Blake Betton flips from Penn State to Wisconsin

Betton had been a Penn State commit since April. On Sunday afternoon that ended, and the Penn State beat had the news out within minutes.

Blue White Illustrated

@PennStateOn3

BREAKING: Penn State is down a commit in the Class of 2027 after linebacker Blake Betton flips to Wisconsin. Details: t.co/17ZbFqUU1o

This was a long time coming. According to On3, Wisconsin kept talking to Betton after he picked the Nittany Lions, things kept moving this fall, and he flipped while on a visit to Madison for the Badgers' game against USC. He'd already been to campus plenty, with a game-day visit, a Junior Day, spring practice and a fall trip. Inside linebackers coach Tuf Borland made him a top priority, and it worked.

As for the player: Betton is 6-foot-3 and roughly 205-210 pounds. He's played safety and wide receiver at Shakopee, and the plan is for him to grow into a college linebacker. His dad, Ray Betton, is the head coach at Shakopee, so he grew up around the game. As a junior he had 88 tackles, 4 tackles for loss, 4 pass breakups and 2 interceptions. He also played EYBL basketball, which explains the coverage skills. Rivals has him at 4 stars. The 247Sports composite has him as a high 3-star: the No. 35 linebacker and No. 468 overall in the country.

Tony Liebert

@TonyLiebert

Shakopee HS standout LB Blake Betton flips his Penn State commitment to Wisconsin. No. 4-ranked 2027 prospect in Minnesota.

Hayes Fawcett

@Hayesfawcett3

BREAKING: Four-Star LB Blake Betton has Flipped his Commitment from Penn State to Wisconsin, he tells me for @Rivals The 6’3 205 LB had been Committed to the Nittany Lions since April “Badger Nation, we home 🦡 🔴⚪️”

t.co/WSx3jGX9Dm t.co/9snlKxZkSB

The Penn State side of this hurts. Matt Campbell had recruited Betton back when he was at Iowa State, and that relationship was a big reason Betton committed to the Lions. But Campbell's first year in State College is a mess: 3-4 overall, 0-4 to open Big Ten play, including a 24-20 loss to Wisconsin where the Badgers came back from 17-0 down. Betton was at the White Out against USC on October 10, and Penn State lost that one 31-23. When you're recruiting a kid in the middle of a season like that, Saturdays matter.

Now the scoreboard. Wisconsin is up to 23 commits in the 2027 class, which Rivals ranks in the national top 30. Penn State drops to 21. Betton also had offers from Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, Auburn and Missouri, so the Badgers beat a real list for a Midwest kid. Keeping the upper Midwest at home is how Wisconsin has always won, and this is a clean version of it.

Next up: can Campbell stop the bleeding on the rest of the 2027 class before the early signing period, and does Wisconsin keep picking off Big Ten neighbors' commits? Flipping a top-5 Minnesota prospect away from a blue blood in late October is a good sign that Borland and the Badgers' staff can close.