Lincoln-Way West’s Josh Veldman finds right fit at Northwestern

Sometimes you just know.

When Lincoln-Way West junior Josh Veldman decided that Northwestern was the right fit for him, he didn’t see any point in prolonging his recruitment.

“It started during the season when they invited me to a game, and that was a good start to our relationship. Then, about a month ago, they came to watch me do a workout, and then they handed out the offer,” Veldman said. “And since they had been staying in contact a bunch and we kept building that relationship leading up to junior day. And they just took it away with the junior day. It checked off all the boxes. I wouldn’t want to play for anybody else.

“I feel like it not only is the best opportunity for me, but for my family, with how close it is, as well.”

The 6-foot-2, 207-pound linebacker, a Herald-News All-Area player, recorded 110 tackles, including 12 tackles for loss and four forced fumbles, in the heart of the Lincoln-Way West defense, but the offseason and a recent junior day at Northwestern pushed Veldman’s stock even higher.

Veldman also received offers from Iowa State and Cincinnati and likely would have seen multiple other offers roll in had he decided to take more time. But almost from the initial conversations between Northwestern and Veldman, the decision was basically already made.

“Obviously, it is an amazing education if football doesn’t end up working out,” Veldman said. “I would also say that they were 100% invested in me. I think I am the only linebacker that they had offered, and that’s a pretty big deal. And I’d also say the people. They have really tight relationships there. I like their philosophies and just how they go about things.

“I always kind of knew in the back of my mind that it was going to be Northwestern, and I can’t wait to be a part of that.

Veldman is encouraged to enter his senior season with his recruitment behind.

“It does allow me to go into my senior season pretty stress free,” he said.

Lincoln-Way West coach Luke Lokanc has been touting his linebacker’s potential for a while to Northwestern coach David Braun, who was at North Dakota State before his arrival at Northwestern. But even before both of those stints, Braun and Lokanc have been close friends, which gives Lokanc plenty of confidence he’s sending his athlete to a program where he’ll be taken care of.

“I knew what Josh was likely going to develop into after watching him for the last two years, and what a lot of people don’t realize is that he’s a young Class of 2025. He technically could be in the 2026 class,” Lokanc said. “If you looked at him last season, you might have seen a taller, skinny kid, but his body has really filled out, and a lot of these guys were coming in this January and seeing a totally different, physical type of kid.

“And knowing that we’re sending a player to Northwestern to play for a coach that cares more about him as a person than a football player is really relieving.”

Northwestern is starting to form a pipeline from Lincoln-Way schools. Lincoln-Way East defensive lineman Caden O’Rourke will join Veldman in Northwestern’s Class of 2025 recruits. Former Lincoln-Way East players AJ Henning and Sean McLaughlin are on Northwestern’s roster. Other local products on the Wildcats’ roster are Anthony Birsa (Joliet Catholic), Damon Walters (Bolingbrook) and Albert Kunickis (Lemont).

“They’ve been recruiting a lot of local kids, which is great,” Lokanc said.