Philly Linebacker Gets a Nittany Lion Offer

Philadelphia St. Joseph's Prep linebacker Steve Quinn recently received an offer from the Nittany Lions. Does he have any favorites? When will he have his decision made?

Name:	Steve Quinn
Position:	OLB
Height:	6'3"
Weight:	215 pounds
40 Speed:	4.52 seconds
Hometown/School:	Philadelphia, Pa. (St. Joseph's Prep)

Steve Quinn and his St. Joseph's Prep teammates are preparing for the inaugural Pennsylvania Kickoff Classic versus Eugene Jarvis and Pitttsburgh's Central Catholic HS on September 4th at Gateway High School Stadium in Monroeville, Pa.  On that same day, nearly 125 miles east of suburban Pittsburgh, Quinn's possible future team will be gearing up to open the season during Akron University.  The talented linebacker received his offer from the Nittany Lions two weeks ago, does he have an interest?

"I got a message to give them a call and I talked to Coach (Ron) Vanderlinden," said Steve of his most recent offer.  "My coach told me they were looking for me."

During the progression of the call, Coach Vanderlinden offered the 6'3'', 215 pounder a scholarship.  Steve and his father visited Penn State last Saturday to watch pre-season practice and tour the campus.

With practice information trickling out under Joe Paterno's strict regime, how did the 2004 version of the Nittany Lions look to Steve?

"Fast!  Everything was just going pretty fast.  College is a lot different from high school," laughed Steve, who focused specifically on the linebackers.  "The linebackers looked really good.  I was watching [Dan Connor] a lot -- he looked very fast.  He looks like he's going to be really good."

Did Steve enjoy the campus as well as the practice?

"When I visited there, it's a nice looking school.  It's a nice campus, nice football program.  (Joe) Paterno is a great coach; I got to talk to him a lot.  Coach Vanderlinden is a great linebacker coach, so if I went there I'd be excited to play for him."

In addition to Penn State, Steve has also received offers from Syracuse, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, and D1-AA powerhouse Delaware.  He has also visited Notre Dame, Northwestern and Wisconsin, each maintaining contact with Steve, but none have offered.

Many felt that once Penn State offered Steve, his decision would have been a quick one.  However, he maintains that he will wait a couple more weeks before giving his verbal commitment to any school.

"I want to wait a little bit, but I'm going to make a decision pretty soon," Steve said, elaborating, "Maybe before the season."

"I was going to see what Notre Dame does also.  They just told me to wait a little bit before they know what they want to do.  Notre Dame was always a favorite when I was little.  Their tradition is pretty much a big part of it."

Would he call either Penn State or Notre Dame his current favorite for his signature?

"All the schools that gave me scholarship offers pretty much stand out.  I like all them," admitted Steve, who has no more unofficial visits planned and no official visits planned.

(Interview by Steve Curry)