Commitment Report: Danny McFadden – St. Thomas Academy (2021)

St. Thomas Academy senior <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="18062" first="Danny" last="McFadden"]</strong> could have played it safe. The two-year starter likely could have had his choice of Division II programs and some FCS programs. Instead of taking a sure thing, McFadden accepted a preferred walk-on offer from Stanford. He is rolling the dice with his football career, but not with his future. "My two oldest brothers went to Stanford and played football," McFadden said. "I grew up supporting and following them. A couple of months ago, I reached out to them with my academics and my (football) tape, and they said they would keep in touch with me. We built a relationship through that, and they offered me a preferred walk-on spot." Academics have always been important to McFadden. "I love football, and one of my goals was to play at the next level, but academics are important to me. Stanford is a great school, and I knew it was a school that would challenge me. (Stanford) was too good of an opportunity to pass up." On the football field, the Cardinal like McFadden’s Swiss Army Knife possibilities. "They like that I can catch the ball out of the backfield – that is a big component of their offense," McFadden – who expects to be looked at in the backfield and the slot - explained. "I think that is one of my strengths. They like that I can play multiple positions." Before he reached out to Stanford, he had interest from other programs. "Recruiting was a roller coaster experience," McFadden explained. "The coaches were still trying to figure out how many kids they could take and when they could make decisions because of all the Corona restrictions. I was talking to Harvard and Dartmouth early. I was also talking to Rice and went to a junior day down there." McFadden’s brothers were willing to help guide their little brother through the process. "Their help was massive; it is hard to put into words. Whenever I had a question about recruiting, I could call one of my brothers, and they would have answers for me. It was great to have that resource – they were super helpful." To get interest from the Ivy League and Stanford, McFadden, a two-year starter at running back, had to have a good academic support system. "St. Thomas is a great place to do that. It is a college prep school, so they offer a lot of resources to help you stay on top of your schoolwork. My parents have been a big influence on me – always taking academics seriously because they knew it would open doors for me in the future." Looking to the recent past, McFadden and the Cadets had an undefeated season. "It was a roller coaster of emotions going into the season, not knowing if we were going to have a season or not. I am just grateful we could get some games in. It went great; it couldn’t have gone better considering." "Our team was very physical," McFadden continued. "Defensively, the last couple of years, they rarely gave up more than one or two touchdowns. They are tough and physical. Offensively, St. Thomas Academy has always had a great offensive line, and we run the ball well. We strive to be more physical than the other team. I think that is our greatest strength." McFadden was a strength of the Cadets – especially on offense. "Statistically, I was on track to have my best year," McFadden – who likes to fish and read about history – said. "I played mostly running back. I played a couple of games at nickel corner when we had some Corona issues. In some sets, I played some wide receiver." "My strengths are my vision and patience," the Cadets’ senior continued. "I think I do a good job of waiting for the hole to develop and then accelerating once the hole opens. I am pretty fast, so once I am in the open-field, I am tough to stop." The 5’9" 175-pound runner knows his size could be an issue in the Pac-12. "I need to hit the weight room and put on some weight," McFadden admitted. "I could work on my footwork and agility too. I am doing mostly the classic core lifts, bench, clean, squat. I do a lot of high rep, lower weight stuff, working on explosiveness. I am also doing a lot of agility stuff." This spring, McFadden might get extra time working on his agility. "Depending on what kind of a season there is going to be, this spring, I will be playing lacrosse. I play an attacker spot. I am fast and physical. I can get after the ball and pass and score." Soon after,  it will be summer, and even though he will be on the West Coast. He will be rolling the dice on his football career but will be in a place where he will not be leaving his academics to chance.