Messiah Mickens
Running Back, Class of 2026
Harrisburg, Harrisburg, Pa.
5-10, 200
Virginia Tech and James Franklin landed a splash on the recruiting trail with the addition of four-star running back Messiah Mickens on Tuesday. He’s the first commitment of the Franklin era.
The #Hokies have their first commitment of the James Franklin era: four-star running back Messiah Mickens.
The Harrisburg, Pa., native flips from Penn State, according to his Instagram. pic.twitter.com/xro4BUmraw— David Cunningham (@therealdcunna) November 25, 2025
Once a long-term pledge for Penn State who committed to the school on Aug. 19, 2023, he decommitted and reopened his recruitment in November after Franklin was fired. Then, after visiting Blacksburg for the Miami game, he committed shortly after to the Hokies.
Mickens had a fantastic offer list that included Alabama, Baylor, Duke, Georgia, Indiana, Iowa State, Kentucky, Maryland, Miami, Michigan, Michigan State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Oregon, Purdue, Rutgers, South Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee, Texas A&M, USC, West Virginia and Wisconsin.
He’s a highly-rated prospect by the recruiting services:
- ESPN: Four-star, No. 4 player in Pa., No. 13 running back, No. 141 nationally
- Rivals: Four-star, No. 7 player in Pa., No. 22 running back, No. 256 nationally
- 247Sports: Four-star, No. 9 player in Pa., No. 17 running back
As a junior at Harrisburg High School in 2024, he racked up 1,124 rushing yards and 21 touchdowns while averaging 7.8 yards per carry. He also showed out on the defensive side of the ball, posting 81 tackles, including 16.5 sacks. Moreover, he’s a dual-sport athlete who ran track.
Mickens is set to join an already impressive running back room under coach Elijah Brooks that includes Marcellous Hawkins (r-Sr. in 2026) and Jeffrey Overton Jr. (So.). Hawkins has run for 749 yards in his first season after jumping up from the Division II ranks, averaging 6.3 yards per carry, while Overton returned from injury and exploded for 129 all-purpose yards in the last three games.
He is the first top-10 player from Pennsylvania to commit to the Hokies since running back Shai McKenzie, the 247Sports composite’s No. 6 player in the 2014 class. He’s also Tech’s first unanimous four-star running back commit since David Wilson in the 2009 class.
Messiah Mickens Links:
247Sports Hudl Rivals Twitter