After a barren stretch of recruiting, Penn State has been on an absolute roll lately, drawing the commitments of some of their top targets over the past few weeks.  Today, yet another elite recruit, Khairi Fortt, of Connecticut, announced that he, too, would suit up for the Nittany Lions next season.

This might have been considered one of the most open secrets of the recruiting trail, as Fortt has been to Penn State on numerous occasions (6 times, dating back to the 8th grade), and was rumored to have given his commitment last weekend, when he visited Penn State and stood on the sidelines for Penn State’s loss to Iowa.  Still, Fortt maintained that Georgia and North Carolina were still in the mix, until today, when he definitively chose Penn State.  The Stamford Advocate gives us the real reason why Fortt chose Penn State:

Fortt had a great visit when he went to Georgia during the summer. He made an instant connection with coach Mark Richt and his staff, loved the campus and program and the school vaulted Penn State at the time.

Fortt made his official visit to Georgia on the weekend of Sept. 12 and saw the Bulldogs’ 41-37 win over South Carolina. Fortt, who has family in the area, said his mind changed when, on two different occasions, the players who were put in charge of showing him around abandoned him. On one instance, Fortt was left to wander the campus by himself early in the morning.”Two guys left me,” Fortt said. “I was left at a dorm party with people I didn’t know. Once I was just walking alone in the streets. Georgia is a school in the south, in a top conference, the SEC, the weather is warm, I have a lot of family there and the academics are good. It was all how I connected with the players.” Fortt came home and had pretty much decided he would commit to the Nittany Lions.

Thank you very much, Georgia players!

SI.com also reports Fortt’s commitment, and provides us with a couple of choice quotes:

“I picked Penn State because I thought it was a great institution and program where I could mature as a man and role model,” Fortt said. “All of the other colleges had wonderful aspects but Penn State had the ‘IT’ factor and full package, which set them apart from any other school for me.”

Penn State beat out USC, Michigan, Tennessee, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Alabama, Miami, Florida, Oregon, and, in total, 30 other schools for the services of Fortt, who will enroll in January, and should help stock the cabinets at Linebacker U, along with 5-star recruit Mike Hull (no relation to Josh).

“They say in Happy Valley that if God wasn’t a Penn State, why is the sky blue and white?” said Fortt. “Who am I to argue with God?”

Fortt is rated as a 4-star outside linebacker prospect by both Scout and Rivals, though Rivals ranks Fortt as the #30 overall prospect in the country and as the #2 player at his position, nationally, while Scout scout only ranks the linebacker as their #5 OLB recruit.

On the other hand, ESPN sees the 6’2, 225 pound Fortt as an inside linebacker, and grades him as a 4-star player, an 81 overall, and as their #2 inside linebacker prospect.  As always, Scouts, Inc. provides a detailed video and scouting report over at ESPN:

Fortt is a strong, physically stout linebacker prospect and maybe one of the better projected strong side ‘backers in this class. Has all the physical attributes you look for in the position. Tall, thickly-built with explosive power and functional strength. High-cut frame but still plays with good bend in his knees, flexibility and leverage.

We would like to see him make quicker reads on the football between the tackles, but he still shows the good downhill burst to beat blockers to the point of attack and blow up the inside run. Can mirror with good short-area change-of-direction skill between the tackles. One of the better linebackers we have seen in this class at stalemating the cutoff block when reached at the second level and shedding demonstrating his impressive hand strength.

Does tend to open up his whole body and will need to work slipping the blocks of bigger linemen at the next level. Flashes good lateral agility and hips pursuing outside of the tackles with direct angles to the ball. Long strider who covers a lot of ground quickly sideline-to-sideline. Closes on the ball carrier with good burst and velocity in space.

Very strong, explosive tackler. However, he does flash some stiffness opening to turn and run on pursuit and in coverage. May struggle if matched up in space. Has some original wasted motion and we have concerns about his ability to consistently make plays inside-out on faster ball carriers at the next level. Not real reactive or fast-twitched. While he certainly shows good range and lateral agility for his size, physical tools and skill-set may be better suited in the short-range as a strong or inside ‘backer. We question his competition at times but he physically dominates which is what you want to see happen.

Fortt, who is also close friends with fellow PSU commit Silas Redd, a running back, was named to the U.S. Army Player of the Year watchlist last week, listing him as one of the top 30 players in the nation.  His commitment, today, will officially be made at a ceremony officially naming him to the U.S. Army All-American Game.  While an ACL sprain has slowed Fortt down, he should be able to return to action as early as next week.  Last year, as a junior, Fortt compiled 118 tackles, forced 4 fumbles, and snagged two interceptions.

Fortt becomes the 19th commitment for Penn State’s class of 2010, which keeps getting more and more impressive.  Though there have already been some highly touted players to commit for Penn State in this class, Fortt might just be the best yet.  The news of his commitment comes as no surprise to those who follow the recruiting trail, but it’s nonetheless a great moment for Penn State.  With only more a few more sports left in this class, and just a handful of blue-chippers left considering the Nittany Lions, Fortt’s commitment might be the last one for a while for Penn State.  Still, that doesn’t diminish the awesome efforts of the coaching staff in recruiting top high school talent this year, and hopefully strides are taken to ensure such great recruiting classes year after year.  Clearly, the most talented players in the nation want to come to Penn State.  Hopefully, soon, we can become a program that “reloads” and doesn’t have to “rebuild.”