Tommy Stevens’ father confirms QB leaving Penn State

Tommy Stevens is officially out at Penn State.

It was reported earlier in the week that Stevens had entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal, allowing himself the opportunity to pursue other opportunities. But even with that decision, he still had an opportunity to return to Penn State if it was his best option.

But that won’t be the case for the senior quarterback, according to Stevens’ father, Tom. In an interview with the Centre Daily Times, Tom said that his son is “certainly leaving” Penn State.

“He came to Penn State to be the starting guy. For it to end up like this, it tore Tommy apart,” Tom said. “He loves Penn State…He really went back and forth with this. It’s been really, really, really difficult. But he understands that it’s a business at the end of the day.”

Stevens served as the backup to Trace McSorley over the last three years but James Franklin still found a way to utilize the athletic quarterback. He would come in under center in certain packages and would line up at wide receiver occasionally. In his career, he totaled 872 yards and 14 touchdowns as a rusher, passer and receiver.

While Stevens was expected to be the starter, Franklin was not ready to cement the senior in that spot. With a strong spring from Sean Clifford, it appeared that a battle for the starting job would last until fall. Stevens didn’t want his final opportunity to slip away.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB