Unsigned Stud Alert: Bradley Buhl Jr. (Jackson County Central-2020)
The often used football phrase “if there’s talent, they will find it” apparently does not apply to one of the most talented and versatile players in the state of Minnesota regardless of class size; a player who electrified me as I watched the 3A state semifinals against powerhouse Pierz back in November of this past pall. Bradley Buhl Jr. is that 6’1, 220 lb. RB/LB, and signing day came and went I found myself staring at the Jackson County Central star athlete’s Twitter page (@thebradbuhl) constantly refreshing his page to see news of his commitment to a Northern Sun powerhouse, a DIII national championship contender, or a FCS squad in the region, yet no commitment tweet came. After reaching out to Buhl Jr. myself to see where he was at with things, it seems he has been vastly under-recruited for a bruiser of his size who recorded multiple 20-tackle games in 2019 as a LB and finished his Huskie RB career with almost 30 TDs. Buhl is one of these blue-chippers who has fallen through the cracks, as many factors contributed to him struggling to reach out to college coaches in the first place. However, Northstar Football News is here with a gem of a recruit and a Minnesota All-Star game selection who has an unbelievably high ceiling and only looking for the right fit. Check out this free “Unsigned Stud Alert” to get some insight into the 2020 grad’s Huskie career, 2019 run at a state championship, what’s going on with his recruitment, and more! Enjoy, and let’s get this kid playing ball next season. Senior Season
NFN: Hello and thank you for your time, Bradley. Please begin by sharing some information about yourself with us. Where are you from? When did you start playing football and what do you love about it? And what are your stats and measurables?
Buhl Jr.: “I’m originally from Sherburn, MN and I started playing flag football in kindergarten and joined tackle football as soon as I could in the 3rd grade. I love food, lifting, and music just about as much as anything on this planet, and I’m never too picky. I am actually probably the king of dad jokes. I like football because of the lessons it teaches outside of the sport and in real life, and I enjoy the contact, being able to kids and have fun doing it. I’m 6′ 225 pounds, my best 40 is a 4.82 but usually run a consistent 4.91.
Squat max-440
Deadlift- 525
Bench-285
Power clean-255
And we don’t take defensive stats, but I had multiple 20 tackle games on the defensive side of the ball, and I had 132 carries for 912 yards and 12 touchdowns. And as a junior, I had 112 carries for 499 yards and 14 touchdowns as a backup.“
NFN: Unreal. Now tell us about your 2018 Junior season. What were some highlights and lowlights and how did your season go personally?
Buhl Jr.: “My junior year, we ended up 9-2. It was a great year, because we had like 14 (or somewhere around that) juniors that had started as sophomores, so we were a young team. That was a plus. And right around that time, we as a team were all starting to buy in for each other. And the lowest part of the season was losing to Fairmont to go to state the 2nd year in a row. We learned to control what we could and to keep working on our stuff to get better. And I’d say personally, my junior year was a great one. My sophomore year, I was 175 pounds and by junior year started, I was in at about 205. So that helped out a lot.”
NFN: Awesome. Now tell me about your first eight regular season games in 2019? Who’d you play? What were some big games and some of the best games for you? The state tournament games were so fun to watch, and with you playing on both sides of the ball with a boat-load of carries, how sore were you the next day after that Pierz game?
Buhl Jr.: “We started off 8-0 and had scored a LOT. We ended up hitting 70 twice and scored over 40 in 6 games. We ended up playing 2 new teams, and first we played New Richland to start the season, and we won 46-0, and the following week we played Worthington, who was also new to our schedule again and broke our school scoring record in a 76-6 win. And most of the games went this way, but against Blue Earth. We ended up turning the ball over and had a lot of sloppy plays and only won 20-15. I got a concussion in that game that resulted me to miss the last 2 regular season games. My best 2 games in the regular season were against Redwood and my old school Martin County West. Against Redwood, I had 17 carries for 92 yards and 4 touchdowns, and had a forced fumble, 1.5 sacks and 2 fumble recoveries. Also, Redwood was supposed to be the best game of the year. They were ranked 3rd in 2A and we were top 10 in 3A and ended up winning 49-12 Then against MCW, I had 15 carries for 87 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1-1 on passing, 60 something yard touchdown to Rudy (his QB and SDSU commit) on the opening drive. After the Pierz game, the following days were so tough. The last 3 games (section championship, and 1st round in state) I had gotten 80 something carries and going into the Pierz game I was still sore and not a full 100% . So you could imagine how sore I was. From head to toe, I needed to ice.“
NFN: You’re a stud. So what happened with your recruiting and what are some of the reasons you’re still unsigned? Also, what can you offer to a college program as either a LB or RB?
Buhl Jr.: “I’m not too set on any schools, I just want to go somewhere where it fits me. I want to find a location closer to a city so I can get more intern opportunities and I think the biggest reason I haven’t really gotten any looks is because of my lack of experience with it, I didn’t really know how to get a hold of coaches until late in the football season. But whether it’s as a RB or LB, I bring a blue-collar, ground-and-pound type of style. I’ll come in and hit anyone and strike fear into opposing teams, and I’m a strong leader. As a running back, it helps being a power runner, making the defense fatigued throughout the game, and as a linebacker, I could be shifted to the dline due to my strength and I’m a better run stopper than a coverage backer.”
I couldn’t agree more, and I hope any coach reading this really gives the bruiser of a recruit a shot. Northstar Football News will keep you posted on all of Buhl’s recruitment news, and I wish him the best on this process.