Sam Brodner’s luscious flow and success on the football field caught the eye of more than just girls last season.
On May 3rd, Brodner attended the Nike Sparq Combine in Addison, Illinois. The Sparq combine “was sweet”, says Brodner, “A lot of big time athletes there, who are going to some big name schools, and it was cool to compete against them”. Brodner wowed those big name schools by posting a 4.49 40 yard dash and a 39.6-inch vertical. To put that into perspective, the fastest 40 yard dash at this years’ NFL Combine by a running back was a 4.42 and the highest vertical by a running back was 42.5 inches. Brodner’s athleticism clearly runs in his family, considering his brother plays football at Duke University, his father played football at Purdue, and his mother was an outstanding figure skater. On a related note, the ten pounds he put on this offseason is undoubtedly thanks to his mother’s inconceivably good Italian food. He added this 10 pounds while maintaining both his speed and athleticism, which caught the eye of a few big time college football programs.
Brodner traversed the country this summer as part of his 7 on 7 football team, Midwest Boom. His team participated in tournaments in Ohio, Michigan, Florida, and Indiana. According to Brodner, Boom “helped expose [him] to bigger schools and improved[his] all-around game”. Contrary to what we are accustomed to, he played linebacker and wide receiver for Boom, therefore his versatility was on full display this summer. Brodner emphasized how the Boom coaches really helped him improve his overall game to help impress the bigger schools at the combines and camps he attended. Midwest Boom clearly helped Brodner this summer and he rightfully had nothing but high praise for the coaches and program.
Finally, on June 22, 2015, Sam Brodner committed to Vanderbilt University. Brodner says that he ultimately decided to commit to Vanderbilt because he “felt comfortable with the coaches and at the school”. The Vanderbilt Commodores are a member of the Southeastern Conference, better known as the SEC. It will be an honor for him to play in what is commonly referred to as the best conference in college football, while also receiving an education from one of the best universities in the nation. Brodner will join Hayden Lekacz and Nathan Marcus, two previous Glenbard West football players, at Vanderbilt.
Looking Forward to this season, Sam Brodner and the Glenbard West Hitters will aim for nothing short of a State Championship. Brodner has set both personal goals for himself and his team this season. The all-time rushing record that he narrowly missed last season is on his mind this time around, but most importantly Brodner wants “to practice on Thanksgiving”. The significance of practicing on Thanksgiving is that if that were to occur, the Hitters would be participating in the State Championship. He emphasized how he does not want to look too far ahead however, because the Hitters have a very tough opponent in Bolingbrook this Saturday, August 29.