Top prospect commits to Penn State

Cornerback Armani Reeves of West Roxbury, Mass., announced Friday he has committed to play his college football at Penn State, continuing a terrific recruiting week for the Nittany Lions.

The 5-foot-10, 185-pound Reeves, who attends Catholic Memorial School, chose the Lions over Michigan, Notre Dame and Boston College, making his formal announcement at a press conference at his school.

Two recruiting web sites, Scout and Rivals, each rank Reeves a four-star player. Scout said Reeves is the nation's 10th-ranked cornerback, and Rivals has him at No. 16 at his position.

In his junior season last year, Reeves intercepted four passes and returned two punts for touchdowns. He also played wide receiver and accounted for 16 TD receptions.

Reeves, who visited Penn State last weekend, told the website Lions247 that he chose the Nittany Lions because of academics and also how they plan to utilize him on offense, defense and special teams.

"Just the relationship I had with the coaches and how it felt like home," he told Lions247. It was a good time to commit there and I'm happy that I'm going to go there."

Reeves, who is originally from Leeds, Ala., reportedly is a first cousin of Charles Barkley, the former 76ers great.

Earlier in the week, Penn State picked up huge commitments from five-star defensive tackle Tommy Schutt of Glen Ellyn, Ill., and four-star wide receiver Eugene Lews of Plymouth, Pa. The Nittany Lions now have 16 oral commitments for the freshman Class of 2012.

--Joe Juliano