Penn State Football Recruiting: Odds PSU Gets 4-Star LB over Florida, Notre Dame

The Penn State Nittany Lions find themselves in a rather odd situation for a program that has been known as "Linebacker U", and that's waiting to see if a 4-star linebacker will choose them over either Florida or Notre Dame.

According to ESPN Recruiting Nation's Day 1 notes of Nike's "The Opening", 4-star linebacker Alex Anzalone is expected to choose between his top three schools at the prestigious recruiting event:

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Part of the reason might be because Anzalone has made his decision among his top three schools -- Florida, Penn State and Notre Dame. Rather than having to worry about choosing one of three attractive programs, his main focus was preparing for Friday's competition setting and giving a great effort against some of the nation's elite athletes.

Anzalone said all three programs bring something special to the table. He commented Penn State for its coaching staff -- featuring head coach Bill O'Brien and linebackers Ron Vanderlinden -- as well as the school's prestigious MBA program.

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There's no need for me to rehash all that's gone down at Penn State since this time last year, but the fact that a talented linebacker actually has to think twice about becoming a Nittany Lion tells you how much things have changed.

That doesn't mean it's impossible though, so let's break down the options here:

Brian Kelly and Notre Dame are building an extremely impressive 2013 class that's highlighted by 5-star linebacker Jaylon Smith, who is the No. 1 outside linebacker recruit in the nation and No.4 overall player according to Rivals. The Irish also have a commit from ESPN 4-star inside linebacker Michael Deeb.

Florida, on the other hand, currently has the No. 5 ranked class in the nation according to Rivals, and boasts 10 4-star commits—three of them are linebackers though. The Gators have four linebacker commits overall right now.

Finally, we have the Nittany Lions. Penn State has 14 total commits at the moment,  seven of which are 4-star players. Their 2013 class only features one linebacker so far, who is a Rivals 3-star player in Brandon Bell.

Conclusion:

I have to believe the odds are high that Anzalone will pick Penn State. He'd be coached by Ron Vanderlinden, and as far as competition at his position, he would have the best chance to stick out as a 4-star linebacker. At Notre Dame he'd be overshadowed by Smith, and at Florida he'd have three other 4-star linebackers to compete with.

It's been a rough go of things as of late for the Penn State football program, but eventually things must start over again. Bringing in a 4-star linebacker like Anzalone would be a good place to begin.

The odds may be for for them in this situation.