As could have been expected, Silas Redd's departure to USC has opened up the floodgates at Penn State. Khairi Fortt has left for Cal, Kevin Haplea is now a Seminole, Robert Bolden is going to LSU, and some safety you've never heard of went to NC State. This is on the heels of Ryan Nowicki leaving, and rumors about freshman OL Brian Gaia, RB Akeel Lynch, K Anthony Fera, and LB Mike Hull. The cracks are starting to show, and frankly, this may only be the beginning.
For now, Rutgers will have to be satisfied with DT Jamil Pollard. This is interesting in the sense that he reportedly had qualifying issues as a recruit, which is why I initially didn't see him as a realistic possibility. He made it through the clearing house into Penn State though, and once the sanctions hit, high-tailed it out of there at the first opportunity. This is a fun little bit of payback for years of Penn State bullying. Let it be the first of many.
So, how will this affect the roster moving forward? You'd think Jamil ends up on defense, given that Rutgers just signed a ton of offensive linemen and all. Last year's class did have two DE/DT tweeners in Pinnix and Hammer. Traditionally those guys would have grown into DTs at Rutgers, but who knows, maybe this is part of the new trend with big tackles like Al Page and Marquise Wright. DTs bust pretty often, so that has to curb any premature celebration somewhat, but that is precisely why these recruits are worth their weight in gold. If we are actually going to run a defense that uses big tackles now, well then, that's even more for the better.
