Penn State football gets a verbal commitment… from a high school freshman
A highly regarded athlete made a verbal commitment to the Penn State football program Monday. He’s not projected to make it into a game for the Nittany Lions, though, until at least 2023.
Mathias Barnwell, a high school freshman from Virginia, announced his intention to attend Penn State via a video released over his Twitter account. A tight end who reportedly had offers from at least 15 Division I colleges, the 6-foot-5, 240-pound Barnwell attends Spotsylvania High School.
COMMITTED? @STAC_UNCUT @shotbybev pic.twitter.com/8Jxrk5O3Q9
— Mathias MEGA Barnwell (@mega_barnwell) June 8, 2020
“I am blessed and very humbled to announce, I’m a thousand percent committed to Penn State University,” Barnwell said.
According to 247 Sports, Barnwell had scholarship offers from Tennessee, Nebraska, Virginia Tech, Ole Miss and Pitt, among others. According to Rivals, Barnwell is just the fifth prospect from the Class of 2023 to commit to a football program.
#WeAre...Better#PSUnrivaled#107kStrong
— James Franklin (@coachjfranklin) June 8, 2020
Penn State has no commitments yet for its 2022 class. Its 2021 class has 12 commitments and ranks 18th in the country by 247 Sports.
Chris Adamski is a TribLive reporter who has covered primarily the Pittsburgh Steelers since 2014 following two seasons on the Penn State football beat. A Western Pennsylvania native, he joined the Trib in 2012 after spending a decade covering Pittsburgh sports for other outlets. He can be reached at cadamski@triblive.com.
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