Penn State Recruiting: Will the Lions Make a Play for Elijah Jeudy?

Philadelphia's Elijah Jeudy, a former Georgia commit, has reopened his recruiting. And Penn State has another chance.

Defensive end Elijah Jeudy was among those Pennsylvania players who got away from Penn State when he committed to Georgia in April. But the SI All-American from Philadelphia's Northeast High recently reopened the recruiting process, allowing Penn State to refresh its case.

I know that there’s been a lot of rumors saying that I will be decommitting from Georgia. I’ve been fighting and debating it for a couple of months now and I’ve came to the conclusion that I have to do what is best for me. So with that being said I will be decommitting from UGA.

— Elijah Jeudy1️⃣6️⃣ (@ElijahJeudy) September 15, 2020

Jeudy said he plans to commit on Signing Day, whose initial date is Dec. 16. Until then, Penn State will join Georgia, Texas A&M and a host of schools vying for one of Pennsylvania's top players.

What advantage might Penn State hold? Jeudy has established relationships with high school teammate Ken Talley, who has committed to Penn State's 2022 class, and with Penn State graduate assistant Deion Barnes.

A former Penn State defensive end, Barnes was the defensive coordinator at Northeast High before joining the coaching staff at his alma mater. Defensive coordinator Brent Pry said that Barnes has been a significant contributor already.

"I'm proud that he wanted to come back to his alma mater," Pry said. "It was very important to him. He obviously has goals and aspirations to become a big-time coach, but he also wanted to give back to Penn State and the student-athletes in this program."

Jeudy would be a terrific last-minute addition to Penn State's 2021 class. According to his SI All-American evaluation, Jeudy has the potential to become an "alpha-rusher" in college.

This should be an interesting recruiting process to re-watch. Want to learn more about Jeudy? Check out his highlight reel above and his SI All-American evaluation here.

Frame: Athletic frame with solid length and upper-body definition. Thick thighs and trunk with fair bubble.

Athleticism: Jumped nearly 36 inches last spring. Possesses light feet and twitchy lower-half. Sprinter-esque lean at times out of stance at the snap with quickness and upfield burst to reduce ground in a hurry. Can come to balance in space and surf laterally down line. Good range to hunt in pursuit. Chases relentlessly and has quickness to close and finish.

Instincts: Solid job working upper-arm/shoulder of man to gain control at entry and impact. Can bend on the edge with good sinkage and hip flexion. Also has good torso rotation. Reliable to flatten well when cornering to launch points during rush. Good eyes versus run and is alert to play strong at point vs. oncoming backside pulls. Doesn’t lose ball in traffic. Flashes ability in coverage to be a wall player and relate to 3.

Polish: Mainly lines up as an RDE in 4-man fronts at 5- and 7-technique, and sometimes at on-ball linebacker. Used as an inside looper on tight-end stunts. Speed-rush is his best asset to pressure passers, but also possesses a 2-hand swipe and spin, and will rip to counter at times. Will need to continue adding bulk and strength for college game. Needs to get consistent with his ice-pick in his spin move. Must improve coverage transition quickness versus pass.

Bottom Line: Jeudy has the potential to develop into an alpha rusher at the next level. He has the twitch and explosiveness to consistently threaten left tackles, while having point-of-attack toughness to hold his own on the edge in the run game. Look for Jeudy to play as an on-the-ball linebacker/edge in base, and put his hand down to rush in certain sub packages.

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