Penn State loses commitment from linebacker Elijah Littlejohn

North Carolina linebacker Elijah Littlejohn is officially headed elsewhere, announcing on Sunday that he’s switched his commitment from Penn State to Georgia. His decision comes just a week after Littlejohn took an official visit to Athens.

“Georgia has always been pushing hard for me since the beginning of my junior year,” Littlejohn told Rivals. “It has always been a top school, but once I really started thinking about Georgia was when Coach [James] Franklin got fired from Penn State. Georgia coaches reached out to me and it took off from there.”

Back in April, Penn State offered the 6-foot-2, 220-pound prospect during an unofficial visit to watch spring practice. Linebackers coach Dan Connor made a strong first impression on the West Charlotte prospect, asserting the Nittany Lions as the team to beat once he took his official visit in early June. Following an official visit to Georgia Tech, Littlejohn announced his commitment to Penn State the following day, June 16.

However, that didn’t stop a few other prominent programs from showing interest once official visits ended this past summer. Ohio State and Georgia, in particular, have been showing serious interest for months. Oregon and Vanderbilt were also involved.

“He’s hearing from all the heavy hitters,” said West Charlotte head coach Sam Greiner shortly after former Penn State head coach James Franklin was fired. “I don’t want to put out which schools without talking to him first, but all the heavy hitters are swarming because he’s balling this year. He’s gotten bigger as well. I know he’s up over 6-2 now and over 220 [pounds]. He’s up for player of the year in our area. Elijah is close to double-digit sacks now and has around 15 tackles for loss. He’s having an unreal presence.”

Littlejohn is a three-star prospect in the Industry Rankings. He’s ranked No. 413 nationally, No. 30 at the linebacker position and 19th overall in North Carolina.