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Penn State's Matt Campbell Gets 2nd Commitment of 2027 Recruiting Class

Pittsburgh defensive back Zachary Gleason commits to the Nittany Lions' 2027 class.
Mark Wogenrich|
A general view of the scoreboard at Beaver Stadium as Matt Campbell is announced as the Penn State Nittany Lions new head football coach.
A general view of the scoreboard at Beaver Stadium as Matt Campbell is announced as the Penn State Nittany Lions new head football coach. | Matthew O'Haren-Imagn Images

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Penn State football's 2027 recruiting class is beginning to take shape, as Matt Campbell has welcomed two commitments within 24 hours. The Nittany Lions on Tuesday received a commitment from Zachary Gleason, a 3-star cornerback from Pittsburgh Central Catholic.

Gleason closely followed Semajay Robinson, a 3-star defensive back from Florida, who became the first 2027 prospect to commit to Campbell. Gleason announced his decision Tuesday after a recent visit to Penn State to watch spring drills.

Gleason is a 3-star defensive back, according to the 247Sports Composite, and the 21st-ranked player in Pennsylvania. Gleason chose Penn State from an offer sheet that included Virginia Tech (and coach James Franklin), Indiana, Pitt, West Virginia and Stanford, among others.

The 6-foot 170-pound cornerback was named first-team all-conference at Central Catholic last season after making 45 tackles and three interceptions. He helped the Vikings to the WPIAL Class 6A title and a berth in the PIAA championship game.

Campbell restarted Penn State's 2027 class in March after it evaporated following Franklin's firing last fall. At one point, the Nittany Lions had the nation's top-ranked 2027 recruiting class, though it totaled just four commitments. All four players decommitted soon after Franklin's firing.

After rebuilding Penn State's roster and 2026 class this winter, Campbell and his staff were able to pivot to 2027. Campbell said he did not want to rush the process. While several college football teams have at least 10 commits (Oklahoma has 20), Penn State has two.

"For us, it's no different than building your football program," Campbell said of the recruiting process. "You're playing catch-up in some ways in terms of your 2027 class, because to me, it's no different than what I said about spring practice: Slow and right is critical. And it's all about the human beings that we bring in here.

"And so I'm a huge person in relationships; who fits Penn State, who fits our culture. And so we're going to do it slow and right. And we're going to make sure any young man that we try to bring in here is the right fit for our football program. So obviously having the [Penn State] logo and the history of this place certainly gives you a great opportunity to recruit in this region, some of the best football in the entire world. And that part of it's rewarding.

"Being a part of the football program at Toledo [where he was head coach from 2012-15], we recruited a lot of these areas. So you do have some inroads and know certainly what these areas have stood for over time. But again, I I think [in terms of] the process of recruiting the right people, making sure it's the right guys you're bringing in here, we're always going to go slow and right in that process."

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Mark Wogenrich
MARK WOGENRICH

Mark Wogenrich is the editor and publisher of Penn State on SI, the site for Nittany Lions sports on the Sports Illustrated network. He has covered Penn State sports for more than two decades across three coaching staffs, three Rose Bowls and one College Football Playoff appearance.

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