Nittany Lions keep landing offensive linemen

Penn State continues to stock talent in its area of greatest need.

The Nittany Lions have received verbal commitments from three offensive linemen in the past week, each of them potentially an inside blocker. C.J. Thorpe and Robert Martin jumped aboard during Blue-White Game weekend, and Ohio's Mike Miranda announced his pledge Thursday evening.

The Lions' 2017 class now has seven members, including Ohio quarterback Sean Clifford, Virginia linebacker Dylan Rivers and defensive ends Yetur Matos (Virginia) and Damion Barber (Harrisburg).

"They're putting together another really good class and though the expectations of some people may be higher, it's still a really good class," said Brian Dohn, a national recruiting analyst with Scout.com. "But Penn State's class will be made by what it does in December and January. When you recruit on an elite level, it depends if you can close on some of the top kids."

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Thorpe is the highest-rated of these new linemen, a four-star prospect out of Pittsburgh Central Catholic, the alma mater to Penn State offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead and offensive line coach Matt Limegrover. His father, Chris Thorpe, was a running back at Penn State in the late-1980s. His cousin Geno Thorpe was a star basketball player for the Lions.

C.J. Thorpe (6-foot-4, 305 pounds) projects as a guard and "understands what the expectations are, what it takes to get Penn State back where they think they should be," Dohn said.

"These (linemen) may not be the sexy names of the year before with (Michal) Menet and (Connor) McGovern, but Martin and Thorpe, you can win a lot of games with those two."

Martin is about 6-5 and 265 pounds and could play guard or tackle at Penn State. The Montvale, N.J., product is a three-star recruit, like Miranda.

"A powerful kid who plays with a nasty streak," Dohn said of Martin. "I'd like to see him get more flexible and move a little bit better in space. With what Penn State has at tackle, I think this kid is an interior guy."

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Miranda is 6-4 and 300 pounds and his scholarship offers include Missouri, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, Pitt, Boston College and Syracuse.

Scout.com recruiting analyst Bill Greene said this in his online evaluation of Miranda: "I like him in pass protection better than as a run blocker, and that's a rarity for high school linemen. ... Miranda comes off the ball quickly and with bad intentions. He plays with the nasty attitude that is a must for an offensive lineman."

He is probably best suited for guard or center in college, Greene said.

This season, the Lions expect to use several young linemen as they rebuild their offense. Redshirt freshmen Ryan Bates and Steven Gonzalez are potential starters at guard, redshirt sophomore Noah Beh is battling at right tackle and McGovern and Menet, both true freshmen, expect to make the two-deep out of summer camp.