Penn State Football: Nittany Lions Add to 2023 Class with Defensive Line Prospect

Penn State added to its 2023 recruiting class on Friday evening following the verbal commitment of three-star New York defensive line prospect Tyriq Blanding.

Blanding, who attends Christ the King Regional in Middle Village, Queens, is fresh off of a visit to State College just a week ago and committed to Penn State over the likes of Michigan, Oregon, and West Virginia, among others. He is the No. 1-rated prospect in the Empire State for 2023 and top-100 defensive lineman nationally, according to 247Sports.

Hitting the scales at 6-foot-3 and 275 pounds, Blanding joins a 2023 Penn State recruiting class ranked No. 3 in the nation, according to the 247 Network. That ranking is the best in the Big Ten, ahead of Northwestern at No. 5 and Ohio State at No. 8. As usual, early summer rankings are guaranteed to change for a multitude of reasons by the time signing day comes around.

The Nittany Lions now count 13 players verbally committed to the Nittany Lions’ 2023 class, a group which is headlined by the offensive linemen duo of five-star prospect Alex Birchmeier and four-star standout J’Ven Williams.

Penn State’s 13 verbal commitments are the fewest among the currently ranked top five schools in the 2023 cycle. Notre Dame rounds out the top three just ahead of Texas Tech.

Penn State’s latest commitment joins Jameial Lyons as the only other defensive line prospect in the class. The four-star Lyons is currently listed as an edge-rusher.