Wisconsin football recruiting: 2017 QB Danny Vanden Boom commits to Badgers as preferred walk-on

A Wisconsin Badgers legacy will continue the family tradition in Madison.

Kimberly, Wis. quarterback Danny Vanden Boom announced via Twitter on Tuesday that he verbally committed to UW.

As Vanden Boom told BadgerBlitz.com’s Jon McNamara on Tuesday, he will walk-on for his first semester but there may be a scholarship available starting in Jan. 2018. According to Scout.com, he received scholarship offers from Eastern Michigan, North Dakota State, Illinois State, Northern Iowa and South Dakota State, among others.

Per MaxPreps.com, Vanden Boom threw for 2,499 yards and 25 touchdown passes with zero interceptions his junior season. He also completed 68.7 percent of his passes for the Papermakers on way to the WIAA Division 1 state championship — the third consecutive state title for the high school. In that state title game, he threw for 255 yards and three touchdown passes in leading Kimberly to touchdowns on their last four possessions to upend in-state powerhouse Hartland Arrowhead 49-42

If the last name sounds familiar, it’s because his father, Matt was a former walk-on safety who worked his way up to a first-team All-Big Ten selection in 1981 and 1982.

Vanden Boom is the second-known player to commit as a walk-on in the class of 2017, and the second quarterback in the class after scholarship signal caller Jack Coan.