Penn State Football: Four-Star Safety Jaylen Reed Commits To Penn State

Penn State football added its first defensive prospect to its recruiting class of 2021 as four-star safety Jaylen Reed verbally committed on Thursday night.

Reed is ranked as the 10th-best safety in the country and the eighth-best player from his home state of Michigan according to 247sports, as he received offers from several top-tier football programs. The Detroit native picked the Nittany Lions over Georgia, Michigan State, USC, and Arkansas, among others.

During his junior season at Martin Luther King high school in Detroit, Reed record an interception, eight forced fumbles, 119 tackles, and 11 tackles for loss. He comes in at 6’0″, 190 pounds, and will add some much-needed depth to Penn State’s secondary over the course of the next few seasons. 

Penn State safeties coach Tim Banks hails from Detroit and attended the same high school as Reed before playing cornerback for Central Michigan.

Time will tell if Reed’s commitment helps Banks and the rest of Penn State’s coaches bring more Detroit prospects to Happy Valley, as the Nittany Lions are also in the mix to add brothers Kobe and Kalen King to their class of 2021. The pair of defensive stars are currently juniors at Cass Technical High School in Detroit. 

Kobe is rated as a three-star inside linebacker, while Kalen is a four-star cornerback. Kalen is scheduled to announce his commitment on Friday, April 10, while his brother has yet to announce when he will make his decision.