Stanford lands Stephens

Stanford added a second standout running back to its 2016 class early Friday morning when Plano High School's Brandon Stephens announced his commitment to the Cardinal in a ceremony at his high school. Rivals250 athlete Beau Bisharat committed to Stanford as a running back in late May.

Stephens received an offer from the Cardinal in early February; he was only the second 2016 running back recruit to receive a Stanford scholarship, and among the first Stanford targets regardless of position in the 2016 class.

Congratulations to my son @BFame24 Brandon Stephens on his offer today from Stanford University! #StanfordFootball- TStephens (@andrun) February 4, 2015

"I'm definitely excited about the offer," Stephens told Cardinal Sports Report a few weeks after receiving it. "It's a big school academic-wise and for football and they have a lot of good things going for them. So it's definitely a big offer for me."

It didn't take long for Stephens to reciprocate Stanford's interest. He made the trip to the West Coast in late February to partake in the Cardinal's first Junior Day of the 2016 recruiting cycle.

"I hung out with the players, Barry Sanders, they're really down to earth," Stephens told Cardinal Sports Report a few months after the visit. "Other than that I just really enjoyed the facilities. I got to sit in on a class lecture, and that was pretty cool because that was my first one. Other than that, I would say the practice was pretty cool. The weather was crazy. It was hailing - I didn't expect that in California. But the whole trip was memorable."

Stephens continued to build a relationship with the Cardinal's coaching staff over the following months. He stayed in touch with his future position coach, Lance Taylor, and his area recruiter, Tavita Pritchard.

"Of course it's about football but most of the time it's just how everything is going with the offseason training, my summer workouts," Stephens said. "We just stay in touch. It's not always about recruiting but what's going on in my life and what's going on in his life."

The next major development in Stephens' recruitment came in late July, when he narrowed an extensive list of offers to six programs. Stanford, Colorado, Alabama, Texas, Texas A&M and Washington made the cut.

TOP SIX! pic.twitter.com/4zmGwegloE- BRANDON STEPHENS (@BFame24) July 24, 2015

And this morning, six weeks and one day after trimming his list to six, Stephens made his choice.

Stephens is ranked the No. 20 running back in the nation and a high three-star prospect by Rivals.com. He's the third 2016 recruit from the state of Texas who has committed to the Cardinal, joining Michael Williams and Kaden Smith. Pritchard is Stanford's area recruiter on all three.

While Stephens is projected by most to be a running back at the college level, it's worth noting he is a strong athlete who is capable of playing defensive back. That's something that could be on the table at some point with the Cardinal.

Stephens is the 16th 2016 prospect who has verbally committed to the Cardinal. Stanford now sits at No. 12 in the Rivals team rankings.

Stay tuned to Cardinal Sports Report for more on Stephens' decision in the coming days.