Penn State Whiteout Reactions: 2015 QB Tommy Stevens

I was originally going to post this after I was done gathering all of the reactions, but I decided that this could stand up enough on it's own.

Tommy Stevens is the only 2015 signal caller to receive an offer in the wake of Brandon Wimbush's departure. Stevens is currently committed to Indiana, and that's definitely the impression that he gave off to me the first time we talked. When I asked him about how he felt about how he reacted to Penn State's offer, he told me that he told them the same thing he told everyone, that "I'm committed to Indiana and I appreciate all the things that other schools have done for me in the past. But like I said, I'm committed and that's where I'm going to go to school."

When I asked him more about what his thoughts were on the Wimbush situation and what he thought of Penn State in general, he offered the following quote.

It's cool, I definitely think as a program they have a whole lot of history over at Penn State. The stadium holds 107 thousand people I think it is, and that's all great stuff. I wish that they may have possible looked at me a bit harder in the beginning when I was still looking out because I enjoyed talking to Penn State's coaches early on in the process. That being said, I still think Penn State is a great football program, it's just not where me and my family are situated on going. Penn State, like I said, I wish Penn State the best, but as of now I'm committed to IU and that's where I want to go.

So while Stevens didn't completely close the door on any future changes, he made it very clear that he loves Indiana and was excited about this future there (for more on why he loves IU so much, read the original article).

Then, in the days leading up to this weekend, news broke that Stevens had scheduled and planned a visit to Penn State to see them  take on the Buckeyes. I asked him about it, and he told me "It's my dad's decision. He wants me to explore all the options and Penn St wasn't an option before. So as a family we decided to go ahead and visit. Still committed to IU!"

At this point, many in the recruiting world had already made up their minds that Stevens was a lock to flip to PSU. Personally, I chose to wait before making any declarations, because I truly do believe him when he said that it was his father's decision. That's always a good start, but Stevens didn't quite seem sold just yet.

Saturday came and passed, along with the thrilling 2OT loss to the one-loss Buckeyes of Ohio State. Beaver Stadium was rocking until after midnight, and the Nittany Lions played their hearts out. There's really not much more you can ask for from a recruiting weekend (except for all of that to end in a win). I reached out to Tommy on Sunday after he was done meeting with coaches, walking around campus, etc.

On how the visit was as a whole- "It was everything I expected and more... great place."

The Indiana Mr. Football candidate sure got a game to remember. He also got to spend some quality time with a few other recruits on official visits, namely commit Sterling Jenkins and top target Matt Burrell. He told me that "It was really cool getting to hang out with guys like Sterling and Matt for most of the night...it was good meeting the other commits also." He sat right next to Burrell for the game, and was only a few seats away from Jenkins.

Both before and the day after the game, Stevens was able to talk with Coach Franklin. He said that they talked about pretty much anything you could think of, including how he thought Stevens would fit into the offense he wants to run.

He also told me that his parents really enjoyed the visit, although he had yet to talk to them more about it when we spoke. He said that he's not sure of any other official visits as of right now, aside from one to Indiana at some point.

Before we stopped talking, I gave him a tough question. When I asked him if the experience made him at least wonder what it would be like to go to Penn State, he said "haha I'll just say I had a great time!" He then told me that he and his family are planning on discussing things further soon.

If any of you follow the Crystal Ball on 247Sports, you may have noticed that I put in my prediction for PSU for Stevens. I was reluctant to do it, because I think it's far from a done deal, but I feel Penn State has put themselves in a good position after this visit. I think he'll take another official visit to Indiana before making any decisions, but I don't think it's out of the realm of possibility that he visits PSU one more time unofficially and eventually flips his commitment.

For more on Stevens, check out his interview here with Steve Wiltfong of 247Sports, where he echoed similar sentiments about the trip.