Penn State Football: Nittany Lions Add Four-Star Defensive Tackle

Four-star defensive tackle D’Von Ellies became the 20th member of Penn State’s 2019 recruiting class early on Sunday morning.

Ellies was high school teammates with freshman defensive tackle PJ Mustipher at the McDonogh School in Owings Mills, Md., and he’s already signed his letter of intent with James Franklin’s program. He’s one of the nation’s fastest-rising recruits, racking up more than 25 scholarship offers from a host of top programs.

The four-star prospect picked James Franklin’s team over Ohio State, USC, and Michigan, among others. The 6-foot-2, 280-pound Ellies is the No. 8 defensive tackle prospect in the country during this recruiting cycle, according to 247Sports.

Ellies took his official visit to State College the weekend of Nov. 10, watching the Nittany Lions beat Wisconsin 22-10 at Beaver Stadium alongside dozens of other recruits. 

He earned a scholarship offer from Franklin and defensive line coach Sean Spencer in July. The defensive tackle also visited Penn State in an unofficial capacity for the team’s 27-26 White Out loss to the Buckeyes on Sept. 29.

Ellies joins a solid group of defensive line prospects in this recruiting cycle, including four-star defensive ends Adisa Isaac and Hakeem Beamon. Both of those players have signed their letters of intent, and three-star defensive end Smith Vilbert verbally committed to Penn State earlier this week.

You can check out Ellies’ junior season Hudl highlight reel here.