European recruits become part of signing day

Power Five schools increasingly tap overseas pipeline.

Hero Kanu realized this college football thing was serious when Penn State offered him a scholarship before he had ever played a snap.

He was 15 and still living at home in Germany.

“That was the moment where I was like, ‘OK, now I really have to get into it and develop myself, not only football skills but language and American academics.’ So we looked for a high school,” Kanu said.

The 17-year-old Kanu is the cream of the international crop of recruits expected to make their decisions when the early signing period begins Wednesday. The 6-foot-5, 290-pound defensive lineman’s shortlist is the envy of any kid who dreams of playing bigtime college football: Georgia, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Ohio State and USC.

Schools from the Power Five conferences have increasingly tapped a European pipeline for young talent. Recruits from Germany, Sweden, Denmark and Britain are expected to sign with programs including Michigan, Vanderbilt, West Virginia, Illinois and Texas A&M.

Brandon Collier, founder of PPI Recruits, estimated that 10 Europeans this cycle will sign to play at Power Five schools — up by a few from last year. Nearly all of them are his recruits.

Across Division I more generally, though, the trend is shifting after several years of steady growth. Coaches are becoming choosier as more college players enter the transfer portal or gain an extra year of eligibility because of the coronavirus impact.

By the traditional signing date in February, Collier estimates that up to 20 Europeans will be signed to Division I programs overall — about on par with the past two years.

There was no hesitation on Kanu, though, a “three-technique” lineman who can play every down.

“In terms of recruiting and rankings, he’s the biggest European recruit ever,” said Collier, who began working with Kanu less than three years ago after the teenager outgrew soccer in his hometown near Munich.

Penn State’s offer came on the recommendation of Collier and before Kanu enrolled at Santa Margarita Catholic High School in Southern California’s Orange County. Kanu picked up another honor by being selected to play in the All-american Bowl — an allstar game of the top high school players — on Jan. 8 in San Antonio. He will sign Wednesday but doesn’t plan to announce his decision until the all-star game.

Vanderbilt has verbal commitments from defensive ends Linus Zunk of Germany and Darren Agu of Britain, although Agu visited Tennessee this month. Vanderbilt is also after German defensive lineman Yilanan Ouattara.

Another German defensive end, Aric Burton, has committed to West Virginia, continuing a European trend for the Mountaineers.