Decatur Central High School senior quarterback Tommy Stevens officially decided to switch his commitment from Indiana to Penn State on Monday night.
His decision comes two days after the Nittany Lions defeated the Hoosiers in Bloomington and was confirmed by a message posted on his Twitter account:
Stevens, a dual-threat three-star quarterback, originally committed to Indiana on June 4 and received offers from Penn State, Michigan State, Purdue, Boston College, Cincinnati, and Iowa among others. He becomes Penn State’s 19th commit of its 2015 recruiting class and the sole quarterback on that list. Rivals.com ranks him as the No. 15 dual-threat quarterback in the nation.
Penn State was in need of a quarterback recruit for its class after New Jersey’s Brandon Wimbush, also a dual-threat quarterback, de-committed from the Nittany Lions for Notre Dame last month. With the addition of Stevens, the Lions will have four scholarship quarterbacks on their roster in 2015 – including Christian Hackenberg, Trace McSorley and Michael O’Connor.
The 6-4, 200-pound Stevens had not garnered a ton of exposure before he committed to Indiana in the summer. But as a Decatur, Ind. native and finalist for Mr. Football Indiana, it seemed as if Stevens’ commitment to the Hoosiers was a match made in heaven.
Stevens essentially reopened his recruitment process after he was spotted as an unofficial visitor at Notre Dame’s game against Stanford last month along with Wimbush, who at the time was still committed to Penn State but decided to commit to the Fighting Irish the following week.
That’s when Penn State head coach James Franklin reached out to Stevens. Eventually, Stevens would make a surprise visit to State College for the team’s nationally-televised, sold-out Whiteout game against Ohio State on Oct. 18. Stevens was one of 100 prospects to the attend the game and stayed the entire weekend. He reportedly described his visit as “awesome.” He also stated that, “It was everything I expected and more…a great place.”
Fortunately for Penn State, Stevens’ fantastic senior season paired with Wimbush’ flip to Notre Dame, allowed the Nittany Lions the opportunity to offer Stevens a scholarship for a second time. Penn State’s staff had a few quarterbacks in mind as they searched for the right signal-caller to fill the 2015 spot, but they considered Stevens the only player worth the scholarship offer.
Stevens led Decatur Central to an 8-3 record in his senior season and completed 60 percent of his passes for 1,891 yards and 16 touchdowns. He also ran for 824 yards and 10 touchdowns and made 25 tackles as a safety. It’s not difficult to see why the Nittany Lions jumped at the chance to offer him a scholarship based on his production on the field.
As a quarterback, Stevens possesses unique athleticism that allows him to make plays with his feet, but he is more than a runner who occasionally throws the ball. He always looks to pass before he thinks about taking off down field on his own, which helps him escape pressure in the pocket. Stevens’ 6-4, 200-pound frame gives him the ability to absorb hits and make defenders pay who don’t take him down after initial contact. He has steadily improved as a passer throughout high school, showing the talent to throw perfect touch passes, long balls, and the ability to get rid of the ball in a hurry.
Compared to current Nittany Lions quarterback Christian Hackenberg, Stevens will more than likely have his fair share of designed quarterback runs. He has the size and the speed to add a dangerous dimension to Penn State’s offense.
Penn State’s 2015 recruiting class is now ranked No. 12 nationally, and second in the Big Ten, according to Rivals.com. With 19 players in the class, there are about a half-dozen more spots the Nittany Lions could fill before National Signing Day in February.
After not landing any recruits in October and losing Wimbush to Notre Dame, Daiquan Kelly, who is listed as an athlete by 247Sports, was the last prospect to commit to Penn State. Kelly announced his commitment on Sept. 14.
The Lions are a top team on the lists of three of the top junior quarterbacks in nation, New York’s Jake Zembiec, Maryland’s Dwayne Haskins and Newtown, PA’s Brandon Mclwain; all three are four-star prospects.
*Section Photo credit to Student Sports; Featured Photo (above) credit to Eleven Warriors
