Top remaining in-state targets for Penn State football set official visits to Michigan

It hasn’t been the best week for James Franklin and his “dominate the state” recruiting mantra. On Thursday, Penn State football missed out on Pennsylvania’s top prospect and one of the best quarterbacks in the 2025 recruiting cycle, Matt Zollers, who committed to Missouri. Now, the Nittany Lions appear to be on a path toward a summer recruiting battle with a Big Ten rival for the top two remaining in-state prospects on the board. It looks like these two recruits will take in Ann Arbor together, as Southern Lehigh’s Andrew Olesh and Central Bucks East’s Michael Carroll have scheduled their official visits to Michigan for the same weekend in June.

Andrew Olesh and Michael Carroll schedule official visits to Michigan

Both Andrew Olesh and Michael Carroll rank among the top prospects for James Franklin and Penn State football in the entire 2025 recruiting cycle. But both are top targets for Sherrone Moore and the Michigan Wolverines, as well.

The new staff in Ann Arbor is the first to get official visits on the books for this summer, locking Carroll and Olesh in for trips on the weekend of June 21-23, per On3’s Visit Center. Both will also have visits with the Nittany Lions in late May or early June, but nothing has been officially reported yet.

A four-star, Andrew Olesh is both the No. 4 tight end in America and the No. 4 prospect in Pennsylvania for the 2025 recruiting cycle in On3’s rankings. The 6-5, 215-pound Southern Lehigh standout hauled in 53 catches for 972 yards and 10 touchdowns as a junior.

Olesh picked up his offer from Penn State football in January, but has added 18 since. His eighth visit to Happy Valley came on March 14, while the June visit will be his first to Michigan. On Friday, Andrew Olesh announced that he will release a top eight list on April 15.

Michael Carroll is likely a name that rings a bell for Nittany Lion faithful across generations. Carroll’s father, Micahel Carroll Sr., played linebacker for Penn State football in the late 1990s. The younger Carroll is now On3’s third-rated interior offensive lineman in the 2025 cycle.

The 6-6, 300-pound Central Bucks East product, also the third-ranked player in Pennsylvania for the cycle, has been called a “must get” prospect by James Franklin. Carroll, who will trim his contenders list to 12 on Monday, has been to Penn State six times, most recently in January. June’s official visit will be his fifth trip to Ann Arbor.

Where does Penn State football stand with Pennsylvania’s top prospects in the 2025 recruiting cycle?

James Franklin takes pride in recruiting the state of Pennsylvania well. He also has a mission to recruit the top player in the Keystone State each year, something Penn State football has done for three consecutive cycles.

However, it doesn’t look like the Nittany Lions are setting themselves up for a four-peat. With Zollers’ commitment on Thursday, Pennsylvania’s top prospect in both the On3 and 247Sports rankings have decided to play their college football elsewhere. Defensive end Zahir Mathis, the commonwealth’s top recruit according to 247Sports, committed to Ohio State in January.

But it certainly hasn’t been all misses for Franklin and Penn State. The Nittany Lions have locked in linebacker Alex Tatsch, the state’s No. 2 prospect per On3, who has been on a meteoric rise up the rankings in recent months. Franklin also has a commitment from top corner Xxavier Thomas and is expected to land the state’s top wide receiver, Lex Cyrus.

While it’s impossible to keep every player home in each cycle, Andrew Olesh and Michael Carroll are perhaps among the most important targets still available for James Franklin and Penn State football in the 2025 recruiting cycle. Both are recruitments that should be Nittany Lion wins on paper. But that doesn’t diminish the importance of either if pen is put to paper on signing day in December.