It was anticipated that, if Penn State was to get a 20th commitment for its 2010 football recruiting class, it would come from a defensive player from the South.
That's come to be. It just wasn't the defensive player from the South everyone expected, four-star Georgia tackle Mike Thornton.
Brad Bars, an unheralded 6-foot-3, 225-pound linebacker/defensive end from Nashville, Tenn. Montgomery Bell Academy, according to multiple online and media sources, committed to the Nittany Lions after a visit from assistant coach Larry Johnson.
At the time he committed, Bars had offers from Army, Navy, Harvard, Georgia Southern and Central Michigan. However, it has been reported that colleges like Notre Dame and Michigan had been giving him a close look of late.
Both Bars' father and uncle played for the Fighting Irish.
The younger Bars led his team to the Tennessee Division II-AA championship game this season and is reputed to have a 300-pound bench press and run a 4.5-second 40-yard dash.
Bars committed to the Lions without visiting University Park. He is supposed to be on campus this weekend.
"I was attracted by the type players they have - tough," Bars told the Nashville Tennesseean newspaper. "Even without seeing the place, I can associate with that."
Bars is a member of the Tennesseean's "Dandy Dozen" college football prospects in central Tennessee.
The Lions remain in the running for Thornton. The 6-1, 280-pound Stephenson tackle is slated to announce for Penn State, Georgia or Kentucky on signing day, Wednesday.
- Philip Cmor
