According to On3Sports' National Recruiting Analyst Hayes Fawcett four-star running back and former Penn State Nittany Lions commit Messiah Mickens has narrowed his new list of schools down to three which include: Indiana, Ole Miss and Oklahoma.
God knows the plans he has for me!🙏🏾 https://t.co/RJAhszuyiD
— Messiah Mickens (@messiah_mickens) November 20, 2025
Messiah Mickens is the No. 209 player in the nation, 8th best player in the state of Pennsylvania and No. 14 running back according to 247Sports was Penn State’s first commit for the 2026 recruiting class, pledging all the way back in August of 2023.
The Harrisburg, Pennsylvania native reopened his recruitment after the Nittany Lions parted ways with longtime head coach James Franklin following a disappointing start to the season.
In addition to Indiana he also held offers from Auburn, Alabama, Oklahoma, Penn State, Baylor, Georgia, Miami, Michigan, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon, Tennessee, Texas A&M, and USC.
Mickens would become Indiana’s second highest-rated commitment in 2026 if he were to flip and join the Hoosiers, just behind 4-star defensive lineman Gabe Hill (ranked 212th nationally).
Landing a prospect with that much speed and pure play-making ability would be a huge get for Indiana as they try to compete year and and year out with the likes of Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, USC and Iowa.
Many Penn State commits that have “re-opened” their recruitments have begun adding new offers this week. With the December signing period around seven weeks away, it remains to be seen how much turnover there will be for schools across the country.