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Fate of WB Area Purchasing Director in limbo; solicitor can’t offer details

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Alleged WB mart bandit captured

<p>After a few weeks of losing players to transfers and the draft, Penn State got back to building the roster back up on Friday.</p><p>The Nittany Lions picked up their first verbal commitment for the 2019 recruiting class since landing 18 players during the December signing window.</p><p>New Jersey defensive lineman <a href="https://247sports.com/Player/Smith-Vilbert-46054589/" target="_blank">Smith Vilbert</a> pledged on Friday afternoon, as the three-star prospect from St. Joseph Regional High School in Montvale picked the Lions over his other finalist, Florida.</p><p>&#8220;Blessed to say that I am committed to Penn State University,&#8221; Vilbert wrote on Twitter.</p><p>Vilbert had just taken an official visit to Gainesville to check out the Gators last weekend before deciding on Penn State. He had also visited Oregon in November and had scholarship offers from the likes of Florida State, Miami, Nebraska, Virginia and UCLA.</p><p>At 6-foot-6, 250 pounds, Vilbert was a late riser who picked up his Penn State offer at the end of his junior season in November and took his official visit to Happy Valley in December, though he held off signing in the early period.</p><p>He&#8217;ll be able to officially join the Lions when the next signing window opens on Feb. 6.</p><p>Also a standout basketball player, Vilbert turned his attention more to football this year, resulting in his late run of offers. He recorded six sacks as a junior, helping lead the Green Knights to a 10-2 record, a state championship and a New Jersey Non-Public Group 4 championship.</p><p>Facing powerhouse Bergen Catholic in that final game, Vilbert had his best performance, coming up with two sacks to help pitch a 13-0 shutout. The win led NJ.com to name St. Joseph its 2018 Team of the Year in football.</p><p>Interestingly, 247Sports gave Vilbert a pro comparison of Jack Crawford &#8212; another latecomer to football who went from a New Jersey private school to Penn State as a defensive end, where he was a full-time starter. Crawford was a fifth-round draft pick and just finished his eighth NFL season.</p><p>Vilbert checks in as the nation&#8217;s No. 685 overall recruit in the 247Sports Composite, the No. 49 strong-side defensive end and the No. 15 prospect in New Jersey.</p><p><iframe src="https://www.hudl.com/embed/video/3/8905227/5b93d5ed066bce063c90ba73" height="360" width="640"></iframe></p><p>Defensive line was a priority for the Lions coming out of the early signing period, in which they inked two players at the position &#8212; end Adisa Isaac and tackle Hakeem Beamon.</p><p>And the number could double by the end of the weekend.</p><p>Maryland defensive tackle D&#8217;Von Ellies is set to announce his choice between Penn State and USC while playing in the Polynesian Bowl, a high school all-star game in Hawaii. The game kicks off just after midnight Saturday night into Sunday morning and Ellies will make his pick public during the broadcast, which is on CBS Sports Network.</p><p>Ellies is a four-star recruit and No. 7 overall in Maryland.</p><p><strong>Lions add game with UMass</strong></p><p>Penn State hasn&#8217;t officially announced it yet, but Massachusetts athletic director Ryan Bamford said Friday that the Minutemen will be headed to Beaver Stadium in 2023.</p><p>According to a <a href="https://umassathletics.com/news/2019/1/17/massachusetts-football-announces-future-schedule-additions-updates.aspx" target="_blank">UMass release</a>, &#8220;Massachusetts will travel to Penn State in 2023, part of a two-sport agreement that includes a home-and-home men&#8217;s basketball series starting in 2021 at UMass.&#8221;</p><p>The game is set for Nov. 11, 2023, according to UMass as the Big Ten will be shifting its league schedule to allow for more conference games in the opening weeks of the season, opening up later weeks for non-league games such as this one.</p><p>That season, the Lions will open the year by hosting West Virginia and Delaware before playing two Big Ten games at Illinois and Northwestern before a bye week at the end of September.</p><p>Penn State typically fills out its non-conference slate with one power-five opponent and two smaller schools. UMass does not belong to a conference as an FBS independent.</p><p>After finishing its four-year series with Pitt in 2019, the Lions have home-and-home sets scheduled with Virginia Tech (2020, 2025), Auburn (2021, 2022) and West Virginia (2023, 2024).</p><p>UMass and Penn State have played once before, as the Lions won 48-7 in 2014, James Franklin&#8217;s first season as head coach.</p><style>
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<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Derek Levarse</p><p>dlevarse@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div>

Penn State adds New Jersey pass rusher Smith Vilbert to 2019 recruiting class