Steven Frank was at a crossroads the last two months and didn’t know if football was for him anymore.

Frank, a former star quarterback at Oswego, has played for two collegiate programs. He’s had two surgeries for two separate injuries and dealt with the other ups and downs of life at the next level.

Was this it?

“I had my doubts about playing again, after I tore my ACL [in September],” Frank said. “I didn’t know what I would do. I kept telling coaches I guess I’ll do construction. They just said to be patient. It was getting to the point where I had to figure out what I was doing next semester.”

Frank has made his decision.

Frank, who has been at Butler Community College in Kansas the past three seasons and started six games this past fall, received an offer from Eastern Illinois last week and committed to the Panthers on Saturday. He’ll enroll in Charleston for the second semester and have two years of eligibility remaining.

“It kind of happened out of nowhere,” Frank said. “It’s super exciting to go to a place that I know wants me, that I want to go to.”

For Frank, back home in Oswego right now, it’s a fresh start in a few years with its share of stops and starts.

After throwing for 1,783 yards and 22 touchdowns as a senior in 2015 at Oswego, he chose Florida Atlantic over Northern Illinois.

When then-new coach Lane Kiffin brought in two new quarterbacks, Frank transferred from Florida Atlantic in August 2017, and ended up at Butler. But he had to have surgery in August 2018 to repair a labrum tear in his hip and missed the entire 2018 season.

“Butler was not an easy place to be at. There is literally nothing to do, nowhere to go besides a couple restaurants; you’re just there to play football,” Frank said. “But it was good for me. I spent a lot of time there by myself. It was a reality check. I was so far from home, kids were always leaving – if you made a relationship you knew it would end quickly. It wasn’t easy, but it made me a better person.”

Frank won the starting job with an impressive spring 2019 – and it carried right over into the season.

“I always tell people I didn’t know if I could be good at football anymore,” Frank said. “I had surgery the year before on the hip, and I didn’t know if I’d be able to play or how I would play. But after the first game, had a good game, I was confident for the rest of the season and didn’t doubt myself.”

Frank threw for 274 yards and two TDs in his first game and led an offense that averaged 35 points during a 5-0 start. He threw for 1,094 yards and nine touchdowns this fall, until his ACL injury Sept. 28.

“I was talking to a bunch of schools before I tore the ACL, and it was awesome,” Frank said. “But once I tore it I didn’t talk to a single school for probably the duration of the season. It turned out probably two weeks ago, decided to talk to some schools. I thought I still had a chance to play.”

Frank has been told he can compete for a job at Eastern Illinois if he comes back healthy. He said he’ll be back for some of spring football. He’s not running, but he’s lifting weights (he’s now a chiseled 6-foot-4 and 240 pounds, but expects to drop to 220 by the season) and moving pretty well.

He tries not to step back and look at the bigger picture, but can appreciate the growth and perspective he’s gained the last few years.

“I’ve been in tough situations. Leaving FAU was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done,” Frank said. “I left some good friends. I loved that place, but it wasn’t the right fit. There’s some things I try not to think about, but they are things that motivate you. The experience, from what I’ve been through since high school, has made me a better person.”