Penn State gets horrible news on 5-star recruit

The Penn State Nittany Lions football program has consistently had one of the best defenses in recent years. But, the defense's strength isn't at cornerback, but rather at linebacker and the edge rushers. With incredibly talented wide receivers in the college football landscape, having good cornerbacks is a huge boost to a team's defense.

Penn State they were in the mix for a five-star recruit at cornerback, something the team would greatly benefit from. But, after an announcement late Monday night, Penn State was seemingly out of the race for five-star cornerback Brandon Arrington.

In an article from Matt Thomas for Basic Blues Nation, the timeline of Arrington's decision not to head to Penn State was dissected. Arrington had originally set a top-five of Penn State, Alabama, Oregon, Texas A&M, and USC. He also planned to make his decision on July 5th. 

However, well before his originally scheduled decision date, the five-star cornerback began cutting down on the teams he was considering joining. In a post from Hayes Fawcett of On3 on Twitter/X, Arrington had narrowed down his potential teams to Oregon and Texas A&M.

— Hayes Fawcett (@Hayesfawcett3) June 17, 2025

Arrington is the top cornerback in the recruiting class and would've been a massive get for the Penn State program. Instead, he's likely to head to either Texas A&M or Oregon. Not only does Penn State lose out on a top recruit at a position of need, but he could be going to a conference rival in Oregon.

The decision from Arrington is expected to come in on Thursday, June 19th. He'll pick one of the two colleges he narrowed things down to, and Penn State will officially have lost the top cornerback recruit in the nation.

While Penn State did lose Arrington, they are still vying for other top defensive back recruits. But losing Arrington, especially if he lands with Oregon, would be a tough blow. 

Ahead of a potentially huge 2025 season for Penn State football, losing out on Arrington is a frustrating loss. He'd have been a huge piece in 2025 and the future. Instead, they pivot elsewhere ahead of a pivotal season in 2025.