Mornhinweg impressed with Penn State visit, decision near

Could Skyler Mornhinweg be the next big-time Philadelphia-area quarterback to head to Penn State?

The St. Joseph's Prep senior has the Nittany Lions among his short list of finalists and is expected to announce his decision next week, a source close to Mornhinweg said.

Mornhinweg orginially gave a verbal committment to Stanford as a sophomore but opted out when coach Jim Harbaugh took the 49ers job. Stanford remains a contender, but Penn State, Tennessee, Alabama and Illinois have emerged as the leading candidates for the 6-foot-3, 215-pound quarterback.

Mornhinweg and his father, Marty, the Eagles offensive coordinator, took an official visit to Penn State last month. They met with coach Joe Paterno and his staff and came away very impressed with the program, the source said.

The Lions have had previous success luring quarterback talent from the region when they bagged Pat Devlin of Downingtown East several years ago. That relationship, however, ended in divorce when Devlin transferred to Delaware.

Mornhinweg has been recruited by Penn State linebackers coach Ron Vanderlinden.