily need Matthews for 2025. He could be useful for years down the road.
Penn State and Rutgers each have their spring games scheduled for Saturday, April 26.
