Penn State Favored to Land Former 5-Star CB A.J. Harris From Transfer Portal

Penn State has a lot to replace at cornerback this offseason, and is looking to the transfer portal to do it.

The team is losing its two outside starters— Kalen King and Johnny Dixon— as well as nickelback Daequan Hardy— to the NFL Draft.

But there could be good news on the way for Penn State fans.

Both On3Sports and 247Sports have projected former five-star recruit A.J. Harris, who entered the transfer portal after a season at the University of Georgia, to commit to Penn State. At On3, Blue-White Illustrated’s Sean Fitz projected Harris to pick Penn State via the sites Recruiting Prediction Machine. At 247, Lions247’s Tyler Calvurso placed a “Crystal Ball” prediction for Harris to pick Penn State.

This transfer portal target visited Penn State this week.

Fitz wrote that there’s a “prior relationship” with Harris and Penn State, as well as with Penn State and Harris’ high school, Alabama’s Central Phenix.

“(Penn State cornerbacks coach Terry) Smith offered Harris out of high school in the Class of 2023,” Fitz wrote. “The Phenix City (Ala.) Central product was a high school teammate of former Penn State commit TJ Parker, who ended up at Clemson. Former Central cornerback Christian Campbell played for Smith before being drafted in the sixth round in 2018.”

Calvurso wrote that Penn State’s “trending in the right direction to land one of the top players in the NCAA Transfer Portal and it could happen soon.”

247 has Harris rated as the No. 7 overall player in the transfer portal and the No. 2 CB behind Harris’ former Georgia teammate, Nyland Green, who committed to Purdue. Harris ended his true freshman season playing in seven games, thus burning his redshirt. He’ll have three seasons of eligibility left.