Penn State Football: Top 5 recruiting targets for 2019

GLENDALE, AZ - DECEMBER 30: Head coach James Franklin of the Penn State Nittany Lions leads his team onto the field prior to the start of a game against the Washington Huskies during the Playstation Fiesta Bowl at University of Phoenix Stadium on December 30, 2017 in Glendale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /

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Defensive line coach Sean Spencer has been with James Franklin since his first year at Vanderbilt. He’s been a big recruiter and loves adding depth along the Nittany Lion defensive front. His “Wild Dogs” always have room for more to join the ranks. The first of two defensive linemen on this list is Brandon Smith.

Smith hails from Mineral, Virginia, a small town to the east of Charlottesville. Despite being from a town with a small population, Smith has garnered lots of attention from many of the big programs around the nation. He is currently the number one player in the entire state of Virginia and the fourth best defensive end in the country. Overall, he ranks 35th in the nation.

University of Virginia was the first to offer Smith, but soon the number of scholarship offers grew and UVA was pushed down the list. Penn State is currently in his top six of schools, which also includes Virginia Tech, Ohio State, Notre Dame, Alabama and Florida State. Smith had an unofficial visit to Penn State last fall, but the Nittany Lions should be in the mix for an official visit during the 2018 season.

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