Greg Webb went to two Penn State football games last season.
He didn't see signs of scandal or a program in disarray. He saw 110,000 spectators in Beaver Stadium, a college town in full bloom and his future.
"Penn State is the pinnacle of college football up north," said Webb, a junior defensive tackle at Timber Creek High School in Erial, Camden County who committed to attend Penn State on a football scholarship on Thursday.
The 6-foot-2, 295-pound Webb is one of New Jersey's most highly recruited players in the class of 2013. He is a consensus four-star recruit and rated as the No. 6 defensive tackle in the country by rivals.com.
Webb said he had 32 scholarship offers from some of the best college programs in the country, including reigning national champion Alabama, Florida, Tennessee, Miami, Texas A&M,Iowa, Michigan, Southern California and Ohio State.
Webb said he made visits to Rutgers, South Carolina and Maryland but knew Penn State was the place for him after a trip to State College, Pa., late last month.
"It was the coaches more than anything," Webb said.
Webb spoke highly of new Penn State coach Bill O'Brien and veteran defensive line coach Larry Johnson, a holdover from former Penn State coach Joe Paterno's staff.
Timber Creek coach Rob Hinson said Johnson's presence was a key factor in convincing Webb to commit to Penn State.
"Coach Johnson is his guy," Hinson said of Webb. "He's going to be a father figure for him away from home."
Along with senior linebacker Quanzell Lambert, who has signed with Rutgers, Webb led Timber Creek to a 12-0 record and the South Jersey Group 3 championship last season.
Webb collected 80 tackles, including 18 for losses. An explosive and athletic interior lineman, Webb had 10 sacks, six forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries.
Webb said he attended Penn State home games against Alabama and Iowa last season. He said he saw no evidence of the sex-abuse scandal associated with former Nittany Lions defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky that rocked the program.
"That didn't affect me," Webb said. "What I noticed most of all was 110,000 people going crazy, everybody having a great time. It was just a great atmosphere in the stadium and outside the stadium. I could see myself having a great time there."
Contact staff writer Phil Anastasia at 856-779-3223, panastasia@phillynews.com, or @PhilAnastasia on Twitter. Read his blog, "Jersey Side Sports," at www.philly.com/jerseysidesports
