Roberts reacts to Hopes firing

Four-star wide receiver Austin Roberts starts out as the state of Indiana's highest ranked prospect in the 2014 class. One of his early offers came from the in-state Purdue Boilermakers, and he reacted Sunday night to their dismissal of head coach Danny Hope.

"That's unfortunate… I liked him a lot," Roberts said. "I know they had a down year, but I thought beating IU and being bowl eligible would save his job for at least another year."

Roberts, from Carmel High School near Indianapolis, also holds offers from Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Iowa, Miami, Northwestern, Ohio State and Stanford, but said the loss of Hope does not eliminate Purdue from consideration.

"Now I need to see who is going to be the new coach and what's his philosophy," Roberts said. "I'll just have to take another look into it now. I'll have to see what I want to major in and if they do provide that course and how well it is ranked."

Roberts had considered making a weekend visit to Ohio State to see their rivalry contest against Michigan on Saturday, but had other responsibilities to attend to.

"I wish I could have [visited], but it was a little tough because we had some family in for Thanksgiving," Roberts said. "I was there earlier this summer and will probably be back in the off-season too."

One school Roberts was able to visit this fall was Notre Dame, and the four-star prospect has received strong feedback in recent weeks from the nation's No. 1 ranked team.

"Notre Dame is showing some pretty big interest at the moment, so they may be next [to offer]. That would be huge," Roberts said. "I just love the whole game day atmosphere. They sold out the stadium and everyone in the crowd was on their feet the whole time. I really did enjoy the offense they ran too - a lot of spread and they threw the ball around to a lot of people. It would be a really big offer if I did get it."

Although the regular season is finished for a majority of teams across the country, Roberts is looking to take in an early post-season game between two schools he is considering.

"I am probably going to see Wisconsin play in the Big Ten Championship," Roberts said. "That is right over at Lucas Oil Stadium and will be a great opportunity to see both Wisconsin and Nebraska play."

This fall was the first Roberts played in the state of Indiana after starting his career at Tampa (Fla.) Plant High School. Now 6-foot-3 and 206 pounds, Roberts starts out as the state of Indiana's top ranked prospect in the 2014 class and valued his exposure to Midwest football.

"Now I know what playing Midwest football is all about, so if I do get a chance to play in the Big Ten I maybe got a little preview of it," Roberts said.