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Jackson Buis makes commitment to Saginaw Valley State official
The question for Jackson Buis was not one of whether the Greencastle lineman would sign to play college football but who he would finally put his name on the dotted line for.
It was a question answered Wednesday as Buis signed his national letter of intent to join the Saginaw Valley State University football program beginning in the 2024-25 school year.
“Saginaw was the only college to offer me in the beginning,” Buis said. “They made me feel at home and really took care of my, so I knew it was meant to be when I got on campus.
“The coaches treated me well, the college offered me the right academics and that’s why I chose it.”
Buis, an anchor across a Tiger Cub offensive line that put up more than 4,300 yards of offense this past season, said the Saginaw, Mich., school was an ideal fit in both athletics and academics.
“Saginaw is a smaller campus,” Buis noted. “There’s only two buildings on the main campus.
“The dorm rooms were nice. They were the size of an apartment for four people. There’s a lot of space.
“I’m looking into studying accounting,” Buis added. “I’m not sure if there’s anything I will minor in at this time.”
The Cardinals, a member of the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference, composed primarily of schools in Michigan with surrounding members in Wisconsin, Indiana and soon to include Illinois, had a down year on the gridiron at 6-5 in the 2023 season.
Facing off against national powers in Farris State and Grand Valley State, as well as a surging programs like Davenport and Indianapolis, Saginaw Valley has stiff competition throughout the schedule and Buis said that would extend into trying to earn playing time.
“Last year, (Saginaw) had a little bit of a tank season,” Buis said. “They play a lot of good teams and the year before, they were a top-20 team in the nation.
“Historically, they’ve been pretty good in the GLIAC. The coaches see me playing at either guard or center; they’ve talked about redshirting me my freshman year and looking at me being a potential starter as a sophomore, junior and senior.
“Redshirting means I would work out and practice with the team every day,” Buis added. “I would likely not be part of the travel squad for away games but I would still have three games in which I could still play.”
The process for navigating higher level athletics is not an easy one but Buis had an advantage many athletes do not: the knowledge of his father, Josh Buis, a South Putnam and DePauw University graduate who coached at Grand Valley, Eastern Michigan and Northwestern, as well as at Greencastle.
“It helped a lot,” Buis said about his father’s knowledge of collegiate athletics. “Having been an athlete and coach for nine years, there was a lot of upside in asking about his knowledge of how everything goes.
“He started me on the right path to start my college career,” Buis added.
Moving to Saginaw, half an hour away from Lake Huron, was going to be the initial challenge according to Buis, with the uptick in athletics and academics also going to take time to adjust to.
“The biggest thing for me is going to be moving away from family,” Buis said. “That will be the toughest part.
“The speed of the game is going to change and the classes are going to be tougher.”
Having been along the recruiting path for some time, Buis said he was glad to have made his decision and was ready to tackle a new challenge next school year.
“I’m very excited,” Buis said. “I’ve been ready to go for a while now.
“I’ve been putting in the effort to go out there and start competing.”