Vedrani a fixture all over the field for Campbell football

When Greg Gush became the head coach of the Campbell High School football team, he already knew he had a player capable of handling some key duties on the offensive line.

Gush had coached Harrison Vedrani when he was first starting out in youth football and knew firsthand what he was getting.

Only thing was, in that first season, Vedrani was just a freshman.

But as one of the biggest players on the field for the Cougars, it wasn't much of a choice for Gush.

"He's started all four years for us," Gush said of Vedrani. "He was on the line, he was the center. He was always a good athlete, but we had some skill-type players we could put out there and we were hurting for big guys on the offensive line."

Off the field, it was a harrowing experience for Vedrani, not only adjusting to high school, but getting used to battling with opposing players who were sometimes two or three years older.

"It was a little intimidating," the senior said. "At the beginning, it was like 'this kid's 250 (pounds) and he's probably a senior.' Once the game got going, I was just in it and it didn't really matter who it was. I just went out there and did what I could.

"It was definitely mental, especially as a freshman. You're just trying to feel your way out in high school. You're just trying to figure out what your place is. The mental part was the toughest to overcome."

Vedrani had been in a similar situation before, going back to those early years of football.

"Back then, it was weight based, so he had to play way up," Gush said. "The first year I coached him was the first year he played football. He was really young, a lot younger than everyone else, but he was the same size. He handled it really well."

And as a sophomore, Vedrani continued to handle the center and defensive tackle positions well, helping the Cougars capture the Division III championship, the first for the program.

With some of those older skill players now graduated, and with other linemen capable of taking over, Vedrani was able to move to different positions as a junior. This year, Gush has his senior captain getting reps on offense at tight end and on defense at linebacker.

"We like to move him around," the coach said. "If he's at defensive tackle, he's going to be a problem for whoever is trying to block him. If he's at linebacker, he's good sideline to sideline. At tight end, we can sometimes get him out in space, sometimes we'll flex him out, and any time you can get him out in space with the ball in his hands, with a typical corner we're going to see, it's not a real big guy. He poses some challenges."

Vedrani had a challenge of his own to overcome during the offseason. After finishing out the season, he started to feel discomfort in his wrist and went to get it checked out.

It turned out that he had played most of the season with a break in his wrist.

"I broke it during last football season and didn't know I broke it for two months," he said. "They put me in a splint for a month and that didn't heal. I had wrist surgery back in February. I was in a cast for three more months and finally got fully cleared in June."

While the injury limited what Vedrani could do in the weight room during the offseason, it didn't slow down the interest from coaches at the next level. Both he and Gush have had discussions with a handful of colleges, it's just a matter of finding the right fit.

"He's had a couple of visits to places," Gush said. "I've gotten a couple of calls. He's fifth or sixth in his class. It's a good combo to have."