ADDISON, Ill. -- The defensive line MVP from the Nike Opening Regional Chicago was Rosele (Ill.) Lake Park defensive tackle Mike Panasiuk, who also earned an invitation to The Opening as a result of his strong performance.
Iowa, Penn State in hot pursuit of 3-star DT Mike Panasiuk
The rising defensive tackle looks likely to end up playing in the Big 10.
“I was surprised in the beginning and didn’t really think I would be able to get it, but once I listened to the coaches and took all their advice, I took it in and thought that I would just do my best and come out here and compete. That’s what I did and luckily for me, I got that invite to The Opening.” he told SB Nation Recruiting on Sunday.
Panasiuk noted that anything can change at any time and that he doesn’t have a set list of favorites, but he did mention Wisconsin, Minnesota, Iowa, and Penn State as the programs currently standing out to him the most.
Wisconsin earned first billing from the 6’3, 285-pound defensive tackle, who cited the program’s history and the new coaching staff as the primary reasons for his interest.
“They plan on doing something great over there,” he said.
Frequent communication with outside linebackers coach Tim Tibesar and defensive line coach Inoke Breckterfield is also helping Wisconsin in the consensus three-star prospect’s recruitment.
Communication with Minnesota hasn’t happened yet, but the Golden Gophers did offer toward the end of April and a Lake Park teammate signed with head coach Jerry Kill in the 2015 class, so Panasiuk wants to visit Minneapolis during the summer. It’s the only visit that he has planned currently.
Iowa had a chance to impress Panasiuk on one of his first visits with the program’s tradition, while Penn State received a visit from Panasiuk early in the process that was “great.” The big defensive tackle said that those two schools are recruiting him the hardest.
Communication has been picking up with Oregon and Ohio State and he believes that the Ducks could be close to offering.
The consensus three-star prospect doesn’t currently have a timetable for a decision and said that he’s looking to establish a comfort level with the school he will eventually choose.
