Woodward-Granger's Jalen Trudeau commits to Dakota State football
Jalen Trudeau has spent the past few years of his life traveling across the country to attend football camps and competitions. On Wednesday for National Signing Day, he officially committed to continue his athletic career and education at Dakota State.
After receiving offers from a number of Division II and III schools in the midwest, Trudeau landed on joining the Trojans in Madison, South Dakota. The football team is coming off a 6-4 season.
“It checked all the boxes for me,” Trudeau said to the Perry Chief. “They have a lot of great things going on and all new facilities coming in the next year or two and I really liked the coaches. Coach (Josh) Anderson grew up right in Madison and played high school and college football there. He is one of the most genuine guys there is.”
Trudeau came to Woodward-Granger as a transfer from Waukee Northwest in the 2022 season and looked to be an immediate impact at linebacker. But an early injury sidelined him for the first four games of the season.
Returning for the last six games of the season, the Hawks’ newest addition on defense racked up 31.5 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and two sacks which earned him all-district honors.
But his recruiting process went far beyond what he accomplished on the field alone.
“I think sometimes there’s a misconception that all you have to do is play your high school games and the coaches will come calling but for me, I learned that I had to be proactive and put in the work on my own too,” he said. “It started with a lot of hard work in the offseason.”
For Trudeau, that meant attending camp sessions and 7-on-7 competitions to develop recognition among scouts and coaches, traveling as far as Dallas and Tampa where he got well-acquainted with the talent beyond Iowa’s borders. Coming to Woodward further adjusted his views of the game.
“There are some really talented guys here that play both sides of the ball. I came from 5A in Waukee where most guys only play one spot. I’ve got a lot of respect now for guys that play just about every down out there in 1A-2A. There are talented guys [even on eight-man teams] the only difference is probably a couple of guys on either side,” Trudeau explained.
Now among NAIA competition at Dakota State, he’ll be back among a style of play more closely aligned with his 5A experience. At 5-foot-10, 205 pounds, he currently projects as an outside linebacker/safety but Trudeau said he believes he could play anywhere on defenses except in the trenches at his current size.
Trudeau was joined on National Signing Day by fellow Woodward-Granger senior Lilly Smith, who committed to dance at Northwestern this fall.
This article originally appeared on Perry Chief: Woodward-Granger's Jalen Trudeau commits to Dakota State football
