STATE COLLEGE, Pa. -- At the start of every school year Tommy Stevens would stand with his friends and take the obligatory first day of school photo. During his freshman year of high school he hardly stood out.
"I was like 5-8, 145 pounds probably. It was funny," the Nittany Lions' backup quarterback said. "You can just see me growing and growing. I hit a pretty big growth spurt going into my junior season, was around 6-2, 6-3 then and I got here at like 6-3, 6-4 and I’ve actually grown to 6-5 now so I think I’m done growing. I kind of hope I’m done growing because it’s kind of hard to fit into small cars."
Despite the struggle with smaller vehicles, the 6-5, 228-pound standout has a skill set that's rare for someone with his size and in his position. He showed off what he can do in a utility role this season where he rushed for four touchdowns, fired three touchdown passes and caught two more.
"He's a quarterback, but he runs like he's like a running back and he's a big body and he's capable of making you miss with speed, power," running back Saquon Barkley said. "He can do it all. He can catch the ball. ... Every time he gets on the field you kind of expect him to make that play because he just has that impact on the game. I'm so proud of that guy."
In a day and age where quarterbacks are groomed for the position from an early age, attending specialized camps and working with throwing coaches, Stevens' path to playing quarterback was in part the result of him outgrowing the other positions he played -- and there were quite a few of them. He credits his dad and uncles for moving him around, something they still do with his siblings.
"I played running back growing up, I played tight end, I played a little bit of receiver. I played a lot of different positions and not just on offense," he said. "I played outside linebacker, I played safety, actually one year I played corner."
It wasn't until Stevens' junior year after he outgrew running back that he zeroed in on quarterback. Even then, his high school offense wasn't exactly meant to produce a prolific passer.
Some colleges even looked at the Indiana three-star prospect as a safety and Stevens, who said numerous times this season he's OK with whatever role his team is on the team as long as he's helping them win, he could continue working in this hybrid role for the Nittany Lions next season.
Sitting behind starter Trace McSorley hasn't been easy for Stevens, who lost the quarterback competition last summer and with only one year separating the two quarterbacks, should McSorley return for his senior season -- which seems likely -- that means either another year in this role for Stevens or a potential graduate transfer.
He's reiterated that he's happy at Penn State and learning from offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead, but what Stevens does in the offseason will be one of the Lions' biggest storylines. Eligible to graduate in the spring, he could be an intriguing graduate transfer option for a number of schools. Should he stay, perhaps he slips into more of the hybrid tight end/running back/wide receiver role that he played this season while McSorley continues at quarterback. It's a great problem for Penn State to have and one the Lions lacked the last several seasons.
Still, would Stevens ask to potentially switch full time into the hybrid role in the offseason should he stay? That much remains unclear. The Lions do have backup quarterbacks now with Sean Clifford redshirting this season and if McSorley would get hurt Stevens could always move back. Is he that tethered to the quarterback position that he'd want to pursue it elsewhere? That too remains a mystery.
"I’ve learned a lot from this process," Stevens said of his redshirt sophomore season. "I’ve learned to be patient. It’s not necessarily something I’ve had to do before. I learned a lot about myself, but at the end of the day it’s not about me. It’s about the team winning games so however I can help, whenever I can help, however that is I’m gonna do it as hard as I can.”
EXPLOSIVE PLAY TRACKER
Penn State won this category yet again this season, this time with a dominant mark of 13-5.
Receptions of 15-plus yards (6)
• McSorley to DeAndre Thompkins, +16 yards
• McSorley to Saeed Blacknall, +19 yards
• McSorley to DaeSean Hamilton, + 32 yards
• McSorley to Juwan Johnson, + 20 yards
• McSorley to Thompkins, + 28 yards
• McSorley to Mike Gesicki, + 19 yards
Receptions of 15-plus yards surrendered by PSU defense: 3
Rushes of 12-plus yards (7)
• McSorley +22 yards
• Stevens +21 yards
• Barkley + 17 yards
• Stevens + 14 yards
• Stevens + 12 yards
• Stevens + 13 yards
• Miles Sanders + 31 yards
Rushes of 12-plus yards surrendered by PSU defense: 2
WHO MADE THE TRIP?
The Lions' travel roster for the regular season finale included an extra safety because of Troy Apke having to sit out the first half. Linebacker Manny Bowen did not make the trip while being suspended for the third consecutive game. It's unclear if Bowen will be part of the Lions' bowl game plans or not.
Offensive line (10): Chasz Wright, Steven Gonzalez, Will Fries, Brendan Mahon, Connor McGovern, Zach Simpson, Michal Menet, Andrew Nelson, Ryan Bates, Alex Gellerstedt
Wide receivers (7): Dae'Lun Darien, Juwan Johnson, Saeed Blacknall, Irv Charles, Brandon Polk, DaeSean Hamilton, DeAndre Thompkins
Tight ends (4): Jonathan Holland, Nick Bowers, Mike Gesicki, Tom Pancoast
Quarterbacks (5): Trace McSorley, Tommy Stevens, Sean Clifford, Michael Shuster, Billy Fester (holder)
Running backs (6): Andre Robinson, Mark Allen, Johnathan Thomas, Miles Sanders, Saquon Barkley, Josh McPhearson
Defensive ends (7): Yetur Gross-Matos, Ryan Buchholz, Daniel Joseph, Shareef Miller, Colin Castagna, Shane Simmons, Shaka Toney
Defensive tackles: (6): Tyrell Chavis, Robert Windsor, Curtis Cothran, Parker Cothren, Ellison Jordan, Kevin Givens
Linebackers (7): Cam Brown, Koa Farmer, Jake Cooper, Jason Cabinda, Brandon Smith, Jason Vranic, Jan Johnson
Cornerbacks (7): Lamont Wade, John Reid, Amani Oruwariye, Grant Haley, Zech McPhearson, Tariq Castro-Fields, Christian Campbell
Safeties (6): Marcus Allen, Nick Scott, John Petrishen, Garrett Taylor, Ayron Monroe, Troy Apke
Kickers (2): Alex Barbir, Tyler Davis
Punters (2): Blake Gillikin, Daniel Pasquariello
Snapper (1): Kyle Vasey
ON THE TRAIL
Penn State's coaches were back out recruiting on Sunday and Monday, another sign that college football never really ends. With the new early signing period starting on December 20, the Lions already have their 2018 class in a great spot with 22 verbal commits and they're still in the hunt for several players, including wide receiver Solomon Enis, defensive end Jayson Oweh and defensive end/outside linebacker Micah Parsons. Parsons will pick a school on Dec. 20 and the Lions should get most of their verbal pledges inked on Dec. 20.
Now, there is a three-day window for players to sign early from Dec. 20-22, but as has been the case with other sports, the majority of players ink on the first day of the early signing period.
Franklin was in Manvel, Texas on Monday, the place where verbal pledge cornerback Trent Gordon goes to school.
Shout out to Penn State Hd Coach @coachjfranklin for stopping by Manvel today. Great visit w Awesome blue collar hd ball coach! There’s a reason he’s successful everywhere he’s been! #WeAre #HokaHey pic.twitter.com/9agPmi8dYF
— Kirk Martin (@graciouswon) November 27, 2017
PEGGING THE BOWL GAME
At this point the Cotton Bowl still looks like the favorite landing spot for Penn State once the bowls are announced on Sunday.
Now, there could still be some changes based off of Saturday night's Big Ten title game between Wisconsin and Ohio State and other conference title games. The Lions remain one spot behind the Buckeyes -- largely because of the head-to-head loss -- but in all likelihood the Lions would be in line to play the loser of the Big 12 title game, one played between TCU and Oklahoma.
While the Fiesta Bowl could take Ohio State ahead of Penn State once the rankings are out on Sunday afternoon, the issue there is that the Buckeyes have become regulars in that bowl game. Ohio State played in the Fiesta Bowl six times since 2013 -- including twice in the past two years -- which perhaps would make Penn State an appealing option to head to Arizona instead of Ohio State.
But, should USC win the Pac-12, that would likely send them to the Fiesta Bowl and would a rematch of last year's Rose Bowl be worth avoiding if possible? The game was an instant classic, but would going for a different matchup be more appealing? We'll see.
The Peach Bowl is still an option as is the Orange Bowl, but the Lions would need a lot of help this weekend to reach the Orange Bowl. Rooting interests to get to the Orange Bowl would need to include Wisconsin beating Ohio State, TCU beating Oklahoma and Georgia beating Auburn.
AWARDS CIRCUIT
The Heisman Trophy finalists should be announced next weekend and while Baker Mayfield is such a favorite that it's been taken off the board in Las Vegas, Saquon Barkley should still be in line to be in New York among the finalists. The Heisman ceremony is slated for Dec. 9.
"If I got invited to New York for the ceremony, that would be special," Barkley said after the Lions' win Saturday night. "I would be representing Penn State, I’d be representing my family and also representing myself. Obviously, that's something when you're a little kid and watch college football you dream about being in that situation like that. ... It would be special to get invited, but if I didn't get invited, it's not going to hurt my feelings or I'm not going to be down or sad about it."
Typically All-Big Ten teams are announced this week as well.