Oh, Hello: GA QB Steven Bench Commits to Penn State
by Jeff Junstrom on Jan 24, 2012 12:30 PM EST
in Recruiting
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Steven Bench, Ladies and Gentlemen!
Stats
Home/HS: Camilla, GA/Cairo HS
Height: 6'3"
Weight: 205-220
Starz 'n Sheetz
Stars: 3* (247Sports, Rivals), 2* (Scout)
Offer sheet: Rice, FCS
Cinema
The Tale
Bench was another offer handed out on Ted Roof's tear through the south, and the Georgia gunslinger opted for Penn State over his former commitment to Rice today.
Bench was on campus last weekend with the other four recent commits (waiting on you, Wendy, to make a true six-peat). I'm pretty sure he is the man behind the now famous Beaver Stadium white out shot, so he's already won the hearts of Penn Staters.
After taking a couple of days to truly weigh his options, Bench made the call. Though with offers from Rice, FCS schools and Penn State, was there really much to think about? In Steven's mind there was, and that is highly commendable. He thought it out, weighed his options, and made the choice to become a Nittany Lion.
Outlook
Watch the video above, and you can see that Bench has some legs to match a decent arm. He'll need to strengthen up that throwing arm if he wants to throw the long ball, but in the Bill O'Brien offense, as long as he can find Adam Breneman in the open seam across the middle, it's OK with me.
Like the rest of the recent commits, we don't know much about Bench. He's from a rural part of southern Georgia, so he may have suffered the same recruiting fate the New York prospects suffer (lack of exposure). There are reports he performed admirably at camps, but still only had the Rice offer from Division 1 schools.
Recent reports are relatively split on Bench. With the proper coaching and some growth, he could end up being just what the Bill O'Brien offense needs in a couple of years.
Finally, there is nothing out there (yet) to suggest that Bench's commitment is due in part to Skyler Mornhinweg's decommitment. Mornhinweg was in Florida last weekend and plans to visit Virginia Tech before next Wednesday's Signing Day. Stay tuned for more.
Welcome to Penn State, Steven.
Be sure to become a fan of BSD on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter!
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Nice...in BOB we trust
May no act.................
by SweepTheLeg on Jan 24, 2012 12:32 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Really? I got one word for you:
Strollo
by PSUinOH on Jan 24, 2012 9:21 PM EST via mobile up reply actions
save these comments for football season
to call strollo or roof failures at this point would be very premature. They havent even been on campus for a month yet.
If in October the defense is a sieve and the TEs cant catch a cold, then I will gladly call them failures (and even then it may be too soon for that label), but 3 weeks after they were hired, cant we hold off judgment?
I am hoping that the recent kids make a really special bond
with each other and with the school that leads to a lot of success both on the field and off.
Not asking for much.
“He’ll need to strengthen up that throwing arm if he wants to throw the long ball, but in the Bill O’Brien offense, as long as he can find Adam Breneman in the open seam across the middle, it’s OK with me.”
Hell… as long as he can hit Redd with a screen pass and not put it into the 5th row… it’s an improvement.
I just don't want to die without a few scars. ~Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club, Chapter 6
by LB31Monster on Jan 24, 2012 12:39 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
And is this guy's high school mascot...
really the Syrupmakers. Really? I thought the Poca, WV “Dots” were bad. Or the Mars, PA “Planets”. Wow. Just… wow.
I just don't want to die without a few scars. ~Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club, Chapter 6
by LB31Monster on Jan 24, 2012 12:41 PM EST up reply actions
Lol I love high school mascots.
One of our neighboring schools were the Nottingham, NJ “North Stars”. Princeton, NJ were the “Little Tigers”.
There's a school in Indiana called the Jimtown Jimmies.
And I’ve always liked the Northampton (PA) Konkrete Kids. Apparently, there are a lot of cement plants in the Northampton area.
"I guess we had a couple of Catholics praying for US!" - JVP, after the down to the wire win over Notre Dame in 1987
How about
Mosinee (WI) Papermakers?
Let's Go State!
by Gopher Broke on Jan 24, 2012 1:06 PM EST up reply actions
My favorite
has always been the Centralia (IL) Orphans….
The girls teams are the Annies…
All of our comments are irrelevant - LetsGoPSU
Another Recent commit: Johnathan Warner
went to Camas High School which is also the Papermakers.
by Nittany_Vandal on Jan 24, 2012 3:27 PM EST up reply actions
Best in Indiana
Is probably the Frankfort Hotdogs, but there are so many, really, it’s hard to choose.
by ChicagoHoosier on Jan 24, 2012 4:15 PM EST up reply actions
Sleepy Hollow Horsemen is my favorite
Near Tarrytown, NY.
by reedjohnmiller on Jan 24, 2012 4:25 PM EST up reply actions
My friend
married a Frankfort Hotdog. I always enjoyed that one. He met her at IU, where prior to being with her he dated Sage Steele.
Sage was sexy back in her DC days
I think ESPN has toned her down a bit. Too bad.
"WHY IS EVERYONE THE FREAKING STUPID?" BMAN13
by kijana's acl on Jan 24, 2012 5:12 PM EST up reply actions
Sage Steele
That can’t be her real name, right? I remember the first time I saw her name (I think on Comcast DC/Baltimore) and thinking she had to have made it up for television.
"I guess we had a couple of Catholics praying for US!" - JVP, after the down to the wire win over Notre Dame in 1987
Same
I heard her name and thought she was a porn star.
Consider this my official declaration of non-support of child molestation.
A porn star or a female wrestler.
Sage Steele in a steel cage death match!!!!!
"I guess we had a couple of Catholics praying for US!" - JVP, after the down to the wire win over Notre Dame in 1987
Can't go wrong with the Watersmeet Nimrods.
They were featured in an ESPN commercial a few years back. They were in my old TV station’s viewing area.
Good name, and there are a lot of cement plants there. It's next to Cementon, PA
I also like the West Philly Speedboys and the Ben Franklin Electrons.
I hate Mars
Those kids were dicks in every sport I ever played them.
Consider this my official declaration of non-support of child molestation.
Well that just isn't true
Where’d you go to high school?
Because I went to Mars, and I definitely wasn’t a dick
Whittle your whiskey around like blazes, t'underin' Jaysus, do ye think I'm dead?
by psuphysicist on Jan 24, 2012 1:25 PM EST up reply actions
Whats with all the Mars hate?
I’m honestly baffled.
Whittle your whiskey around like blazes, t'underin' Jaysus, do ye think I'm dead?
by psuphysicist on Jan 24, 2012 2:00 PM EST up reply actions
I never met anyone from mars, I’m just being a dick!
I just read.
by BMAN13 on Jan 24, 2012 2:02 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Your people do have a reputation for
abductions, probes and torture.
He completed 17 of individuals 26 passes for 192 lanscaping your yard and two touchdowns - Chan Luu
by rahpsu92 on Jan 24, 2012 2:26 PM EST up reply actions 4 recs
Are you John Carter?
"I guess we had a couple of Catholics praying for US!" - JVP, after the down to the wire win over Notre Dame in 1987
Knoch High School
And before that, Karns City.
Consider this my official declaration of non-support of child molestation.
It gets better...
The city name is not pronounced like Cairo, Egypt… it is like Karo (the syrup)… that’s awesome!!
by PSU_Ovaltine68 on Jan 24, 2012 1:13 PM EST up reply actions
My high school:
The North East Grape Pickers. Our mascot was a big grape.
There's a small school in NEPA
who’s mascot is a tow truck.
365 beers from 365 different breweries in 365 days. Game on.
http://www.blognamedbrew.blogspot.com/
by Tailgate Shogun on Jan 24, 2012 9:43 PM EST up reply actions
My HS's mascot
At least it is blue and white
"There are too many Irish guys on this team"
Joesph Vincent Paterno
April, 2010
right on... my favorite was number 2....
and in case you were wondering … and obviously even if you aren’t… they’re the orphans because centrailia once had the biggest orphanage in the midwest…
and most of the high school were orphans at that point…
All of our comments are irrelevant - LetsGoPSU
Hey, an appearnce by Williamsport on this list!
If I’m not mistaken, the reason they’re called the Millionaires is because at one time (late 19th/early 20th century), there were more millionaires per capita in Williamsport than anywhere else in the country.
"I guess we had a couple of Catholics praying for US!" - JVP, after the down to the wire win over Notre Dame in 1987
Arm strength...
The film only shows a couple of deep throws so he might need more arm strength; however, he seems to be very accurate on the throws to the flat, on the run and those 15-25 yards down field… I’ll take that accuracy now and anytime. Welcome, Steven.
by PSU_Ovaltine68 on Jan 24, 2012 1:44 PM EST up reply actions
If we could get Zack Mills 2
I’d take the good with the bad and never look back at the 2010/2011 quarterbacking follies.
It's always good to pull kids from schools we havn't
At least we are starting to make a connection with some of the southern states. It is nice to see. I can’t wait to see what the coaches can do with these kids. It’s always funny to look in the NFL and see where all the small school colleges that schools come from. I can see why he would have a lot to think about.
Probably going in his mind is:
Rice: I can start and play and throw for 2000 yards and be the king of the school
PSU: I will be on TV all the time but might not start and it will take me a while to play.
It should be interesting to see.
Like seeing him operate with 3 and 4 wide sets
Really like seeing him with the confidence to throw the ball to the TE over the middle. Decent wheels.
Most of all, I trust Bill picking QBs. Let the rest of the staff handle their respective positions and let Bill deal with TEs and QBs. I’ll be a happy man.
Preface: I am a "fan" of the BOB hire and most of his decisions so far. But,
1. Why does everyone trust BOB with picking QBs? Tom Brady was already in NE when BOB got there, and Brady was already very good (or even great) at that time as well. Looking at BOB’s history, I don’t see a ton of “Wow, he recruited that guy?!?!” or “Wow, he coached that kid up!!”
2. Why does everyone assume the offense is going to be TE heavy? As far as I can tell, BOB has always used what he had in front of him. This year, it happens to be TEs.
Sorry jls83, please don’t take this as a slight, you just hit on two points that have been bugging me since his hire.
That said, “I BILLieve.”
Valid points.
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Black Shoe Diaries
SBN - Pittsburgh
Success With Honor
by Jeff Junstrom on Jan 24, 2012 1:24 PM EST up reply actions
I don't think it's a proven track record of recruiting or training QBs
I think it’s the fact that he currently experiences success at the highest level from a pass heavy offense with a hall of fame quarterback. In other words, he should have first hand knowledge of the physical gifts, personality, attitude, training, etc. that a very successful quarterback needs. If he can recognize the potential for this in a high school kid, boom.
by PSUCharmas on Jan 24, 2012 1:45 PM EST up reply actions 2 recs
All extremely valid points. Let me see if I can make sense.
I just believe that he’s seen more film of Tom Brady by now that he should understand what makes Tom Brady a great quarterback, and is hopefully identifying some of that greatness when he is watching a prospect’s film. In essence, I’m not asking BOB to develop someone great, just pick guys that he thinks may have the potential to have that potential.
As far as picking TEs, I think Bill will understand what type of TE he wants in his system. To me, at least, TEs can be so different across the board. A good play action passing game operates directly off your TE. Personally, I think the TE is your saving grace with young quarterbacks and are under-used at all levels of the game.
Don’t worry I didn’t take any of that as a slight. I just needed to clarify more. To me, BOB isn’t here to develop, he’s here to identify and manage.
"may have the potential to have that potential"
I nominate myself for the ‘John Madden Ridiculous Statement of the Year Award’ (sponsored by Tinactin)
by jls83 on Jan 24, 2012 2:06 PM EST up reply actions 2 recs
I hope we can still land Mornhinweg
I think this year proves that you can never have too many QBs. and furthermore, I thoight I’ve read that Skyler’s athletic enough to play safety, which is also a position of need.
"Every time you go to that cook-off you get drunk as a poet on payday!"
I see the headlines coming...
Bench, Benched!
Please bench Bench!
BOB Benched!
Penn State Benched!
Anyone else see a positive headline out of him?
Urban Meyer and the Buckeyes get Benched
Bret Bielema still a douchebag….get’s Benched in Happy Valley
I think there is a lot to work with.
by GMac14 on Jan 24, 2012 1:15 PM EST up reply actions 6 recs
Bench setting new Bench-marks for greatness.
He completed 17 of individuals 26 passes for 192 lanscaping your yard and two touchdowns - Chan Luu
by rahpsu92 on Jan 24, 2012 1:16 PM EST up reply actions 3 recs
Bench
forces Brady Hoke to the bench.
If they ever tell my story let them say that I walked with giants. Men rise and fall like the winter wheat, but these names will never die. Let them say I lived in the time of Bradley, tamer of offenses. Let them say I lived in the time of Paterno.
We really just need to run a search on Cincinnati baseball articles from the 1970s for inspiration
"WHY IS EVERYONE THE FREAKING STUPID?" BMAN13
by kijana's acl on Jan 24, 2012 1:33 PM EST up reply actions
Son of a Bench!
"Wham! a homma. Wham! Another homma. Wham! Wham! Wham!"
by LowcountryLion on Jan 24, 2012 2:01 PM EST up reply actions
Bench Please!
I like sports and I don't care who knows.
by Drea1020 on Jan 24, 2012 2:25 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Bench benched after bench-clearing brawl...
Maybe I should stop while I’m ahead.
"Wham! a homma. Wham! Another homma. Wham! Wham! Wham!"
by LowcountryLion on Jan 24, 2012 3:02 PM EST up reply actions
Off topic here,
but I see there’s some speculation over at BHGP concerning Tom Bradley possibly becoming the new DC at Iowa.
"I guess we had a couple of Catholics praying for US!" - JVP, after the down to the wire win over Notre Dame in 1987
On the last BSD podcast the guys were talking and mentioned if Bradley was going to go somewhere, Iowa was the most logical place
Ferentz is a PA guy and so is Bradley. Kind of the same scheme and hard working attitude Bradley has.
I don't buy it at all
I just can’t imagine Bradley staying in the B1G. He’s been such a solid PSU guy his whole life, you have to think that going against us every year (or close to it) would be too much.
I wouldn't trust old rooster me neither.
I hope he does take the Iowa job
and in some strange way, I almost hope he shuts out PSU. Just to remind our genius AD what he passed by to make sure that our PR was all good.
365 beers from 365 different breweries in 365 days. Game on.
http://www.blognamedbrew.blogspot.com/
by Tailgate Shogun on Jan 24, 2012 9:45 PM EST up reply actions
I think it would be a great fit.
And I would join Rambler in having a big crush on them.
Consider this my official declaration of non-support of child molestation.
He's already at work:
StevenBench Steven Bench @ @AdamBreneman87 thanks bro hope so too. I want you to join the nittany lion nation with me!!
"Every time you go to that cook-off you get drunk as a poet on payday!"
by DrewRusse on Jan 24, 2012 1:16 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
And that is the best thing about pulling kids like him
It is worth to take a chance on a kid might or might not work out to help in recruiting in a few years.
I never understood why people get worked up over stuff like this.
While I’m glad he’s doing it, amost every recruit does this sort of thing.
I'll take a 2/3* athlete who is excited about PSU
Over any better players who aren’t fully comitted to the University. With respect to Paterno, 8-2 is never a bad thing as long as the players are truly “Penn Staters”.
by tbs5005 on Jan 24, 2012 2:23 PM EST up reply actions 3 recs
Truth be told, wouldn't you only want recruits who were committed to the University?
Regardless of star status…
Ahh, nascent bro love
So pure and lovely.
jtothetweet
They don't even bind feet in China anymore, mostly.
Welcome, Steven!
Here’s to many pun filled headlines during your career as a Nittany Lion!
by michellemtsu on Jan 24, 2012 1:20 PM EST via iPhone app reply actions
I'm sure I'll be in the minority on this....and I don't know, maybe I'm just waxing poetic from the sorrow over the weekend,
but I want to believe this is going to be a special class. I look back at the class of DWill, JKing, and others and see how that changed PSU football for the back half of this decade and hope this class could be like that. They aren’t close in talent, but this is a group of kids who have made a commitment to PSU during one of the toughest/darkest times in the programs history. Maybe none of these kids will turn out to be stars or set records like that previous class, but this is the last class brought in during the JoePa era. They chose PSU to be a part of something special, even when everyone outside tells them what a horrible place PSU is now. I want to believe that in 10 years we’ll look back and at the very least, see this class bridged the gap between era’s. And when PSU could have been staring at a 2nd coming of the “Dark Years”, these kids stepped in and helped keep PSU going. I just wish all of these kids success and it shows a lot about the character of each one of them. It’s not about how many stars they have, but about what kind of kids/men they are and are going to be. I think there is nothing that helps keep Joe’s memory alive like a group of under the radar, hard working kids who will hopefully overachieve and succeed.
by GMac14 on Jan 24, 2012 1:25 PM EST reply actions 27 recs
They made a movie about Marshall
however I would venture to say they had it tougher than this. And now that I think about it, Joe would not want us to draw such analogies. With a dismissive wave he’d say that we might have it tough, but there’s always someone else out there that has it tougher and we should pray for them.
But you have to imagine that as these returns and recruits run through the gate into Beaver Stadium, they will have emotions far more intense than any players before or after them.
Any word on the two linebackers from Alabama? Cox from Jeanette?
If we can land those three kids, I’d say good show, let’s call it a day. Evan Schwan coming would be great too. He’s just icing on the cake. Anyone have any new info on those three? Are the Alabama LBs visiting?
Junny said he'll be posting a primer for signing day tomorrow at some point
I, for one, can hardly wait.
Don't think we get the AL LBs.
Cox is tough to read, probably a PSU/OSU battle.
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Black Shoe Diaries
SBN - Pittsburgh
Success With Honor
by Jeff Junstrom on Jan 24, 2012 4:06 PM EST up reply actions
How many scholarships does OSU have?
Enough to get Williams, Reeves and Cox? And aren’t they supposed to be down 3 a year?
I've seen reports where they think they can take 28.
Not sure how that’s possible, but they can certainly fit those three by their numbers.
___
Black Shoe Diaries
SBN - Pittsburgh
Success With Honor
by Jeff Junstrom on Jan 24, 2012 9:46 PM EST up reply actions
OSU is our own little corner
of the SEC aren’t they?
He completed 17 of individuals 26 passes for 192 lanscaping your yard and two touchdowns - Chan Luu
Florida State North has been my name for them since the Cooper era
"WHY IS EVERYONE THE FREAKING STUPID?" BMAN13
by kijana's acl on Jan 25, 2012 9:14 AM EST up reply actions
I was out of town over the weekend
With no contact to the outside world. Talk about a shock when I got home.
When did Skyler decommit? That’s a drag.
Losing a game is heartbreaking. Losing your sense of excellence or worth is a tragedy.
true
and if he doesn’t want to part of penn state then I wish him the best of luck. Skyler could be another QB14 who knows. I just want kids that want to go to Penn State and not ones that are scared because we have a whole new coaching staff.
I thought I read somewhere that new staff wanted him at DB
Reporter: Can you give us a touchdown celebration, one that you would get penalized for?
Moye: I play at Penn State. I don’t celebrate.
I don't think so.
I’ve never been all that enamored with Skyler anyway, so if he doesn’t come here, whatever. Also, his first name isn’t winning me over either.
Run.
by Bob Sacamano on Jan 25, 2012 9:50 AM EST up reply actions
One of my best friends is from Camilla GA
it is a SMALL town, with big accents.
I don’t know if she went to this HS or private school. But I am sure she will be very excited. She loves her some football, although she is a Dawgs/Falcons fan.
"There are too many Irish guys on this team"
Joesph Vincent Paterno
April, 2010
I heard BOB told Skyler
they want him for safety. The kid is an MVP on both sides of the ball, best HS QB I’ve ever seen in person, but also led the PCL in picks at safety as a freshman.
1st team all catholic both ways again this season.
by JoePa'sHornRimmedGlasses on Jan 24, 2012 3:24 PM EST reply actions
Not only is he recruiting Brenneman
@PTReeves8 I want you to come to PSU with me man. We can do GREAT things together
I’m a fan… If he’s dedicated, that’s all I need.
I have to think that BOB and whatever he's telling these guys has some hand in this
The fact that we’ve gotten a couple kids to de-commit from other (arguably less successful) programs is a big testament to the new staff’s recruiting ability. Excited to see what they can do with a full year and some space from the scandal under their belts.
"Believe deep down in your heart that you're destined to do great things."
So what about the fact that several of our recruits have decommitted?
Guys have decomitted from other schools because they received an offer from a better school, ie PSU. We’re taking guys from Akron and BC right now, not Florida and OSU.
I'm on the Internet cause I'm an Internet thug.
#OccupyESPN
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by skarocksoi on Jan 24, 2012 8:05 PM EST up reply actions 1 recs
Shhhh....
don’t bring that up…
365 beers from 365 different breweries in 365 days. Game on.
http://www.blognamedbrew.blogspot.com/
by Tailgate Shogun on Jan 24, 2012 9:47 PM EST up reply actions
This class just needs to be glue
Right now, the most important thing is to keep morale up and get guys who are really committed to Penn State and willing to buy into all of the traditional PSU stuff AND whatever it is exactly that BOB is selling. If we have that, next year could be pretty decent – not awesome, probably – but ok. From there we can build up the star power.
His tape impresses me
I realize that he isnt playing the best competition, but neither was Curtis Dukes. I just gonna throw this one out there if its taken, ok, if not throw it right back: he looks like a tall Zach Mills. boom.
by ReddWhitenBlue on Jan 24, 2012 3:50 PM EST reply actions 1 recs
Is it true
that we got Reeves also?
If they ever tell my story let them say that I walked with giants. Men rise and fall like the winter wheat, but these names will never die. Let them say I lived in the time of Bradley, tamer of offenses. Let them say I lived in the time of Paterno.
Reeves officially eliminated PSU
down to UM and OSU
"Every time you go to that cook-off you get drunk as a poet on payday!"
Welcome young man.
I don’t think I could put a highlight video of McGlion and Bolden together that showcased that many completions!
Coming from Southwest Ohio (more specifically Cincinnati)...
… I watch a lot of high school football. It is like religion here. Watching that video, I have to say the kid isn’t half bad and I’m surprised he didn’t get more offers. I think it more or less has something to do with the fact that pro-style attacks like Georgia and Alabama already have top QBs locked up, and he doesn’t quite fit the scheme of the other SEC schools or even the Sun Belt schools for that matter. He reminds me a lot of Ben Mauk and Zach Collaros, two QBs from small schools in Ohio that flew under the radar and then ended up being pretty damn good at Cincinnati. He looks like he has a frame that could easily carry another 15-20 pounds of muscle (especially in the legs), and he has terrible running form but that’s not necessarily a bad thing because he moves pretty well despite the bad form, so given time to work with PSU’s strength and conditioning staff, he could improve immensely. Overall, not a bad pickup for PSU.
by TheHumbleBuckeye on Jan 24, 2012 5:20 PM EST reply actions
Bench
His junior year he played at a different school that ran a simpler, run-oriented offense so he didn’t get on the radar. Transferred to Cairo for his senior season that featured a more complex offense and gave him a lot more passing opportunities, and he just tore it up. Otherwise he probably could easily been a 4 star. Same situation with the other recruit Jonathon Warner. Had a couple of seniors ahead of him so didn’t get much playing time as a junior. Between Jr. and Sr. seasons he got professional S&C help and bulked up 15 lbs. of muscle then tore it up his senior season as well. Could easily have been a 3 star otherwise. Seems to be the problem with kids that aren’t being followed from their soph/jr. seasons.
So don’t be surprised if you see a lot of these two in the fall. I think their just coming into their own.
WHERE ARE MY STARS
I WANT MY STARZZZZZ
Success With honor
by ICEICETHATGUY13 on Jan 24, 2012 9:10 PM EST reply actions
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