UCF first for Louisiana DT
April 28 will be a day that Tyarise Stevenson never forgets.
The Donaldsonville, La., defensive tackle has been patiently waiting for an offer and on Tuesday he received two in a couple hours' time, the first from UCF and defensive line coach Lorenzo Costantini and then a second from Tulane.
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"Today we were in class, just doing work, and my coach came to my classroom," Stevenson said. "He knocked on the door and told my teacher that a college coach was at the school. So me and my teammate, Stephen Sullivan, went and said hello. He was talking to my coach about the school, showed off his rings and said we had scholarship offers to UCF. He was talking real fast so I didn't really pick it up until afterward when my coach told me. I didn't know how to react, I was like, 'For real?' I was so excited I couldn't even do my work.
"Then for Tulane, I had been in contact with them. I believe it was last week they came to the school. They've told me you don't just come to Tulane to play football, you get a great education. He said he was going to come back to evaluate me. He wanted to see how well I move. He said if he likes what he sees then I'd get an offer. So after I got the news of the UCF offer, I went to my next class and I got a knock on the door from my coach. He told me that Tulane had called and wanted to let me know that I have a full scholarship offer from them too. I was shocked."
Stevenson said it was hard to concentrate for the rest of the school day.
"It was hard to focus," he said. "My Twitter is still blowing up. I was checking my Hudl views and it's been skyrocketing."
Louisiana is always a regular recruiting stop for UCF, who signed two players from the state in 2014. Stevenson said he's learning more about the Knights.
"The coach had been watching my film," Stevenson said. "He got my contact info today, said he's going to keep in touch. He wants to get me on an official visit so I can visit the facilities and see everything so I'd get an actual feel for how the university and athletics program operates. I've been to Florida a couple times. That was just Pensacola on vacation. It would be nice to get away a little bit."
Costantini told him he'd come back once his spring practice gets started.
"He really wants to see me in action," said Stevenson, who is 6-foot-4 and 320 pounds. "He wants to see me on the defensive side of the ball because on film I play both ways."
Tulane will also be a likely visit.
"I've got a couple former teammates that went to Tulane, Leondre James and Devon Breaux," Stevenson said. "They're definitely in my options. My sister was telling me I should go to Tulane."
He sees positives in staying close to home, but also is intrigued by getting away.
"It depends," he said. "I really don't want to leave, but then again I want to get exposed to more than Louisiana. I don't want to be here for all of my life. I've been talking to my family and they said it should be my decision."
Texas, LSU and Louisiana Tech are a few of the other schools that have been in contact. He's doesn't have definitive plans yet, but will stop by several schools for camps and visits this summer.
