Brandon Collier’s tireless efforts have paid off for another young European football talent as Dusseldorf Panther prospect Joseph Darkwa has committed to Penn State University’s Nittany Lions.
The 6’5″, 272 lb Darkwa grew up in Germany and picked the Nittany Lions over Colorado, UCLA, Georgia Tech, Rutgers, and others. A member of Collier’s PPI Recruits crew, Darkwa displayed his skills despite only starting to play football four years ago after moving over from basketball.
His film showed Penn State head coach James Franklin and his staff that he has plenty of explosion and speed that can be paired with refined technique to make him a contributor at the college level.
Collier, the founder of PPI Recruits, who also coached Darkwa:
“Any time a kid is 6-foot-5, 272 pounds with his twitch and movement skills, they are playing at high levels. He has a NFL-ready body and is a kid that will only get better and better! Joseph has gained over 50 pounds in the last two years and has actually gotten quicker.”
Germany ➡️ Happy Valley!
Welcome HOME, @DarkwaAppiah! #WeAre19#PSUSigningDay pic.twitter.com/WZ9fM4tZ64— Penn State Football (@PennStateFball) February 6, 2019
Darkwa is Penn State’s first European commitment in the James Franklin era, but he’s hardly the first foreign-born player, as the Lions have a number of Canadian natives on their roster and also had Australian punter Daniel Pasquariello from 2014-2017.
#WeAre19
The Pennsylvania State University!!
@PennStateFball @coachjfranklin @SpenceChaos @Coach_Galiano @CoachPry_LBU pic.twitter.com/Ua2hFEOja2— Joseph Appiah Darkwa (@DarkwaAppiah) February 1, 2019
Darkwa played in the German Football League for the Dusseldorf Panthers’ U-19 team and had offers from nine schools: Penn State, UCLA, Rutgers, Cincinnati, Colorado, UConn, Georgia Tech, Indiana and Virginia.
