LA CROSSE — Aquinas High School junior Brady Lee did a lot of things for the Aquinas High School football team last fall.
The 6-foot-2, 190-pounder was a factor on offense, defense and special teams as the Blugolds won the Coulee Conference, finished with an 11-1 record and advanced to the third round of the WIAA Division 4 playoffs.
With one more season remaining to complete his legacy at Aquinas, Lee decided on Thursday what he will do after graduation.
Lee has informed the University of North Dakota coaching staff that he will join them in the summer of 2027 after head coach Eric Schmidt and safeties coach Keaton Wilkerson targeted Lee early in the recruiting game.
“I thought pretty early on that that I was going to go to UND, but I was keeping my options open,” said Lee, who also received scholarship offers from North Dakota State and South Dakota State. “I thought I wanted to make my decision soon, and coach Schmidt asked if I wanted to hop on a call (Thursday), and that’s when I told him I wanted to be a Hawk.”
The Fighting Hawks were 8-6 and won one FCS playoff game last season. Coaches have eyed up Lee as a safety.
“They really liked my tape, and I think they liked how interested I was in them,” said Lee, who revealed that he has taken the seven-hour trip to campus in Grand Forks five times. “They like that I’ve been dedicated to them, and I like that they’ve been dedicated to me.”
Lee caught 18 passes for 392 yards and five touchdowns and carried 17 times for a 9.8-yard average and another touchdown.
He also intercepted a pass, returned a punt 57 yards for a touchdown, ranked second i the team in tackles (52), kicked six extra points and made good on three two-point conversions.
He will likely contribute in many places again next season, but Lee said safety is where he feels most comfortable.
“I enjoy being in the backfield, having a good view of the field and being a commander and ballhawk,” he said. “I like making plays on the ball and hitting people.”
Lee expects to be part of UND’s special teams initially but said he wasn’t sure yet what form that might take. Logan graduate C.J. Siegel also played special teams for North Dakota, where he excelled as a cornerback.
Lee said college football has been a longtime plan of his, but that it picked up steam as an eighth-grader and a freshman.
That’s when he was exposed to the work ethic of former teammates like Jackson Flottmeyer (Winona State), Shane Willenbring (South Dakota State) and hos brother Damien, who was receiving college interest.
“Jackson was one of the first guys who I really saw while he was getting recruited,” Lee said. “I knew it wasn’t too late for me to start grinding and doing the things he was doing to be in that position.”
Lee has spent the offseason working on speed and strength, and that will take on new meaning and importance after this commitment.
“I’ve been working on speed a lot and trying to get more explosive,” Lee said.
