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It has been more than a decade since Penn State signed the consensus top recruit in Pennsylvania.
Michal Menet is in line to end that streak next winter.
The four-star Exeter Township offensive lineman announced his commitment to the Nittany Lions on Friday afternoon during a brief ceremony at his high school that was broadcast online. He becomes the ninth member of the Lions’ 2016 recruiting class.
Verbal commitments are non-binding and Menet can’t officially join the Lions until national signing day in February.
Penn State and Duke were the final choices for Menet, who had nearly 30 scholarship offers from Ohio State and Notre Dame, down to Alabama and Florida State and out to Stanford and UCLA.
Menet is ranked No. 1 in Pennsylvania by the 247Sports Composite, which averages rankings from four major services. 247, Scout and ESPN all have him at No. 1 while Rivals lists him at No. 3.
Though rankings differ from site to site, the last consensus No. 1 in the Keystone State to end up in Happy Valley was Justin King in the 2005 signing class.
James Franklin’s staff managed to land six of the state’s top seven recruits in his first full recruiting class, which signed this past February. The seventh was defensive back Jordan Whitehead, who picked Pitt and ended up edging out the field for the No. 1 spot in the Composite rankings.
Though his rhetoric has toned down a bit since he repeatedly promised to “dominate the state” when he took the job last year, Franklin has nonetheless been trying to rebuild local pride in Pennsylvania football.
During his stop in Wilkes-Barre last week, the Penn State coach didn’t deliver a rhyme or a catchphrase when the topic of in-state recruiting came up.
“You look around the country and see kids all over wanting to represent their state, their home,” Franklin said. “That’s what we want to build here.”
Franklin is off to a strong start in that regard.
Menet’s decision gives Penn State the consensus top two players in state in Menet (No. 37 nationally) and Pittsburgh running back Miles Sanders (No. 65). A third Penn State commitment, Maryland defensive lineman Shane Simmons, also cracks the national top 100 at No. 49.
For the moment, Menet is the program’s highest-rated recruit since Christian Hackenberg.
“He’s the type of athlete you may have an opportunity to coach once in a lifetime, and maybe never at all,” Exeter coach Matt Bauer said before introducing Menet. “He’s a natural leader and a tremendous worker. He started every game in ninth grade on both sides of the line. We can’t afford to take him off the field at any time of the game.
“What I’ll take away is how humble and grounded he has been in this whole process. Not many kids would be able to handle the notoriety that came with this.”
As if to prove the point, Menet then took the podium, took a few minutes to thank his family, coaches and teammates and then simply announced his choice.
“After a long and difficult process, I’d like to announce that I will further my academic and athletic career at Penn State University,” Menet said before ceding the stage.
Though Menet is listed by most services as a tackle at 6-foot-5, 270 pounds, his versatility is one of the reasons he is ranked so highly.
Nearly every scouting report for Menet begins with talking about the Reading native’s athleticism.
Before Menet’s announcement, Exeter athletic director Thomas Legath told a story about how Villanova basketball coach Jay Wright paid a recruiting visit to an Exeter hoops game. Wright had shown up to check out a different player but left enamored with Menet.
“I told him that he was set on playing football,” Legath said. “And he told me to keep him updated about what he decides.”
Given that, it’s not hard to imagine him playing any of the five spots on the offensive line in college.
That’s a luxury Penn State hasn’t had recently with linemen being forced to play out of position at times because of injuries and general depth woes up front.
As it is, three of the Lions’ first nine commitments for the 2016 signing class are on the offensive line as Menet joins Lake-Lehman center Connor McGovern and Ohio tackle Alex Gellerstedt.
Below is Penn State’s updated recruiting map, which can be expanded by clicking on the full-screen icon in the upper right corner of the frame. Clicking on the list icon in the upper left will bring up the names of Penn State’s commitments and targets to show where the Lions have concentrated their recruiting efforts.
All recruit rankings and offers represent the 247Sports Composite.