ESPN’s latest expansion of its 2027 recruiting rankings brought two Big Ten programs into the mix, and the contrast could hardly be sharper.
Indiana checked in at No. 27 and Penn State at No. 29 after ESPN widened its team list from 25 programs to 30. One class is riding the momentum of a national championship. The other is being rebuilt under a new coach.
For Indiana, the headline moment came on July 17, when wide receiver Monshun Sales announced his commitment live on "The Pat McAfee Show." The 6-foot-5 receiver from Indianapolis Lawrence North chose the Hoosiers over Texas, Alabama, Ohio State and LSU, giving Curt Cignetti’s program its first five-star commitment ever. Sales is the No. 1 receiver in the class and arrives after a junior season that produced 37 catches, 794 yards and nine touchdowns.
That pledge says plenty about how far Indiana has come. Six months after Cignetti finished an unbeaten run with the school’s first national championship, the Hoosiers landed a recruit at a level the program had never reached before.
After the commitment, 247Sports analyst Tom Loy said the staff "absolutely prioritized him" and that landing the country's top receiver changes how recruits see the program. Cignetti’s rise was built on the transfer portal and overlooked talent, but now blue-chip high school players are choosing Bloomington on purpose.
Sales is the face of a class that leans heavily on four-stars. Edge rusher Myles Smith from Michigan, in-state tackle Mason McDermott, North Carolina linebacker Jalaythan Mayfield and Ohio lineman Reinaldo Perez all committed in the spring.
On3’s industry composite lists 14 blue-chip prospects among Indiana’s 17 commitments. McDermott and Indianapolis receiver Branden Sharpe help keep the best of the Hoosier State at home.
Penn State’s story is more about transition than triumph. James Franklin was fired in October, and Matt Campbell arrived from Iowa State in December. Campbell inherited no 2027 commitments when spring practice began, then put together a top class in a matter of months by leaning on the developmental, trench-heavy model that worked for him in Ames.
The class is led by cornerback Kei'Shjuan Telfair of Euclid, Ohio, and Philadelphia defensive lineman Stanley Montgomery, both top-110 prospects on On3’s board. Tight end Cooper Terwilliger, tackle David Tarawallie and receiver Landon Blum are also among the group’s higher-rated names. Only 14 percent of the class comes from Pennsylvania, which points to Campbell’s broader national and Midwest reach.
But the summer also brought setbacks. Running back Aiden Gibson flipped to Rutgers.
Receiver Jamir Dean went to Georgia. Alabama receiver Deshawn Hall chose Auburn.
Top Pennsylvania receiver Khalil Taylor, who had once been committed under Franklin, ended up at Nebraska. Those departures cooled a class that had started out as a national favorite.
Penn State now has 22 commits and sits at No. 20 in 247Sports’ rankings and No. 24 in On3’s industry composite. Indiana has 17 commits, ranked No. 31 by 247Sports and No. 29 by On3, with Sales doing most of the heavy lifting near the top.
There’s still plenty of time for both staffs to add to their boards. The early signing period for the 2027 class opens December 2, with the regular window beginning February 3, 2027.
Indiana has already turned its attention to the next cycle, landing quarterback Lukas Prock a week after the Sales commitment.
Campbell, meanwhile, still has room to stabilize a board that has already lost several of its biggest targets.
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