Zach Bradshaw flips from Penn State to Virginia

Virginia landed the 17^th member of their 2013 recruiting class, when Maryland native Zach Bradshaw decommitted from Penn State and flipped to the Cavaliersin a matter of hours Tuesday. Bradshaw informed the Penn State staff that he would be heading elsewhere this morning, before driving down to Charlottesville and committing to the Cavaliers while on Grounds this afternoon. The Damascus native said that his final three, after decommitting from the Nittany Lions, were Virginia, South Carolina and Northwestern. Bradshaw also held offers from Michigan, Michigan State, West Virginia and many others. Bradshaw attends Damascus High School, where he was a teammate of current Virginia defensive back Brandon Phelps.

Bradshaw is an "athlete" who could play a number of different positions. Some teams recruited Bradshaw as a wide receiver, others as a tight end/h-back, and others as an outside linebacker. It appears that Virginia will start him out as an outside linebacker, an area of need, and perhaps move him to the offensive side of the ball if necessary. It's worth noting that he was committed to Penn State as a linebacker, so he obviously has no issue with playing the position if asked to. At 6'4'' 205 lbs with 40 yard dash speed in the 4.5 range, Bradshaw's athleticism is unquestionable. Both Rivals and 247sports rank Bradshaw as a high 3-star prospect.

The process by which Bradshaw broke off ties with Penn State and committed to Virginia unraveled very quickly. UVa had been strong in Bradshaw's recruitment all along, and many felt that if he opened his recruitment back up, that Virginia would be the favorite to land him. Bradshaw is now the 4th member or Penn State's 2013 class that has decommitted and committed elsewhere since the sanctions were handed down by the NCAA several weeks ago. He probably won't be the last. It's an odd situation, but the Virginia staff was really high on Bradshaw, and he obviously reciprocated those feelings.

With 17 commitments now in the fold for 2013, space is running really low. A class of 20 prospects seemed to be the max Virginia could take for this recruiting cycle, and with top targets Taquan Mizzell and Wyatt Teller still uncommitted, time is of the essence for any other Virginia targets that are on the fence about whether to commit to the Cavaliers or not.

Stay tuned to Streaking the Lawn for all the latest Virginia Football and Basketball recruiting news, and hit the jump to view the entire UVA 2013 class.

Virginia Football: 2013 Recruiting Class

Brendan Marshall, Quarterback, Good Counsel (Olney, MD)

6'5'', 210 lbs

Rating: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, California

Sadiq Olanrewaju, Offensive Tackle, Salisbury School (Salisbury, CT)

6'5'', 260 lbs

Rating: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, UConn, Rutgers, Temple, West Virginia

Andre Levrone, Wide Receiver, Good Counsel (Olney, MD)

6'1'' 198 lbs

Rating: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Auburn, Mississippi State, USC

Tim Harris, Cornerback/Safety, Varina

6'2'' 173 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (4*) 247sports (4*)

Offers: Virginia, California, Ohio State, Michigan, Tennessee, Rutgers, Virginia Tech, Rutgers, Georgia Tech, Ole Miss, Syracuse

Zack Jones, Wide Receiver, Oscar Smith

5'11'' 178 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Illinois

Micah Kiser, Linebacker, Gilman

6'1'' 215 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*) 247sports (4*)

Offers: Virginia, Boston College, Florida, Maryland, Oklahoma, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, Stanford, Virginia Tech

Corwin Cutler, Quarterback, Ocean Lakes

6'4'' 180 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Marshall, UConn, ECU

Hipolito Corporan, Cornerback, Westside (Houston,TX)

6'1'' 160 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Baylor, Tulsa, UTEP

LaChaston Smith, Linebacker, South Iredell (Statesville, NC)

5'11'' 215 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Florida, Tennessee, South Carolina, North Carolina, Minnesota, ECU, Wake Forest

Jack English, Defensive End, St. Christopher's (Richmond, VA)

6'6'' 250 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (NR), 247sports (2*)

Offers: Virginia, Virginia Tech

Keeon Johnson, Wide Receiver, A.L. Brown (Kannapolis, NC)

6'3'' 200 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, North Carolina, Notre Dame, NC State, Duke, Wake Forest, Minnesota, Miami, ECU

Donta Wilkins, Defensive Tackle, Potomac (Dumfries, VA)

6'3'' 315 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (4*)

Offers: Virginia, Penn State, Miami, UNC, Boston College, NC State

Kirk Garner, Cornerback, Good Counsel (Olney, MD)

5'11'' 180 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (4*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Florida State, Tennessee, Michigan, Maryland, Michigan State, West Virginia, Boston College, Nebraska, Cincinnati, N.C. State, Penn State, Purdue, Vanderbilt, Houston

Jack McDonald, Guard, Boston College High (Dorchester, MA)

6'5'' 275 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, North Carolina, Boston College, Miami, UConn, Maryland, Duke, UMass

Brad Henson, Guard, Monsignor Donovan (Tom's River, NJ)

6'5'' 275 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Miami, Penn State, South Carolina, Wisconsin, UConn, Rutgers, Boston College, Maryland, West Virginia, ECU, NC State, Syracuse, Temple, UCF

Malcolm Cook, Safety, Fork Union Military Academy (Fork Union, VA)

6'1'' 200 lbs

Ratings: Rivals (NR) 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia

Zach Bradshaw, Athlete, Damascus (Damascus, MD)

Ratings: Rivals (3*), 247sports (3*)

Offers: Virginia, Penn State, Michigan, South Carolina, Michigan State, Boston College, Illinois, West Virginia, Wake Forest, Rutgers, Georgia Tech, Maryland, Temple, Northwestern, Duke, Arizona, Marshall, NC State