IDS MONDAY, JUNE 9, 2014
Current and future Hoosiers drafted, Page 5
INDIANA DAILY STUDENT | IDSNEWS.COM
COURTESY PHOTOS
Quarterback Tommy Stevens attempts a pass. The Indianapolis native is the No. 15 ranked quarterback in the class of 2015, and he will begin his senior season with Decatur Central this fall before enrolling at IU.
Quarterback commit used to up-tempo offense BY SAM BEISHUIZEN sbeishui@indiana.edu
For newly committed three-star quarterback Tommy Stevens, football wasn’t the most important factor in selecting a college. It was only a piece of the puzzle. The Decatur Central High School senior-to-be knew he wanted to major in business. Comfort with his teammates and coaching staff was also near the top of his priority list. And he wanted a chance to compete for playing time early in his collegiate career. After he sorted through his 14 football scholarship offers, he decided IU provided the most complete picture. “When it came down to it, all the pieces fit,” Stevens said. “I couldn’t tell you one bad thing about IU.” The 6-foot-3, 196-pound recruit is the No. 15 nationally ranked quarterback in the class of 2015 by Rivals.com. The dual-threat recruit passed for 1,596 yards and 13 touchdowns in his junior season in high school. He also rushed for 785 yards and
scored seven rushing touchdowns. He averaged 7.2 yards per rush as a junior. Stevens said he is excited about playing in IU Coach Kevin Wilson’s fast-paced, no-huddle offense. He’s already no stranger to moving the ball quickly. Rivals.com lists his 40-yard dash time at 4.65 seconds, which helped him pace a Decatur Central offense that averaged 46.5 points per game this past season. Because of his familiarity with running an explosive offense, Stevens said he expects to fit well with a high-octane Hoosier offense that ranked ninth in the country with an average of 508.5 yards of total offense per game. “It’s definitely a good offense and one of the best in the country,” Stevens said. “It’s basically a quarterback’s dream to play in, essentially making all the decisions. I couldn’t see it any other way.” Juniors Nate Sudfeld and Tre Roberson split time at quarterback in the past season at the helm of the Hoosier offense. Stevens has spent time talking to both, but mostly with Sudfeld who has offered him advice on
how to move an offense and what it means to be an IU quarterback. By the time Stevens is on campus, Sudfeld and Roberson will be seniors. He said the chance to compete for a starting job early in his time at IU while still getting the chance to learn from the upperclassmen was key in making his decision. But the person Stevens has become closest to has been soon-tobe freshman Dominique Booth. Stevens joked that Booth “tore us up” in a sectional game between Booth’s Pike High School and Stevens’s Decatur Central two years ago. “Dom’s been really more of a career interest for me, telling me what to look for,” Stevens said. “I mean, he tried to get me to Indiana of course, but he has told me to look out for things — what’s right, what’s wrong. Basically just helping me out.” Both Booth and Stevens are Indianapolis natives and have been key in-state signs for Wilson and the IU program. They join 2014 signee Donovan Clark and 2015’s Jacob Robinson as top-20 in-state Hoosier commit-
Quarterback Tommy Stevens surveys the defensive secondary. The three-star prospect committed to IU for the class of 2015.
ments ranked by Rivals.com. Now that Stevens has committed, he said he hopes to join Booth in helping recruit other talented high school players from across the state. What separates schools like Michigan and Ohio State in the Big Ten is their ability to sign the top players from within the state, and then move out to the rest of the
country, Stevens said. He said he thinks he can help attract in-state talent to help IU become more like the perennial Big Ten powers. “These bigger schools ... make sure they take care of their state,” Stevens said. “I think that’s what we’re hoping to start making IU. SEE COMMIT, PAGE8
Art celebrated in Gallery Walk GOP nominates all women at convention BY CAMILLE SARABIA csarabia@indiana.edu
Whether it’s an inspiring oil painting, a complex and beautiful piece of metal work or astrophotography, this weekend’s art display has heightened Bloomington’s craving for beauty. The 10th anniversary of Bloomington’s Gallery Walk took place Friday. The weekend continued with the third annual Bloomington Open Studios Tour Saturday and Sunday. “It’s going to be a really fun weekend,” said Tova Lesko, the manager at By Hand Gallery. “It’s a perfect day outside right now. I think we’ll have the busiest gallery walk that we’ve had all year.” Other galleries that participated in the Studio Tour include the Venue Fine Arts and Gifts, Ivy Tech John Waldron Arts Center, Gallery 406, Pictura, Blueline Gallery and more. During the tour, 40 galleries united to launch the Red Dot campaign, a new addition to the Open Studios Tour this year. Gallery 406 owner Kendall Reeves said the success of the campaign was hard to predict. He said the campaign was a
new solution to engage the community with the local artists. “I think you have to try new things,” Reeves said. “I’m not sure how it will pan out, but I’m hoping for good things.” Reeves said the Red Dot campaign had a simple motive. “It’s all about getting people to purchase art,” he said. “Art impacts the community. A lot of people think that showing up to the Gallery Walk is supporting art, but you actually have to buy some too.” According to the Gallery Walk Bloomington website, “The red dot sticker or mark on an artist or price card indicates that the art piece has been sold. This is an American gallery tradition. During the exhibitions, the art is sold and marked with the red dots, but it stays on display until the closing of the exhibit.” The campaign’s initiative was meant to spark the excitement for art in the community and to unite local artists to support each other’s art. “I think it’s a great idea for all the galleries to work together,” Lesko said. The Red Dot campaign also engaged local artists with the community through social media.
BY SARAH ZINN sjzinn@indiana.edu @sarah_zinn
SAMANTHA STARR | IDS
Handmade jewelry artist, Lori McDonald, right, helps a customer with her pieces Sunday at the I. Fell Building. McDonald is one of 40 artists showing their work as part of the third annual Bloomington Open Studios Tour.
The active #RedDotIt kept the buzz alive about Bloomington’s galleries, businesses and creative talent. “After this weekend, the community will be more aware of the different types of arts and artists in the local area,” Lesko said.
Kelly Mitchell won the nomination for Secretary of Treasury at the Indiana GOP Convention in Lafayette this past Friday. After three ballots, she won against Marion County Mayor Wayne Seybold and financial adviser Don Bates. Bates dropped out at the third ballot, and Mitchell won 63 percent of the votes, which beat Seybold at 37 percent. “It seems like people that were supporting Bates switched to Kelly Mitchell in the third ballot,” Robert Hall said. “She’s already working in that department, so she comes with experience, and she’s fiscally responsible.” Mitchell was the third in the line of women nominated to appear on the November ballot Friday. She joined Secretary of State nominee Connie Lawson and Auditor nominee Suzanne Crouch. Lawson and Crouch were appointed by Governor Pence after the two previously in the positions resigned, Hall said.
Hall said the nomination of all women shows the GOP’s “war on women” is just something the Democrats have alleged. He mentioned Republicans tend to elect more women into office than Democrats. “I think the Democrats are hurting the economy, which is hurting women,” Hall said. The state of the economy was a discussion point at the convention. Treasurer Richard Murdock notably compared the current economic downturn to the events before the Nazi regime before accepting an award. “The truth is 70 years later we are drifting toward the tides of another beachhead with the bankruptcy of America,” he said at the convention. Another significant point of concern was the party’s decision to use language promoting marriage between a man and a woman. Though some party members disagreed with the decision, it was supported by the majority of attendees.