Penn State football: Pa. running back nixes Rutgers, commits to Nittany Lions

Penn State picked up its fourth verbal commitment in the 2015 recruiting class when Pennsylvania running back Saquon Barkley flipped his commitment from Rutgers to the Nittany Lions.

Barkley announced his commitment — which is non-binding until he signs a letter of intent — on Twitter.

The 5-foot-11, 190-pound running back from Whitehall originally committed to Rutgers in September. Barkley also had offers from Pittsburgh, Boston College and Connecticut, according to 24-7 Sports.

Barkley is listed as a four-star recruit by 24-7 Sports and Rivals.com. His commitment followed a busy Junior Day weekend for Penn State when the Nittany Lions corralled three prospects, two of them four-star players.

Four-star offensive tackle Ryan Bates (Archbishop Wood), four-star athlete Kamonte Carter (Gaithersburg, Md.) and two-star safety Jarvis Miller (Suffield, Conn.) all committed on Feb. 15.

This story was originally published February 20, 2014 at 12:23 AM with the headline "Penn State football: Pa. running back nixes Rutgers, commits to Nittany Lions."