GREEN BAY, Wis. (NBC 26) — With the NFL Draft fast approaching, every day is one step closer to Cole Van Lanen's dream come true. The former Badgers offensive tackle has been spending more time than anticipated with family and friends in Green Bay since his pre-draft interviews have been held virtually.
"The closer it gets – because really I wasn't even trying to think about it – but the closer it gets, the more I think about it as you know this is going to be a big day for me, but I'm an only child, only grandchild on my mom's side," Van Lanen explained. "This is a big moment for a lot of people in my family and people that have supported me through all of this, you know. I wouldn't be here without them and this is going to be a big day for more than just myself. I'm just really excited to share this experience with all of those people."
Van Lanen's father Tom was a state champion in discus and shot put for West De Pere High School. Cole followed in his footsteps, thinking track was going to be his focus until head coach Gary Westerman reframed his thinking at the beginning of sophomore year.
"I got to talking with Westy and the way I've been playing, I could probably play D1 football," Van Lanen said. "And then as that grew, I had the opportunity of going to Wisconsin, being an offensive lineman, the opportunity's there to go to the NFL and just kind of took advantage of that."
At Wisconsin, Van Lanen played in 46 games and started in 20 over five seasons.
"Getting movement right off the line is the big thing. That's something I've been hearing because a lot of guys don't get their steps in the ground right away," Van Lanen said. "Getting the movement or getting up to the second level or things like that are a lot of things that stand out in my game, that hopefully teams are seeing and things I'm hearing."
Although he grew up in the shadows of Lambeau Field, Van Lanen now considers himself a student of the game instead of a fan.
"The game kind of changed for me once I took it really seriously," Van Lanen said. "Football for me now is that I always watch the offensive line. Rarely watch the football, I barely know what's going on in the game because I'm just watching that ... completely level of intelligence of the game now."
He hasn't been able to completely avoid the thought of being drafted by his hometown green and gold.
"Yeah, I mean, I have a 1 in 32 chance, and yeah that'd be awesome, but I'm just excited to have any opportunity with any program," Van Lanen said. "I'm just excited for this journey wherever it takes me."
Wherever Van Lanen goes to play, he realizes that he could return to Lambeau Field one day as a player – home or away.
"My first year in 2016, I was on the field for the Lambeau Badgers vs LSU game," Van Lanen said. "That was a pretty surreal moment. Any time to be on there as an NFL player would be a very, very surreal moment. Doesn't matter what sideline I'd be on, you know. Grow up going to those games, grow up watching a lot of games on that field, and that would be pretty awesome."
