Penn State Football, Zion Tracy Penn State Nittany Lions cornerback Zion Tracy (Matthew O’Haren-Imagn Images)

Penn State gets Commitment from Transfer Ibn McDaniels

Originally posted on Nittany Central | By Ian Purdy | Last updated Jan 9, 2026 7:10 PM ET

https://nittanycentral.com/feed/

Penn State Football will stay hot in the transfer portal . Today, former Syracuse Cornerback Ibn McDaniels announced his commitment to Penn State. The redshirt freshman will have 3 years of eligibility remaining.

McDaniels is yet to be rated by the transfer portal rankings. Coming out of high school, McDaniels was a 3-star according to all of the recruiting services.

McDaniels is from well within Penn State’s recruiting footprint. The Elizabeth New Jersey native actually camped at Penn State before he ultimately landed at Syracuse for his first two years of college.

What Kind of Player is Ibn McDaniels?

Right off the bat, McDaniels’ size jumps out. He is listed at 6 foot 3, 205 pounds.

Interestingly enough, he got reps as the Nickel Cornerback at Syracuse. A role similar to the one Zion Tracy plays at Penn State. McDaniels could come in and backup Tracy at Nickel and play lots of special teams.

That’s essentially what McDaniels did at Syracuse. In his redshirt season he logged two tackles and a pass break up. Following his red shirt season, McDaniels logged two tackles in his red shirt freshman season, a season in which he saw action in 11 games on special teams and defense.

In the end, Penn State Football is getting a very quality depth piece who could develop. He will instantly be a special team impact player and very much needed depth in the Cornerback room.

This article first appeared on Nittany Central and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: