Tyson LeBlanc’s introduction to Jared Badie occurred three years ago when he saw him play in an eighth grade basketball game in Oswego.
For LeBlanc, Oswego East’s football coach, it was like a trip to the eye doctor — with a bonus.
Instead of the typical white chart with block letters and numbers in black, this was like watching high-definition TV for the first time.
Only it was life size.
“He was 6-foot-2, maybe 6-3, and he looked the part,” LeBlanc said of Badie. “I’m watching them warm up and he dunks the ball.”
Then came the game.
“Not only was he a big kid, he was athletic,” LeBlanc said. “I took one look at his shoulders and saw Division I talent.”
Badie, a junior linebacker, is now 6-4. Or “6-5 in cleats,” LeBlanc is quick to point out. Badie weighs 212 pounds, and he will likely fill out more.
LeBlanc isn’t alone in seeing the young man’s potential.
Every time a college coach has stopped by the school recently for a recruiting visit to check out one of his Wolves, LeBlanc has made a point of having Badie in the general vicinity, too.
One Division I coach whose school doesn’t play in a big Power Five conference noticed Badie immediately and was even antsier to check out the video LeBlanc pulled up on an iPad he just happened to have handy.
It featured game film from last fall when Badie started for the Oswego East varsity at outside linebacker as a sophomore.
“Tell the kid he has an offer,” the coach said, wanting to hand out a scholarship on the spot. “He said the only chance he had to land a kid like Badie was to get involved early.”
Last week, Indiana University made Badie an offer, boosting his total to six. His other suitors are Kent State, Toledo, Iowa State, Minnesota and Purdue.
Badie would have been a four-year varsity football player, according to LeBlanc, if he hadn’t torn his ACL in preseason camp as a freshman.
Surgery cost him football and basketball that school year.
“We were running through drills and weren’t having full contact,” Badie said. “I caught the ball and when I planted to up for it I got hit as I was twisting. It felt like a football hit. I realized all of a sudden I wasn’t able to support my weight.”
Badie didn’t play on the senior-laden varsity basketball team last season but helped lead Oswego East’s sophomores to an undefeated season.
“I’m still a two-sport athlete,” Badie said. “I love playing them both, but I’m very fortunate to get recruited for football.”
He wasn’t fully cleared to resume activity until midway through the summer following his freshman year. He didn’t get to attend any college camps this past summer due to the coronavirus pandemic.
“I had a pretty OK season last year and was able to get some film out thanks to some tips from coach LeBlanc,” Badie said.
LeBlanc, who thinks Badie could play safety, linebacker or defensive line in the right situation in college, texted him that first offer.
“I was just so shocked,” said Badie, who played youth football with the Naperville Patriots. “I think I’ve made up for lost time due to the surgery, but I always feel like I can be better.
“I’m never really satisfied because of how much progress I’ve made.”
It’s probably not over, either.
“I would be really surprised if he doesn’t end up with 25 offers, including most of the Big Ten schools,” LeBlanc said. “Schools like Ohio State and Michigan State, those that recruit future NFL players, are likely to be among them. He’s a freak athlete.”
With a big future.
