Green Bay Packers defensive lineman Lukas Van Ness is a graduate of Barrington High School who played college football at Iowa.
AP
One of the best pieces of advice I’ve heard when it comes to recruiting is each prospect has a different journey.
Not everyone who winds up playing at the college level, or even those who make it to the NFL, ever have the same path. Below are three former Daily Herald area prep football standouts who are currently playing in the NFL. Each player’s path took different twists and turns.
David Edwards (OL/Downers Grove North/Wisconsin/Buffalo Bills)
Edwards, whom I interviewed back in January 2013 at Jeff Christensen’s Throw It Deep quarterback camp, was still at the time very focused on playing quarterback. Edwards was then listed at 6-foot-6, 210 pounds. The more college coaches discovered Edwards, the more they saw him as an athlete type of recruit who had the sheer physical size and tools to play several different positions, including on the offensive line. Edwards landed multiple high Division 1 offers and committed to Wisconsin after also considering schools such as Illinois and Iowa. Edwards was originally recruited by the Badgers as a tight end, but coaches let him know they might move him to the offensive line. Edwards, who played quarterback and defensive line his senior year of high school, ended up having a great career at Wisconsin. He was selected in the fifth round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Rams and is now with the Bills.
Jayden Reed (WR/Metea Valley and Naperville Central/Western Michigan and Michigan State
Reed, listed as a senior in high school at 5-foot-11, 160 pounds, was ranked by Rivals.com as a two star athlete recruit in the Class of 2018. He gave Western Michigan his early verbal commitment in the spring of 2017 after having offers from the Broncos, Central Michigan, Miami of Ohio and Toledo. After his junior year, Reed transferred from Metea Valley to Naperville Central and finished his high school career playing with his former Metea Valley teammate, QB Payton Thorne. Reed in high school was an explosive, highly-productive speed receiver who made big play after big play. However, in many circles Reed was considered “too small” to play at the high D1 level. Reed played at Western Michigan and had a highly productive freshman season, then entered the transfer portal and wound up at Michigan State where he had a great career. Reed was the Green Bay Packers’ second-round draft pick in 2023 and has been a key receiver over the past two seasons for the Packers.
Lukas Van Ness (DL/Barrington/Iowa)
Van Ness, a former prep hockey player, started to draw recruiting looks in the winter after his junior season with the Broncos. Van Ness. who in high school was listed at 6-foot-5, 269 pounds, was one of the top overall performers that winter at the annual MLK Showcase in McCook. He added his first football scholarship offer from Eastern Illinois and several additional FCS offers followed. Van Ness saw his overall recruiting stock explode in June of 2019 after attending the Linderwood University Mega Camp in Missouri, which was attended by multiple Power 5 schools. Van Ness wound up camping at and visiting Iowa, which he called his “dream school” early in his recruiting process. He quickly committed to the Hawkeyes after landing his Iowa offer. Van Ness was the Green Bay Packers’ first-round pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.