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Many high school football standouts in Wisconsin go on to big things at the college level and in the pros, and this is our spot to recognize those athletes each week and help you keep up with what is going down on some of your favorite players from the past. If you have alumni news, please send it to Colton Wilson

Wisconsin high schools' biggest export in regards to football has been offensive lineman for as long as I can remember. Guys like Joe Thomas, Mark Tauscher and Travis Frederick come to mind right away.

This year, rookie second round pick Luke Goedeke is the latest from the Badger State to continue that tradition. The Valders High School grad and Central Michigan alum has started all five games for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in his first season in the NFL.

Like Goedeke, Ben Bredeson has started every single game this NFL season on the New York Giants offensive line. With just one start prior to this year, the Arrowhead grad has found his footing on the 4-1 Giants o-line.

Not a rookie by any means, Melvin Gordon III is in his eighth NFL season and third with the Denver Broncos. The Kenosha Bradford grad scored his 68th career touchdown this year and has taken the feature back role for the Broncos after an injury to Javonte Williams.

Taking advantage of opportunities due to injury also came about for Jake Ferguson this season. The Madison Memorial grad plays tight end for the 4-1 Dallas Cowboys. After an injury to starter Dalton Schultz, Ferguson showed his prowess as a run blocker and receiver in a 23-16 victory over the New York Giants. Ferguson hauled in his first ever NFL catch and also served as the lead blocker for the go-ahead Zeke Elliott touchdown.

Despite a 1-2 record since we last checked in, there is hope for a turnaround for the in-state Badgers. Flambeau High School alum Jim Leonhard has taken the interim head coach role and it led to a 42-7 throttling of Northwestern.

Waukesha North grad Chimere Dike had a career day in the victory, recording 10 catches for 185 yards and three scores; all career highs. Fond du Lac alum Braelon Allen rushed for 136 yards and a score and also threw for a touchdown in the blowout.

Previous weeks weren't all for naught in Badgerland however. In the blowout loss to Ohio State, Verona grad Jackson Acker scored his first ever touchdown. Acker serves as the lead blocker in the fullback position. In the Illinois game, Keeanu Benton of Janesville Craig recorded two sacks. Benton is a force on the inside of the Badger defensive line, creating havoc constantly for opposing offenses.

Will McDonald IV could have foregone his senior year at Iowa State and easily been drafted in the 2022 NFL draft. Instead, the Waukesha North grad returned for the Cyclones and leads their defense. Through six games, McDonald has 4.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks, which rank him in the top 10 in the Big 12.

As stated before, offensive lineman come out of the state and find success at the next level at a high rate. Here are a few doing just that, playing Power 5 football.

Jarrett Horst of Middleton starts on the Michigan State offensive line. Horst was an Honorable Mention All-Conference Big Ten offensive lineman last season after transferring in from Arkansas State.

Like Horst, Willie Tyler III is a transfer into a Big 10 team and starting on its offensive line. The Racine Lutheran grad starts on the Rutgers offensive line after stints with Louisiana Monroe, Texas, and Iowa Western Community College.

Iowa has a long history of Wisconsin recruits playing key roles for the Hawkeyes football team. Bay Port's Jack Plumb has started on the offensive line in games over the past three seasons. Fellow alum Luke Elkin of Neenah is the long snapper for the Hawkeyes.

Jon Gaines II is in his third season starting on the UCLA offensive line. The Marquette University High School grad has battled in the trenches all season and helped the Bruins to a 6-0 record and eleventh ranking in the AP poll.

Hunter Luepke is one of the more unique players in all of college football. Listed as a fullback, the Spencer grad serves as the lead back for the FCS powerhouse North Dakota State. Already a two-time All-American, Luepke has rushed for 480 yards and eight touchdowns for the Bison and added 135 yards and two touchdowns on 11 catches. He is in the running for the Walter Payton Award, awarded to the nation's best FCS player.

Dartmouth has struggled out of the gate in Ivy League play. However, a pair of alumni have shined on either side of the ball for the Big Green. Green Bay Southwest grad Nick Howard has thrown for 283 yards and a score and added 351 rushing yards and six touchdowns serving as the starting quarterback. Defensively, Marquette High School grad Joe Heffernan has 33 tackles and one and a half sacks.

Rashad Lampkin was a standout at Brookfield Central High School. The sophomore at Illinois State has seen sparing snaps for the Redbirds, but two weeks ago found the end zone for his first collegiate touchdown.

Will Ark is in his fourth season as the starting quarterback and punter for Michigan Tech. The Ashwaubenon grad had quite the game last week in a 35-34 win over Wayne State. He threw for 340 yards and three scores while adding a rushing touchdown for the Huskies. Ark earned Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Donald Austin has been a workhorse for Southwest Minnesota State in the Northern Sun Conference. The SJNMA grad carried the ball 31 times for 217 yards and a touchdown despite a 35-14 loss to Sioux Falls. On the season Austin has 471 yards and one touchdown on 72 carries.

Ethan Wittenburg has torn up opposing defenses of Sioux Falls. The Franklin grad has hauled in 24 catches for 414 yards and two scores for the Cougars through six games. Teammate and Ripon grad Hunter Schneider has added two receiving scores on the year.

Elsewhere in the Northern Sun, Jack Strand has taken the reins at quarterback for Minnesota State-Moorhead. The Bloomer High School product has thrown for 995 yards and seven touchdowns, adding a rushing score, through those four games. Defensively, Fox Valley Lutheran's Josiah Behm has had 55 tackles, 3.5 for loss and 1.5 sacks.

Minnesota Duluth is getting contributions up and down the roster from Wisconsin high school grads. Offensively, Onalaska grad Noah Skifton has scored three times for the Bulldogs. Fond du Lac grad Kyle Walljasper has rushed for 368 yards and six touchdowns. Defensively, Drew Hennesey of Highland leads the team with 54 tackles and six sacks on a defense that has starters from Wisconsin at almost every position.

This Division 3 portion of the article will be absolutely loaded as many and more alumni have continued to impress at that level.

The WIAC is still one of the best Division 3 football conferences in the country and the talent from the state litters every school's roster.

UW-River Falls is 4-1 and tied atop the WIAC standings. Mason Van Zeeland of Kaukauna and Michael Krueger of River Falls are big pieces of the Falcons offense. Van Zeeland has 16 catches for 311 yards and three scores while Krueger has rushed for 218 yards and five scores.

UW-Whitewater is also 4-1 and tied with UW-River Falls at the top of the standings. The backfield combo of Tamir Thomas and Jaylon Edmonson provide a strong rushing attack for the Warhawks. The Menomomee Falls and Racine Case grads have combined for 491 yards on the ground along with three touchdowns.

Nick Kudick is lighting up opposing defenses of UW-Eau Claire. The Mauston grad had nine catches for 96 yards and two scores in the Bluggolds 28-20 loss to ranked Albion College. He was named the WIAC Offensive Player of the Week in week 4. Kudick has 22 catches for 360 yards and seven scores, good enough for second in yards and first in touchdowns in the WIAC.

Kobe Berghammer of Cumberland won his second WIAC Offensive Player of the Week honors in UW-Oshkosh's week 5, 46-7 win over UW-Platteville. He threw for 269 yards and four scores and added 52 yards and a score on the ground and also added a receiving touchdown. Berghammer has thrown for a 1,227 yards and a league leading 14 touchdowns. He's added six touchdowns with his legs. Waukesha West's Trae Tetzlaff and Kewaskum's Tony Steger have combined for 42 catches for 641 yards and eight scores for the Titans.

A pair of alumni took home WIAC Special Teams Player of the Week honors in back-to-back weeks. First Luke Cool of Franklin went nine for nine and had a career best 38 yard field goal in UW-Stout's 66-6 win over Crown College. Sussex Hamilton grad Andrew Schweigert went four for four on extra points and had a 45 yard field goal in UW-Plattevilles 31-3 win over UW-Stevens Point to earn the player of the week honors.

Dubuque College is led by former Middleton standout running back Kallion Buckner. He's rushed for 584 yards and six scores through six games, both second in the American Rivers Conference.

Close behind him in those standings is Ty Bausch at Loras College. The Cassville grad has rushed for 434 yards, but leads the American Rivers with eight rushing touchdowns.

Carroll University is 3-2 and has a trio of alumni at the top of its receiving corps. Richland Center's Keon Miller has recorded 20 catches for 200 yards and four scores for the Pios. Teammates Reed Breckheimer of Hilbert and Austin Eichstaedt of Cudahy have 12 catches for 206 yards and three scores and 16 catches for 175 yards and two scores rescpectively.

Cormac Madigan is one of the biggest reason's Ripon College is 5-0 on the year. The Laconia grad had rushed for 607 yards, leading the Midwest Conference, and seven touchdowns. He's added 219 yards and a score receiving.

Capping off this week's alumni round-up is the passing touchdowns leader in all of Division 3 football. Pewaukee grad Josh Swanson currently holds that title with 24 passing touchdowns at Aurora University. In week 5, Swanson threw for 296 yards and six touchdowns in a 62-17 win over Wisconsin Lutheran. He was named the Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference Offensive Player of the Week. Swanson has thrown for 1,527 yards and the aforementioned Division 3 leading 24 scores.