Penn State’s 2027 recruiting class already has a couple of headliners making noise on Friday nights, and both are showing why they landed on the Top247 radar.
Wide receiver Landon Blum and defensive end Elijah Guertin are each off to strong senior seasons, giving Penn State fans an early look at two commits who are producing in a big way at opposite ends of the ball. Blum’s latest statement came in Woodbine High School’s eight-man game, where he set the all-time Iowa receiving touchdown record with a four-touchdown night. He piled up 249 yards on seven catches, a monster line for the 6-foot-4, 200-pound target who pledged to Penn State in April after being a long-time recruit for coach Matt Campbell dating back to his Iowa State days.
Guertin has been just as imposing in his own lane. The 6-foot-5, 255-pound edge rusher recorded two sacks and continued to flash the kind of disruptive ability that makes him such an interesting player to track this fall.
His senior year matters even more after an injury limited him last season, and Penn State will be watching to see how that progression continues. Guertin committed to the Nittany Lions in June over Florida.
“I was told that they are looking for recruits that check all the boxes off like weight size, how they play and everything else," he told 247Sports. "Some of their guys are around 250-255 and I'm around that weight right now... So as I continue, I will only get bigger stronger and faster and that's what they are looking for.
Both players carry top billing in their home states. Guertin is the top overall recruit in Rhode Island, while Blum holds that distinction in Iowa.
In 247Sports’ Class of 2027 rankings, Guertin checks in at No. 189 overall and No. 18 among edge rushers. Blum sits at No. 221 overall and No. 32 among receivers.
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Campbell said he has nothing but respect for Keeler, and the memory matters because it shapes how he sees what is coming next. He remembers that semifinal as a physical game, the kind decided by leverage, toughness and a few plays at the margins, and that is the same lens he is using to frame the challenge ahead for his current team. [Read more 🡒]
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On the other side of the ball, defensive end Bacon made a strong first impression, and Granvilles return from injury adds another name to the list of players worth watching as the rotation settles in. None of that guarantees a bigger role will come immediately, but it does suggest Penn State has more early-season options than it may have expected, with Temple serving as a useful next checkpoint. [Read more 🡒]
