Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1030409
J oined by his mother, father and little brother, Emory Simmons visited Penn State in late July. Traveling from their home in Fayetteville, N.C., the Simmonses were making their 1rst visit to see the University Park campus. When they departed from North Car- olina, Simmons, a 6-foot-1, 186-pound wide receiver who had received a three- star rating from Rivals.com – was com- mitted to the in-state Tar Heels. But upon leaving Pennsylvania, he decided to switch his allegiance to the Nittany Lions. In the following Q&A with BWI's Tim Owen, Simmons recaps the trip, re- views the factors that went into his de- cision and offers insight into the difficulties that accompany the re- cruiting process. BWI How are you feeling now that you're committed to Penn State? SIMMONS I feel great. It felt like a weight had been li3ed o2 of my shoul- ders when I committed to PSU. When I came up here, I felt like it was a dream because I've always loved Big Ten football and always wanted to be a part of it – with teams like Penn State, Ohio State, Michigan and those caliber of teams. So when Coach [James] Franklin and Coach [David] Corley extended that o2er out to me and wanted me here at Penn State, it was truly a blessing. BWI They o2ered you back in the spring a3er David Corley saw you work out. So what has your relationship been like with them since then? How o3en were you talking, and what were the discus- sions like? SIMMONS When he of- fered, by that time I was committed to UNC, but he never lost contact with me, and Coach Franklin did the same. The relationship began to be stronger, and they just wanted to get me up on campus so they could spend time with me and see what kind of person I was. BWI I was thinking that the o2er came before your commitment to North Car- olina. SIMMONS It did, but at the time Coach Corley said it was a so3 o2er, so I didn't think much of it and committed to UNC. But a3er that I was like, man, that's Penn State. [laughs] So I had to go back and look at things. I N T E R V I E W E M O R Y S I M M O N S I made my decision because I wanted to be a part of something great' ' ON THE RUN A three-star wideout from Fayetteville, N.C., Simmons had been committed to North Car- olina before reconsidering his options and choosing the Nittany Lions in July. Photo courtesy of Rivals.com