Penn State Sports Magazine
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package, which ultimately led to his com- mitment on Aug. 13. "It was just the perfect 5t for me," he said. "When I also learned about their alumni association and all the di6erent majors, my family and I were in agree- ment." Following an excellent senior season – Hippenhammer totaled more than 1,700 all-purpose yards, scoring 18 touchdowns – it looked as if it would be a quiet few months leading up to signing day. Then came an o6er that he had coveted all through high school. "I've been to Notre Dame so many times," Hippenhammer said. "I used to go to games with other players, all the way back to freshman year, so I've been there a lot. That was always a school I really liked, but they didn't end up o6ering me until really late in the process." The o6er became o7cial on Jan. 15, and Hippenhammer visited Notre Dame the following day. All of a sudden, it looked as if the Nittany Lions were going to have to 5ght to keep Hippenhammer. But a8er he returned home from South Bend and began to think about his options, his en- thusiasm started to wane. "It wasn't what I expected," he said. "They kind of played me throughout my recruitment. They always said that they really liked me, but they didn't o6er until the very end, so that kind of le8 a bad taste in my mouth." On top of that, his o7cial visit to Uni- versity Park was scheduled for the fol- lowing weekend, Jan. 20-22. With the entire coaching sta6 on campus, along with nearly all of the committed players, Hippenhammer realized that he needed to stick with his original decision. "I had a really good time at Penn State that weekend. Just like at the Lasch Bash, I had a great time hanging out with the coaches and the other recruits. I ended up telling Coach Gattis that I was staying with Penn State a8er we 5nished break- fast on the last day. "They were always there for me, and while I did grow up following Notre Dame, Penn State was the school that re- ally wanted me. That was really impor- tant to me." Hippenhammer is now on campus, preparing for the season in the hope of earning early playing time. It may be tough for him to crack the two-deep at re- ceiver in 2017, but during his three full seasons of varsity football, Hippenham- mer scored nine touchdowns on punt and kicko6 returns. He's open to reprising that role this fall, but he also understands that his future is brightest at wide receiver. "They've been telling me that I have a great opportunity to return kicks and punts if I want it my freshman year," Hip- penhammer said. "I'm still not sure what I want to do. Obviously, I'm going to do whatever the coaches want me to do, but personally, I'm not sure if I want to burn a year of eligibility if I'm just playing spe- cial teams my freshman year. So, on one hand, I want to do it. But I also want to maximize my time at wide receiver. "At the end of the day, it's all about helping the team. So if the coaches want me, I'll be there for the team." Football may not be the only sport that Hippenhammer ends up playing at Penn State. Throughout high school, he was also a key player on Snider's baseball team, leading the Panthers to the state tournament his junior and senior years. In fact, he just 5nished his best season yet, batting over .400 and leading his team in steals. That caught the eye of Nittany Lion baseball coach Rob Cooper. "I've talked to Coach Cooper about it," Hippenhammer said. "He said he would welcome me with open arms, so I think I'm going to try and give it a go my fresh- man year and we'll see how it goes. That was another thing I liked about Penn State. Iowa talked to me about it a little bit, but Penn State was the one school that really o6ered me that opportunity. I know I'm going there for football, but just the opportunity to keep playing another sport I love was appealing." ■ CLICK HERE to see video of Hippenhammer in action.