Future Boilermaker set to take part in All-American Bowl

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - Terre Haute South senior quarterback Danny Etling is one of just 88 high school senior football players across the nation that has been selected to play in the 2012 Offense-Defense All-American Bowl.

“It's a great feeling to be recognized as being an outstanding player and it means a lot to be named as an all American,” said Terre Haute South and Purdue commit Danny Etling. “Being an all American is a dream come true I remember watching high school all American games as a kid on TV and now I get the opportunity to be apart of a great tradition and represent my high school and future college with pride,” said Etling.

The Offense-Defense All-American Bowl is an electric event and has been ever since its inaugural game which featured the incomparable talents of Cam Newton and Dez Bryant to name a few.

The game is in an East versus West format, with each team made up of 44 of the best high school seniors from across the nation as determined by Rivals.com. A national player of the year award is also presented the night prior to the game.

“I'm ecstatic to have the chance to go down and compete against some of the best competition in America. It will be a blast plus I think one of my future teammates will be playing on my team so I'm really looking forward to that,” said Etling.

This past season at South, the Purdue commit threw for 1,505 yards and 11 touchdowns.

Several of the players in this game including Etling, are 4-star recruits. Joining Etling from Indiana are David Kenney from Pike and Antonio Allen of Ben Davis.

This years Offense-Defense All-American Bowl game is in Texas on December 30th, at Reliant Stadium, which is home to the Houston Texans.

Etling is ranked by rivals.com as a 4-star recruit and is Purdue’s top commit at the moment. Etling is in the process of trying to enroll early at Purdue to get a head start on his career as a Boilermaker.

“It's starting to sink in that I will be starting college so soon. That is kind of a surreal feeling so I'm just going to enjoy being with my family and friends for as long as I can before I leave,” said Etling.

Etling committed to the Boilermakers on April 17, 2012 and hopes that Purdue head coach Danny Hope is around when it’s his turn to arrive on campus.

“I'm hoping that Coach Hope stays at Purdue because that will be tough being at Purdue not knowing if the (new) coach even wants me there or not. I have faith in Coach Hope, his staff and Purdue university,” said Etling.