SIOUX FALLS — Eddie Whiting’s future plans of playing at the next level have already been decided, but that hasn’t stopped Sioux Falls Jefferson’s star tight end from continuing to develop his game.

Since the start of the new year, Whiting has stayed plenty busy.

On Feb. 8, the 6-foot-6 rising senior committed to Michigan State, picking the Spartans over a slew of more than 15 other Division I offers. After taking some time to properly heal up from an ankle injury, Whiting returned to the hardwood in early February to help guide Jefferson to the state tournament, and throughout the spring, he has also competed on Sanford Sports Academy’s 18U

7-on-7 football

team.

The grind simply doesn’t stop for Whiting. He is also taking part in

Sanford’s Elite Training Prep program,

a six-week initiative for high school football players that allows participants to work with the Sanford Sports Performance team on agility training, speed training, 1-on-1 drills, skelly drills and film analysis.

The ETP program has one session remaining before the annual football combine on Friday, April 25. With his college future already decided, Whiting won’t take part in the combine, but he still sees a lot of value in the ETP program.

“It’s just good football,” said Whiting, who has participated in the ETP program the last two years. “You get in some good workouts with some of the best talent in South Dakota, and it’s just a chance to get on the field.”

Trent Singer / Sioux Falls Live

A four-star recruit on Rivals,

Whiting took his first official visit to MSU over the Thanksgiving break and developed an immediate connection with tight ends coach Brian Wozniak, who also serves as the Spartans’ recruiting coordinator.

Wozniak, who played four years at the University of Wisconsin (2009-13), worked under head coach Jonathan Smith for five years at Oregon State. Then, in December 2023, Wozniak joined the MSU staff after Smith was appointed the program’s head coach.

In January, Whiting received a multitude of offers. Among his final options were Washington, Minnesota, Iowa and a late push by Alabama, but Whiting’s connection with Wozniak and Smith at Michigan State was simply too strong to ignore.

“He’s a tight ends coach who actually played tight end, so there’s actual experience there,” Whiting said about Wozniak. “And then coach Smith, I just got good vibes from him every time I talked to him.

“They’re very family-oriented, and they want to get to know you as a person. They make it more family than business.”

Wisconsin was the first big school to begin pursuing Whiting’s talents last spring, and after that, he spent the summer competing in a number of college camps. Then, in the fall, Whiting took gameday visits to Minnesota, Nebraska, Iowa and Iowa State, among others.

Kurtiss Riggs is the director of football at the Sanford Sports Academy and has known the Whiting family for a while now. Over the years, Whiting’s father, Ed, has established himself as an assistant coach in Sioux Falls, where he currently serves as defensive coordinator at Jefferson.

Riggs believes Whiting’s physical traits are the primary source of so much of his Division I interest.

“You can’t coach those things,” Riggs said, “and then you start to add in the fact that he’s got extremely soft hands, a great work ethic, very coachable. And he really glides when he runs, and those are things you just don’t find very often.

“Coaches jump on it right away.”

Trent Singer / Sioux Falls Live

As a junior in 2024, Whiting played in eight games for a Cavaliers squad that

nearly pulled off an upset

over top-seeded Brandon Valley in the semifinals of the Class 11AAA playoffs. Whiting finished with 29 receptions for 383 yards, earning a spot on the inaugural Sioux Falls Live 25 team, while Jefferson wrapped up its season with a 7-4 record.

Since getting back into game shape this offseason, Whiting has been working on rounding out his entire game on the gridiron, but his biggest area of focus has been on finishing out blocks.

“I just try to really get on the field as much as I can,” Whiting said. “Sanford has been one of my main resources if I need football training.”

Whiting is among a group of uber-talented tight ends who are participating in this year’s ETP program. That includes Cooper Terwilliger, a 6-5 rising junior at Pierre T.F. Riggs who’s already garnered offers from 13 Division I programs, and Jackson County Central (Minn.) rising senior Roman Voss, a 6-4 tight end who has 14 offers from power conference schools.

Additionally, rising seniors Tobin Squires (Sioux Valley) and Bergan Tetzlaff (Brookings) are two other tight end prospects in this year’s ETP program who have received FCS and Division II interest.

“It’s kind of a flourishing position right now,” Riggs said.

Trent Singer / Sioux Falls Live

For now, Whiting is looking ahead to his senior season with excitement. He likes the core group of players who are returning this fall and believes the Cavs have what it takes to make a run at the 11AAA title.

Jefferson will be led by first-year head coach Eric Struck, who replaces Vince Benedetto at the helm of the program

after Benedetto stepped down in January

to become the tight ends coach at South Dakota State.

“He’s a good dude,” Whiting said about Struck, a longtime assistant coach in the city who most recently served as offensive coordinator for two-time defending state champion Sioux Falls Lincoln. “It’s going to be different without coach Benedetto, but coach Struck is going to give us a lot of new opportunities, especially on the offensive side because he’s a great offensive mind in South Dakota. It’s going to be fun.”

Through the ETP program, Whiting has been working closely with Jake Nordin, a former NFL tight end who now resides in Sioux Falls and remains active in coaching the game of football.

Last weekend, Whiting helped lead Sanford’s 18U 7-on-7 team to a tournament triumph in Omaha, and Riggs was in awe by the performance.

“Teams had no answer,” Riggs said. “Even when they cover him, you can’t get around him. He has such great size. He does a tremendous job of reaching out and getting the ball with those long arms. As I walked off the field, I thought, ‘He’s for sure a Division I tight end.’ I think some of the questions were, ‘Will he move to a tackle at some point?’ He’s a tight end.

“He’ll play at a very high level, and maybe someday, we’ll see him playing on Sundays, too.”