Not everyone was in State College this past weekend.
Penn State junior linebacker targets Travis Hughes, an ESPNU 150 Watch List prospect, and Sean Barowski visited two different schools Saturday --- but neither is any closer to making a decision.
Hughes, from Virginia Beach (Va.) Kempsville,attended the North Carolina State-Maryland game as a guest of the Wolfpack, while Barowski, from Harrisburg (Pa.) Bishop McDevitt, Pa., traveled to South Bend for the Notre Dame-Navy matchup.
Hughes received official offers from both N.C. State and Maryland, and he earned verbal offers from West Virginia, East Carolina and Penn State. Right now, he said, he's also looking at Virginia Tech and North Carolina, where he'll visit this Saturday when the Tar Heels take on Miami (Fla.).
"Right now, I'm just enjoying the ride," Hughes said. "When it comes down to crunch time, it'll get a little more hectic. So I'm trying to make my rounds right now and try to see these schools and everything."
As for Barowski, he said the Fighting Irish's 23-31 loss didn't really impact him negatively. Although the middle linebacker hasn't received any official offers, his top schools are still Pitt, Rutgers, Penn State and Notre Dame.
Barowski, whose father played fullback for Joe Paterno, said his decision will likely come down to three things: "Academics, the coaches' personalities — and my mom has to like the school."
Like Barowski, Hughes also has yet to visit Happy Valley this season, but said he's gotten positive feedback from some of his teammates who made the trip. The 6-foot, 209-pound linebacker said he is especially looking forward to scoping out the Nittany Lions' facilities.
"I can't wait to get up there to see," he said.
If there's one advantage Penn State might have, it's the support of Hughes' grandfather, whom Hughes labeled a "Penn State fanatic" who nearly attended the university himself. As a result, Hughes grew up as a fan of the Lions.
LB targets visit elsewhere
