Tavian Branch already went through changes during an intense recruiting process.

Now, he is dealing with the fact that the coach, James Franklin, whom he committed to just a few weeks ago, is no longer at Penn State University.

On Sunday, following the firing of Franklin, Branch, the three-star recruit and powerful Riverside senior, said he wanted to take some time to process the announcement.

“I am in disbelief,” Branch, who is preparing this week for Riverside’s Triboro Rivalry game against Old Forge, said Sunday. “I understand that this is part of the business. I am going to talk to my family about some things. I need some time to think about this.”

Then, Monday afternoon, he posted to his X account that, “At this time, I am still committed to Penn State. However, due to the recent changes and uncertainty, I have decided to reopen my recruitment.”

Within minutes of his posting, Branch received a scholarship offer from Nebraska.

Penn State four-star safety commit Matt Sieg also announced via social media that he, too, is reopening his recruitment. Four-star wide receiver Davian Brown decommitted from Penn State, according to Hayes Fawcett, a national recruiting and transfer portal reporter at Rivals and On3Sports.

In June, Branch verbally committed to Rutgers. Then, before his team’s game against Hanover Area in Week 2, the 6-foot-5, 300-pound lineman announced he decommitted and opened up his recruitment.

The following week, during an official visit to Beaver Stadium, Branch announced via his social media that he committed to Penn State.

During Riverside’s Thursday night game against Montrose, Franklin visited Branch and watched the first half of the game during Penn State’s bye week before the White Out game against Oregon.

Penn State lost to Oregon in overtime, then subsequently lost to UCLA, which was 0-4 and replaced its head coach, offensive coordinator and defensive coordinator. Franklin received an abundance of scrutiny and criticism following the major upset in the Big Ten.

Saturday afternoon, Penn State lost, 22-21, to Northwestern in a game where it was a more than three-touchdown favorite.

By Sunday, Franklin was fired. Several Penn State commits, including five-star running back Kemon Spell of McKeesport who played against Delaware Valley earlier this season, four-star linebacker Gabriel Jenkins and four-star offensive tackle Layton Van Brandt, who are all juniors in high school and members of the Class of 2027, decommitted.

Four-star wide receiver Khalil Taylor decommitted last Friday before the Northwestern loss.

The early three-day signing period runs from Dec. 3 to Dec. 5.

Branch, an all-state and All-Region defensive lineman, had many scholarship options following his junior season at Riverside.

His final schools before committing to Rutgers in June included Penn State, Alabama, Oklahoma and Notre Dame.

During the recruiting process, Branch received scholarship offers from Boston College, Buffalo, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Duke, Florida, Kent State, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Oklahoma State, which he visited in April, Old Dominion, Pittsburgh, South Carolina, Syracuse, Temple, Virginia Tech, West Virginia and Wisconsin.

Originally Published: October 13, 2025 at 2:13 PM EDT