Luke Branson '17 Recruiting Profile

I have been accepted into 6 colleges so far-- Indiana State, Purdue (West Lafayette), Indiana (Bloomington), University of Indianapolis, Ball State, and Wabash College. 2 of the schools- Indiana State and Wabash College- invited me to apply for what could be full-ride scholarships based on my GPA and SAT scores. I realize my time in college will be spent going to class to earn my degree. I just want to find a school where I can keep playing football at the same time. It is my passion. It keeps me lifting and going to the gym every day still, even though my high school career is over. I'm hoping if I continue to do the work, I will get my foot in the door and become even better.

During my 4 years of playing varsity football, I have played at whatever position the team needed me to play.  As a freshman, I usually played specials teams, kick off teams, punts.  As a sophmore, I was the starting nose guard on our team that won the state championships.  As a junior, I played 7 games at middle linebacker (I missed 3 games due to an ankle injury) and found my passion and place on the field.  As a senior, circumstances for the team have changed somewhat.  And, though my desire is to be at middle linebacker every Friday night, and I have had the opportunity to meet coaches and attend camps based on playing middle linebacker, the team has needed me to play other positions.  So, during this season, I have played middle linebacker, defensive line, nose guard, and, primarily, defensive end.  Though I want to play middle linebacker to continue to learn and develop at that position, I realize I have to do what is best for the team at the end of the day.  That is what I want to bring to a college team that gives me a chance to play.  Not only will I do whatever the team needs me to do, I will work harder than anyone else to put myself in the best position to help the team wherever I am needed whenever I have the chance.  And, I feel like playing all these different positions this seasons gives a coach more options in deciding what to do with me on the team and in deciding how I can help the team the most.

It would be great if I was such a good football player that I could play football for a living but that is not realistic for most of us.  So, I am trying to use my desire to play football to the best of my ability as a means of making it into college and earning my degree in accounting.  I could go to college without playing football but I love being on the field so the opportunity to play after high school will be the biggest factor in where I go to college.  If I can go to college and play football, that could also help my parents have to pay less for me to go to college, especially since I have a younger sister who will have to go some day, too.

I feel like I can add to any team I get the opportunity to be a part of because I work hard and compete as hard as I can every time I get to take the field.  If I have parts of my game I can improve on, I will work on that in the off season, on my own time to make myself better.  I have a personal coach I've been working with off and on since the 8th grade who has been a big influence on me and what I need to work on to be able to catch the eye of a college coach.  I did not start off my high school academic career the best.  But, over the last couple years, I have realized that in order to have more options to play football in college, I need to have good grades.  So, I have tried really hard to get the grades I know I need to be in a better position to go to school, to play football, to graduate, and to live the life I want after college.

I'm just hoping someone will see my profile and give me a chance to show how I can help.  Thank you for taking the time to read this and see my videos.