National Signing Day: Elijah Reeder’s ‘Surreal’ Journey to Signing with Penn State

Elijah Reeder had wrapped up his senior football season at Central and narrowed down his college choices to a pair of FCS programs when one phone call to his head coach started a life-changing whirlwind.

In late November, an Iowa State staff member had come across the film for the 6-foot-6, 210-pound senior defensive end and was intrigued.

“I had filled out one of the questionnaires on their database, and when his highlight film came up, there were some explosive first few plays, which is something you can’t teach,” Central head coach Jarrett Pidgeon said.

Reeder thought he would be choosing between Monmouth University and the University of New Haven. Now the Cyclones came calling out of the blue, proving that you never know who’s watching.

“Before the weekend I went to New Haven (for an official visit), my coach called me down to his office to tell me he received calls (from Iowa State) about their recruiting,” Reeder said. “I was like blown away. It was crazy. I hadn’t talked to any programs that big. It was just shocking, and it grew from there.”

There was only one weekend in November left before the dead period began in the final days ahead of the early signing period on Dec. 3. Iowa State was playing a road game at Oklahoma State on Nov. 29, but the Cyclones’ staff wanted Reeder to visit the campus in Ames, Iowa, anyway because they wouldn’t be able to speak to him by rule after Nov. 30. They offered him a scholarship on Sunday during his visit, only hours before they wouldn’t be permitted to talk with him.

“They had a snowstorm when I got there with my family, so we couldn’t do too much,” Reeder said. “I couldn’t really see dorms or apartments, but we got to see the facilities, and it was incredible.”

In the span of about a week, Reeder had gone from a handful of FCS offers to an offer from a Big 12 team. Three days later, he officially signed with Iowa State, who called him “a hidden gem” in their announcement about his commitment.

But the story didn’t end there.

A day later, reports began surfacing that Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell was a prime candidate for the vacant head coaching position at Penn State, which fired head coach James Franklin during the season.

“You got to understand how quickly that happened,” Pidgeon said. “(Reeder) went (to Iowa State) Saturday night, Sunday at midnight they could no longer talk to him, he signed on that Wednesday, it’s all great, Campbell has a press conference, and then Thursday we start hearing rumblings about the Penn State job. On Friday, Campbell leaves for Penn State.”

“It was wild,” Reeder said. “We were kind of worried at first because we didn’t know how the whole ordeal would work out. I decided to decommit from Iowa State and was talking to Campbell and (general manager) Derek Hoodjer about what happened and what was next.”

After Reeder announced he was decommitting from Iowa State following the coaching change, the floodgates opened.

“Once he pulled his letter of intent, a lot of schools began throwing around offers,” Pidgeon said. “It was a whirlwind. He went from the excitement of the early signing day and thinking he would just enjoy the rest of his senior year, to now all of a sudden you’re in limbo. It’s exciting, but very nerve-racking.”

A player who was mulling over FCS offers less than two weeks earlier now had interest from Rutgers and Boston College, as well as what he said was a low six-figure NIL deal to commit to Missouri in the SEC.

“I heard a lot of different reasons why these schools never talked to me before, and they were saying they missed out,” Reeder said. “It was crazy to have all these schools calling me. I definitely was just trying to stay humble. My parents do a really good job with that. They always keep me grounded, that’s how they raised me, so it wasn’t difficult or anything like that.”

There was one offer Reeder coveted more than any other: Penn State. Once Campbell indicated that he still wanted the Central senior as part of his recruiting class at the Big Ten school, the four-star prospect announced his verbal commitment to the Nittany Lions on Jan. 21.

Blessed and thankful to announce my commitment to play football at Penn State to continue my athletic career. Thank you to all the coaches who recruited me and everyone who supported me along the way.
WE ARE!
#Committed @CoachMC_PSU @BrianDohn247@Central_Reg_FB @ColeeCFB pic.twitter.com/zSgJ3vwMeR

— Elijah (@elijahreeder13) January 21, 2026

“Once we got that call, it was almost relieving,” Pidgeon said.

“It meant a lot,” Reeder said. “It truly showed that they’re going to take care of us. Some coaches are like car salesmen. We knew what their integrity was and how they were, but that truly showed it.”

Reeder will now officially sign with Penn State on Wednesday as part of National Signing Day. He is the first Central player to sign with an FBS program since offensive lineman Adam Skidmore with Tulane in 2010.

After a senior season in which he earned Shore Sports Insider All-Shore honors with 49 tackles, 15 for a loss, and 8 sacks, Reeder joins a 15-member Penn State recruiting class that has a lot to prove. The incoming group is ranked No. 63 in the country by both 247 Sports and ESPN, which ranks near the bottom of the Big Ten and dramatically lower than the recruiting classes brought in by Franklin.

Reeder’s recruitment is all about projection and packing on size on his rangy frame while retaining his quickness off the edge. There is still much untapped upside in the Golden Eagles senior, a versatile athlete who also plays basketball and is a high jumper on the track team. Reeder is ranked as the No. 4 edge rusher in New Jersey for the Class of 2026 and among the top 250 recruits in the nation at any position by 247 Sports.

“I’m just super excited to really dig into my potential,” he said. “I’m a three-sport athlete, so I’ve never been football year round. I’m just so excited to become the best version of myself.”

Reeder said he plans to pursue a master’s degree over five years while at Penn State in an age where players are often deciding their future on a year-to-year basis thanks to the transfer portal.

He is the poster child for what Pidgeon is selling at Central: coachable players with good grades, no disciplinary issues and a high standing in the community. He makes it two scholarship players in two years for Central, as former standout wide receiver Royalty Riley is now at Stony Brook.

Reeder is also an increasing rarity in the Shore Conference: an FBS recruit from a public school program.

“It really does mean a lot,” Reeder said. “We’ve had studs come out (of Central), but nobody’s really done what I’m doing. These kids need to know you can stay public and still succeed and play at a big collegiate level. Coaches are going to find you no matter what.”

He joins Donovan Catholic offensive lineman Kai Pritchard (Illinois) and Red Bank Catholic WR/DB Dan Zabora (Air Force) as the only FBS recruits from the Shore Conference Class of 2026.

It will be a memorable day when he makes it official with Penn State after thinking his future was heading in a much different direction only a few months ago.

“I wouldn’t have believed you if you told me it would be like this,” he said. “I’m so excited to take that next step and get on campus. It feels surreal that I will be playing in Beaver Stadium in the fall.” 

Scott Stump is the football editor and a reporter for Shore Sports Insider. He first started covering Shore Conference football in 1999 and has covered basketball, baseball and seemingly every other Shore Conference sport at some point. 

Email: scottstump25@gmail.com