Penn State Makes Two Interesting Scholarship Offers to NFL Sons

Penn State has offered scholarships Antonio Gates Jr. and Troy Bowles, whose fathers are well known in the NFL.

Penn State offered scholarships this week to two intriguing prospects, both of whom have famous NFL fathers.

Penn State made an offer to Antonio Gates Jr., a son of Antonio Gates, the future NFL Hall of Fame tight end who announced his retirement in January after 16 seasons.

Gates Jr. is a four-star prospect, according to 247Sports, who plays at Fordson High in Dearborn, Mich. Last season, the 6-3 receiver caught 45 passes (seven for touchdowns) as a sophomore. Gates Jr. is a 2022 prospect.

Humbled and excited to be offered by penn state university ‼️‼️‼️ @PennStateFball #weare pic.twitter.com/sKkOPmXJaR

— AntonioGatesJr‼️‼️‼️ (@AntoniogatesJr1) September 10, 2020

Penn State also made an offer to Troy Bowles, whose father Todd is a longtime NFL coach and now the defensive coordinator of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Troy Bowles, a linebacker at Tampa's Jesuit High, is a 2023 recruit.

Gates Jr. is taking a different path than his father, who played basketball at Michigan State but not football. Gates Jr. told the Detroit News in 2019 that basketball is his "second love."

Penn State delivered the latest in a growing list of offers for Gates Jr., who has set a commitment date of Oct. 10. Michigan State is among the programs that have offered, along with Kentucky, Iowa State, Memphis and Nebraska.

Penn State has had success recruiting Michigan of late. Four players from Penn State's 2021 recruiting class are from the state. Assistant coach Tim Banks, who is from Detroit, has made Michigan a recruiting priority.

"I feel like we have a really good product to seel and a great opportunity to sell a lot, and a lot of kids obviously have been receptive to that," Banks said recently. "... I'm turning over every stone, making sure that I'm evaluating every guy, whether he has no offers or has many offers. I must continue to recruit as hard as I possibly can to give us an opportunity to be successful."

Bowles plays with his older brother Todd Jr. and has begun drawing more recruiting attention. He also has received offers from Boston College and Indiana.

Bowles Sr., the former New York Jets head coach, told Sports Illustrated's All-American site this spring that Troy is a promising young player.

"Troy is just a hell of an athlete," Bowles Sr. said. "Troy is just that kid that's got every athletic gene that you could have. Everything comes kind of easy to him. He started varsity last year as a freshman and didn't turn 15 until March 29. He was 14 all last year when they went to the state semis and lost to Miami Northwestern. He's just one of them guys, you can tell by his legs, that he's going to be bigger. It was his first year playing outside 'backer, he was a running back all throughout Pop Warner and everything else.

"He's athletic. He can move like a DB. He can cover people, he can pressure people. He can do almost everything and I don't think he's even scratched the surface yet."

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