In recruiting news, Penn State football has lost one of its former Class of 2026 commits to Maryland.
Darrell Carey, a three-star safety from Maryland’s famous DeMatha Catholic, is staying in-state.
Carey had been committed to Penn State since April.
But amid the fallout from coach James Franklin’s firing, Carey decided to de-commit last week. From there, he picked Maryland, and described the desire to be a “hometown hero” to Hayes Fawcett of On3Sports.
Carey is the No. 9 overall player in Maryland from his class per 247Sports and the No. 29 safety in the country. He also had offers from schools such as Boston College, Duke, Indiana, Michigan State, Oregon, Pitt, South Carolina, Virginia Tech, Texas A&M and West Virginia.
Although recruiting losses are to be an excepted side effect to firing any coach, Penn State losing a commit to Maryland is still going to sting, especially considering Mike Locksley and Maryland’s own situation.
Maryland is currently 4-4 after starting 4-0, with its latest game ending in a 55-10 Homecoming loss to Indiana.
That performance inspired Maryland fans to chant “Fire Locksley.”
There was even a fake report that Locksley had been fired, one that gained enough traction to the point where Maryland had to confirm that it wasn’t true.
One of Franklin’s biggest strengths was recruiting, and a big part of that success was his ability to get talent from the D.C., Maryland and Virginia region.
For whoever the next coach is, it will be a big deal to keep that success going.
Penn State currently has 15 players still committed, although several— including top PSU commit Matt Sieg— have re-opened their recruitment.
