After watching Troy Fumagalli develop into an All-American talent and likely NFL draft pick, Waubonsie Valley High coach Paul Murphy recalls a conversation with his former player when Fumagalli first left his hometown of Aurora, Illinois, to play for the University of Wisconsin football program.
The unpredictability of Fumagalli’s success wasn’t just that he began his career as a walk-on in 2013. He stepped into a crowd of 11 tight ends all hoping to work their way onto the field, a cluster that included four freshmen and two sophomores. Of those six, four began on scholarship at UW.