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B L U E - W H I T E G A M E P R E V I E W acts. He works just like everybody else. He's fit in really well. Not a big talker, but he's extremely motivated to be the best player he can be. So it's really been a pleasure. I train the linebackers, and it's really been a pleasure training him." Franklin, too, has been impressed with what he's seen of Parsons in the short time that the player has been on campus, noting that the effort he and his staff had put in during Parsons' recruitment was already starting to pay off. That's a very good sign for Penn State, because the staff put in a lot of effort. Parsons com- mitted to the Lions, then decommitted, then kept his recruitment open until the first day of the early signing period in December. Franklin admitted recently that some people in the Lasch Building were beginning to question whether Par- sons was worth all that trouble. But now? Four months after he signed his letter of intent with the Lions? "I don't see anybody saying that any- more," Franklin said. "Now they see why. He committed and decommitted and then committed back again, and I think at some point, there were some coaches and players questioning if we ought to go on this roller coaster. I haven't had one person question the roller coaster since he showed up on campus. "He's really done a good job, from a "I did some searching around and looked to see if there was a better place for me somewhere and I talked to some schools," he said, declining to mention specific programs. "Ulti- mately, I know what I have here. I love Penn State. I love the relationships that I have here and I love playing football with my best friends, so ulti- mately, after looking around I found out this is still the best place for me and this is what I want to do moving forward." Stevens spent the better part of three months thinking about his future, but he did not do it in secret. Once he decided that he would pur- sue a possible transfer following the Fi- esta Bowl, he presented the idea up front to head coach James Franklin and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Ricky Rahne. "They were very supportive of it in the very beginning," Stevens said. "I told them what I was doing. They were very up front with me, told me they were going to support me either way and that they wanted the best situation for me. I told them from the beginning what I wanted to do. They told me this is what we we're going to do if you de- cide to stay." What that means in terms of the weekly game plan next fall remains to be seen. During Fiesta Bowl practices in De- cember, the coaches added a new posi- tion called "Lion" to the official depth chart, with Stevens the only player listed. Against Washington, he fin- ished with three receptions for minus- 1 yard. Franklin maintained throughout the 2017 season that opposing defenses dictated how frequently Stevens was used as a complementary threat in cer- tain formations in which Trace McSor- ley was in at quarterback. In some games, he was used a lot; in others, he saw little or no action. Now McSorley is getting set for his third and final sea- son as the starter, but with Stevens choosing to return, a bigger role could be in the offing. "I do expect, I guess, an increased role next season," Stevens said. It was Franklin, talking to reporters after practice on March 28, who broke the news that Stevens was staying at Penn State. "Tommy and his family handled this situation unbelievably well," he said. "He was very honest. I think we all see what's going on in college football. There are a lot of people taking the path of least resistance and transfer- ring when times get tough or when adversity hits. "Tommy obviously came in to talk to us. It was something that he was possi- bly considering. He just handled it so well, so we said, Well, look. Let's talk about this. Let's explore this. We don't ever want you leaving unless it's the right situation. If it's the right situation for you and your family, we're going to be as supportive as you possibly can imagine with this, but if you don't find the situation that makes complete sense, then you should come back, be- cause you know what you're getting with us as coaches, you know what you're getting with your teammates and the scheme and all these different things. "He's earned so much respect from our team, so obviously as a coach I'm elated that Tommy is going to stay with us. And more than that, just how he handled it, how he handled the whole process. I'm really proud of him, be- cause this is how you handle situations in life." Stevens said he didn't deliberate for very long. His teammates were giving him his space, but he was starting to feel the pressure from fellow students and the general public. The conversa- tion was starting to envelop him, and he didn't want that. So in late March, he came to his deci- sion. He told his teammates first, a mo- ment that brought a sense of relief that reminded the Indianapolis native of how he felt when he originally selected the Nittany Lions coming out of De- catur Central High School. "It was like a second recruiting process and it was worst than the first," Stevens said. "It was a little bit harder because of the timetable. I'm glad that it's over. I'm glad that I can stop being a distraction to my teammates. … That's not really what I wanted. I guess we can just focus on football now and get back to work and start grinding for next sea- son." ■

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