MSL to NFL: The Chosen Ones
Barrington's Lukas Van Ness was First MSL Player Taken in First Round in 2023; 22 Players from League's Core Schools Have Been Selected
There was no glitz or glamor for Marv Berschet in 1952 like there was 61 years later for Lukas Van Ness.
Berschet was the first player from one of the Mid-Suburban League core schools to be selected in the NFL draft in January 1952 when the Arlington grad was chosen in the 16th round by Washington out of University of Illinois. You wonder how Berschet found out after the choice was made at a hotel in New York City. Letter? Phone call? Telegram?
Millions of football fans around the world knew immediately when Van Ness had his name announced by commissioner Roger Goodell in an elaborate televised event in Kansas City on April 27, 2023. The Barrington graduate who played two years at Iowa was the first MSL player taken in the first round when he went to the Green Bay Packers with the 13th overall pick. The draft is now down to seven rounds but gets start-to-finish coverage.
Van Ness was the 22nd player with ties to one of the MSL’s core schools selected in the NFL draft. This includes players who were drafted from Arlington, Barrington and Palatine before the joined the MSL. Some players who did reach the NFL are not on this list because they went undrafted.
Below is a chart with the selections in chronological order. That’s followed by a brief look at all the MSL to NFL draft picks in order of where they were selected.
Mid-Suburban League NFL Draft Picks
YEAR RD. PICK PLAYER NFL TEAM HS COLLEGE POS.
2023 1 13 Lukas Van Ness Green Bay Barrington Iowa DE
2019 6 208 Scotty Miller Tampa Bay Barrington Bowling Green WR
2017 5 174 Eric Saubert Atlanta Hoffman Estates Drake TE
2014 2 62 Jimmy Garoppolo New England Rolling Meadows E. Illinois QB
2010 5 152 Otis Hudson Cincinnati Barrington E. Illinois OL
2008 3 86 Tom Zbikowski Baltimore Buffalo Grove Notre Dame DB
2006 6 205 Dan Stevenson New England Barrington Notre Dame OL
2002 5 158 Kurt Kittner Atlanta Schaumburg Illinois QB
1996 3 70 Brady Smith New Orleans Barrington Colorado St. DE
1992 4 111 Frank Kmet Buffalo Hersey Purdue DT
1991 7 190 Paul Justin Bears Schaumburg Arizona State QB
1990 10 251 Brad Quast NY Jets Forest View Iowa LB
1989 6 140 Jeff Francis LA Raiders Prospect Tennessee QB
1984 6 156 Don Thorp New Orleans Buffalo Grove Illinois DT
1980 8 215 Randy Clark Bears Prospect No. Illinois OL
1981 8 216 Art Plunkett LA Rams Arlington* UNLV OT
1978 6 163 Doug Betters Miami Arlington Nevada-Reno DE
1976 10 281 Gary Fencik Miami Barrington Yale S
1972 7 158 Steve Conley Cincinnati Arlington Kansas LB-RB
1972 16 396 Guy Murdock Houston Barrington Michigan C
1960 5 59 Len Rohde San Francisco Palatine Utah State OT
1952 16 187 Marv Berschet Washington Arlington Illinois C-G
*Plunkett attended Arlington as a freshman and sophomore before moving to Salt Lake City.
Lukas Van Ness (DE, Barrington)
College: Iowa
Draft: 2023 1st Round (13th pick) by Green Bay Packers
Van Ness was the MSL West co-defensive player of the year and a two-way all-area standout at Barrington in 2019. While he didn’t start once in 27 games in two seasons at Iowa, his disruptive ability to finish with 19.5 tackles for losses and 13.5 sacks vaulted him up NFL draft boards and he opted to leave school after earning second-team all-Big Ten honors in 2022 (11 TFLs, 6.5 sacks).
Van Ness became the highest draft pick in MSL history when he was taken in the first round and 13th overall in 2023 by the Packers. He made his first official NFL game appearance at Soldier Field against the Bears and got his first sack. He finished his rookie season with 4 sacks and 8 TFLs and had another sack in the playoffs. Van Ness played all 17 games again in 2024 with 6 TFLs and 3 sacks.
Jimmy Garoppolo (QB, Rolling Meadows)
College: Eastern Illinois
Draft: 2014 2nd Round (62nd pick) by New England Patriots
“Jimmy G” may have been overlooked with no FBS Division I offers after a Daily Herald All-Area senior year at Rolling Meadows but that didn’t happen again in the 2014 NFL draft when the Patriots and Bill Belichick snagged him late in the second round. Garoppolo tore it up at Eastern Illinois and the Walter Payton Award winner as the top player in FCS was seen as the heir apparent to Tom Brady.
But the seemingly ageless Brady’s play blocked the future prospects for Garoppolo as he threw only 94 passes with the Patriots from 2014 until his trade to the 49ers in October 2017. He was also hindered by injuries but in 2019 threw for 3,978 yards and 27 TDs to quarterback the 49ers to Super Bowl LIV, where they lost to the Kansas City Chiefs.
He overcame thumb and shoulder injuries to throw for 3,810 yards and 20 TDs in 2021 and had 2,437 yards passing with 16 TD and 4 INT in 2022 when a broken foot in Week 13 ended his season. Garoppolo had backup stints with the Raiders in 2023 and Rams in 2024 and in 87 games has completed 67.4% of his passes for 15,828 yards with 96 TDs and 52 INTs.
Tom Zbikowski (S-KR, Buffalo Grove)
College: Notre Dame
Draft: 2008 3rd round (86th pick) by Baltimore Ravens
One of the most electrifying athletes ever from the MSL was the opposite of Garoppolo in terms of acclaim and interest. Zbikowski was a two-time all-area pick and captain in 2002 as a quarterback-safety to lead Buffalo Grove to consecutive 7A state quarterfinals and an MSL East title. From there it was on to Notre Dame, where Zbikowski was a two-time third-team Associated Press All-America pick who helped the Irish to the Fiesta and Sugar bowls.
Zbikowski had a five-year NFL career as a safety and kick returner. The first four were with the Ravens and included a trip to the AFC title game his rookie year. He went to Indianapolis and started the first 11 games when a knee injury knocked him out for the rest of the regular season in 2012, but he returned for a Wild Card loss in what turned out to be his final NFL game. Zbikowski was signed by the Bears but released in the 2013 preseason and finished his career with 3 interceptions. He did some professional boxing and was a college assistant coach at Western Michigan and Brown before taking the head coaching job at St. Patrick High School in Chicago in January 2025.
Brady Smith (DE, Barrington)
College: Colorado State
Draft: 1996 3rd round (70th pick) by New Orleans Saints
The 6-5, 274-pound Smith had NFL bloodlines as his dad Steve (Maine East) was an offensive and defensive lineman with the Steelers, Vikings and Eagles from 1966-74. Brady Smith was an all-area pick in 1990 but his Colorado State career was at a breaking point after three seasons with a redshirt, broken arm and broken leg. Then he had a strong junior year and as a senior led the nation with 16 sacks and 19 tackles for loss to move up the draft boards.
Smith had a productive NFL career and played 143 games for the Saints (1996-99) and Falcons (2000-05). Smith finished with 45 sacks and likely had more than the official 57 tackles for loss since the NFL didn’t start tracking the stat until 1999. He was inducted into the Colorado State Hall of Fame in 2005.
Frank Kmet (DE, Hersey)
College: Purdue
Draft: 1992 4th round (111th pick) by Buffalo Bills
The all-state and all-area lineman led Hersey’s worst in 1986 (1-8) to first 1987 Class 6A state champions with a 26-6 title-game romp over powerful East St. Louis. Kmet was the target of all the big schools and verbally committed to Illinois, but when Mike White resigned amidst a firestorm of NCAA recruiting violations, Kmet headed to Purdue instead. He had 12 tackles for loss as a junior but a broken leg midway through his senior year saw his projected first two rounds draft status tumble.
Kmet was drafted by the Bills in their star-crossed run of four consecutive Super Bowl losses and was also on the Bears practice squad and in the Packers and Browns camps but didn’t see regular-season NFL action as he never fully recovered from the leg injury. He has seen his son Cole achieve that dream of playing in the NFL as the Bears’ starting tight end and was their second-round pick in 2020 after starring in football and baseball at Notre Dame and St. Viator.
Otis Hudson (OL, Barrington)
College: Eastern Illinois
Draft: 2010 5th round (152nd pick) by Cincinnati Bengals
The “Big O” was a powerful force in football and basketball and saw a lot of doors for opportunity open after moving to Barrington from Chicago’s west side. Hudson played his first two years at Minnesota and switched from the defensive line to offense, but when head coach Glen Mason was fired, he transferred to Eastern Illinois and started for two years at right tackle. The 6-5, 320-pound was on the practice squad of the Bengals and in camp with the Kansas City Chiefs. Hudson retired in 2015 and has gone on to a successful career as a financial advisor in suburban Chicago, has been a member of the NFL Former Players Association and volunteers for numerous other organizations.
Len Rohde (OT, Palatine)
College: Utah State
Draft: 1960 5th round (59th pick) by San Francisco 49ers
The self-described “big hayseed” came from farm country near the current Harper College campus to become a dominant force in football and an unbeaten state wrestling champion for Palatine. Rohde was an all-conference tackle his final two seasons at Utah State and earned spots in the school’s Hall of Fame and on its all-century football team.
The 6-4, 250 Rohde didn’t think much of his long-term prospects with the 49ers and alternated between the offensive and defensive lines early in his career. He found a home at left tackle in 1964 and stayed there until he retired before the 1975 season. His 208 consecutive games played ranked third in NFL history at that time and he started 179. Rohde was part of a group that allowed an NFL-record low 8 sacks in the 1970 season and was a Pro Bowl selection in 1971 as the 49ers made consecutive NFC championship game trips. He successfully owned and operated numerous restaurants in the Bay Area and passed away at 79 in 2017.
Rohde was also chosen by the Buffalo Bills in the American Football League’s first draft in 1960. There is no information on the round or pick because names were picked out of a box and the exact selections are unknown, according to the Pro Football Reference website.
Kurt Kittner (QB, Schaumburg)
College: Illinois
Draft: 2002 5th round (158th pick) by Atlanta Falcons
One of the best pure pocket passers from Illinois threw for 449 yards in a loss to Barrington as a Schaumburg senior, which was fifth in state history at the time. Kittner tore a tendon in his thumb a week later after hitting on a helmet while throwing a pass but showed his toughness by coming back to finish an all-area season on defense and special teams. He had a tremendous career at Illinois as a four-year starter where he led the Illini to the 2001 Big Ten title and still holds the career record for TD passes with 70.
Kittner played in 7 games with the 2003 Falcons and threw for 371 yards with 2 TDs and 6 INTs. He was the NFL Europe World Bowl MVP after leading Amsterdam to a title in 2005 and was a backup quarterback for the Bears for much of the 2005 season but didn’t see any action before he was released. Kittner had a nice run as the radio analyst for Illinois football but gave that up to spend more time with his family and has been successful in commercial real estate.
Eric Saubert (TE, Hoffman Estates)
College: Drake
Draft: 2017 5th round (174th pick) by Atlanta Falcons
Saubert is a prime example of if you can play they will find you as the former Hoffman Estates star weighed just 185 pounds as a senior and ended up going to Drake, a Division I non-scholarship football school. Saubert was a highly productive four-year starter with the Bulldogs who grew to 6-5, 253 and became Drake’s first draft pick in 34 years (Bears’ TE Pat Dunsmore in fourth round).
Saubert just finished his eighth NFL season and in 101 games he has 47 catches for 389 yards and 3 TDs. In 2024 he played all 17 games with San Francisco and had 11 catches for 97 yards and a TD. His most productive season was 2022 with Denver with 15 catches for 148 yards and 1 TD. He’s also played for Atlanta, the Bears, Jacksonville, Dallas and Houston.
Doug Betters (DE, Arlington)
Colleges: Montana, Nevada-Reno
Draft: 1978 6th round (163rd pick) by Miami Dolphins
Betters truly got better as his football career progressed from Arlington, where he was a starting two-way lineman but wasn’t all-MSL, to Montana from 1974-76 and Nevada-Reno in 1979, where he was a Division II second-team All-America. Betters thrived under legendary coach Don Shula from 1978-87 as part of the Dolphins “Killer B’s” defense with 64½ sacks in 146 games. He played in two Super Bowls, was named to the Dolphins’ Silver and Golden Anniversary teams in 1991 and 2016 respectively and was inducted into their Ring of Honor.
Everything came together in 1983 when Betters was the Associated Press Defensive Player of the Year and an All-Pro with 16 sacks and 4 fumble recoveries and in 1984 he had 14 sacks. Betters returned to Montana after retirement and was paralyzed in a skiing accident in 1998. He started Doug Betters For The Children, a non-profit foundation which has helped thousands of Montana children with financial assistance for medical-related travel.
Jeff Francis (QB, Prospect)
College: Tennessee
Draft: 1989 6th round (140th pick) by Los Angeles Raiders
Francis was a three-sport standout at Prospect who was all-area in football and basketball as a senior and when he graduated he was the MSL’s career passing yardage leader. He went to play for four years at Tennessee for the legendary Johnny Majors and started his last two seasons. As a senior he led the Vols to a Peach Bowl victory over Indiana and when his college career ended he led them in all-time passing yards with 5,867, a record now held by some guy named Peyton Manning.
Francis went from the Raiders to the Cleveland Browns in 1990 and in the only NFL game he played in late December against the Steelers he completed both of his passes for 26 yards. After he was let go by the Colts, he did some sideline reporting for Tennessee football and has been a youth football coach.
Don Thorp (NT-DE, Buffalo Grove)
College: Illinois
Draft: 1984 6th round (156th pick) by New Orleans Saints
Thorp helped put Buffalo Grove football on the map and return Illinois football to prominence. The young BG program under Grant Blaney took second in the state in Class 5A in 1978 during Thorp’s junior year and he earned all-state honors before joining a struggling Illinois program. As a senior Thorp received numerous awards, including the prestigious Big Ten Silver Football from the Chicago Tribune, to lead the Illini to the 1983 Big Ten title and the Rose Bowl.
Thorp played 14 NFL games with the Saints, Colts and Chiefs from 1984-88 and just missed making the Bears’ powerful defense a year after their iconic Super Bowl victory. He has had huge success running his family’s business involved in the food industry in suburban Chicago.
Scotty Miller (WR, Barrington)
College: Bowling Green
Draft: 2019 6th round (208th pick) by Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Miller starred at Barrington and was the Daily Herald All-Area captain as a senior in 2014 but the 5-9, 174 speedster didn’t get an FBS offer until Bowling Green came calling during the playoffs of that season. The three-time all-Mid American Conference pick stuck with the Bucs after he was drafted and blossomed in his second season when Tom Brady arrived from New England. Miller had his best season in 2020 with 33 catches for 501 and 3 TDs and also caught a TD in the NFC title game as Tampa Bay went on to win the Super Bowl. In 6 seasons through 2024 he has 90 catches for 1,154 yards and 6 TDs with the Bucs, Falcons and Steelers. He re-signed with the Steelers on a one-year deal for 2025.
Dan Stevenson (G, Barrington)
College: Notre Dame
Draft: 2006 6th Round (205th pick) by New England Patriots
Stevenson’s specialty was stacking up loads of pancake blocks as a Parade All-American and all-area offensive lineman at Barrington in 2000. That led him to Notre Dame where was a three-year starter and played in 45 games. As a senior he was voted the team’s top lineman for a prolific offense that averaged 37 points and 477 yards a game.
The 6-5, 350 Stevenson spent the first half of the 2006 on the Patriots’ practice squad and he also spent time with the Miami Dolphins and Houston Texans but didn’t see any regular-season action. His dad Mark was an offensive lineman who played two games with the 1985 Detroit Lions and he also played in the USFL with the Chicago Blitz in 1983.
Paul Justin (QB, Schaumburg)
College: Arizona State
Draft: 1991 7th round (190th pick) by Chicago Bears
Justin was an all-area pick in 1985 as he started the “Air Cerasani” offensive takeoff under the late Tom Cerasani by throwing for 2,000 yards and 16 TDs and leading Schaumburg to its first two playoff victories. Justin became the Arizona State starter midway through his sophomore year and as a junior threw for a school-record 534 yards in an upset of No. 23 Washington State, but an injury- and illness-plagued senior year dropped him to the seventh round.
Justin was cut by the Bears and Colts and played arena football and was the World Bowl MVP as Frankfurt won the NFL Europe title in 1995. He returned to the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts in 1995 and finally saw his first regular-season action. In 1997 he played 8 games and made 4 starts and threw for 1,046 yards and 5 TDs. He went to Cincinnati in 1998 and saw his final NFL action in 1999 when he was 9-for-14 passing for 91 yards in relief roles for Hall of Famer Kurt Warner and the Super Bowl champion St. Louis Rams. Justin played 34 games and threw for 2,614 yards with 8 TDs and 10 INTs.
Steve Conley (LB-RB, Arlington)
College: Kansas
Draft: 1972 7th round (158th pick) by Cincinnati Bengals
Conley was one of the stars of Arlington’s undefeated 1966 MSL champions and went to Kansas where he started for his final two seasons at running back. He was drafted as a linebacker by the legendary Paul Brown of the Bengals but after playing one game there, he was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals and played 7 games at running back with 3 carries for 8 yards.
Conley played for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats of the Canadian Football League in 1973 and spent time with four teams in the World Football League in 1974-75.
Randy Clark (OL, Prospect)
College: Northern Illinois
Draft: 1980 8th round (215th pick) by Chicago Bears
The 1974 Herald all-area pick didn’t get to experience the dream of playing for the hometown team as he was cut in training camp after being drafted by Jim Finks. But Chicago’s old team, the St. Louis Cardinals, picked up Clark and he played 91 games for them from 1980-86 before finishing with 3 games with the ‘87 Atlanta Falcons.
Clark played early in his career with Hall of Fame lineman Dan Dierdorf and found a home at center where his 54 consecutive starts included a second-team all-pro selection by the Newspaper Enterprise Association in 1984 for an explosive offense led by QB Neil Lomax, RB O.J. Anderson and WR Roy Green. He had a Hall of Fame career at Northern Illinois where he was an all-Mid-American Conference C in 1978 and all-MAC and honorable mention Associated Press All-America at T in 1979.
Art Plunkett (OL, Arlington)
College: Nevada-Las Vegas
Draft: 1981 8th round (216th pick) by Los Angeles Rams
You won’t find Plunkett on any all-MSL or all-area lists because his family moved to Salt Lake City after his sophomore year at Arlington. Plunkett also got stronger and gained the coordination he needed from an early growth spurt to become a high-school all-stater as a senior.
After college ball in Vegas, the 6-7, 269-pound Plunkett didn’t make the Rams but played 71 games over six seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals and New England Patriots. He was a backup to O-line greats John Hannah and Julius Adams and a regular on special teams when the Patriots on the Super Bowl XX team that lost to the Bears. Plunkett became a high school football coach and athletic director in Las Vegas.
Brad Quast (LB, Forest View)
College: Iowa
Draft: 1990 10th round (251st pick) by New York Jets
Quast was the 1985 Daily Herald All-Area captain of one of the most unique teams in Illinois high school history as Forest View, in which it dubbed its BYE (Best Year Ever) before the school closed, made a dramatic run where it lost its final game for the Class 5A state championship to Rockford East. The highly recruited Quast went to play for Hayden Fry’s Iowa powerhouse and made an immediate impact with freshman All-American honors.
Quast played at a high level throughout his Iowa career and was a two-time first-team All-Big Ten pick. Unfortunately various injuries also hampered him and included a career-threatening scare with his neck and knee surgery in February after his junior season. That contributed to his drop to the 10th round as he was in camps with the Jets and Eagles and played in the first two years of the NFL’s World League with Barcelona. Quast’s brother Kevin, who played at Rolling Meadows, had his Iowa career cut short because of a spinal condition. Their dad Dick was drafted out of Memphis by the Colts and Buffalo Bills of the American Football League and played in 1964 with Winnipeg of the Canadian Football League.
Gary Fencik (S, Barrington)
College: Yale
Draft: 1976 10th round (281st pick) by Miami Dolphins
The hard-hitting Fencik will be forever remembered in Chicago as one of the key cogs with 5 interceptions for the 1985 Super Bowl champion Bears’ “46” defense that many observers believe is the best in NFL history. But he almost didn’t become a hometown hero after going from Barrington to Yale where he was a standout receiver. Fencik was drafted by the Dolphins, who intended to move him to the secondary but cut him after he ruptured a lung in the preseason.
The Bears picked him up and he played until 1987. Fencik still holds the team’s career interception record with 38 and forced 12 fumbles and recovered 10. He also teamed early in his career with Doug Plank to form a duo that had receiver’s heads on a swivel. Fencik went to two Pro Bowls and was first-team All-Pro in 1981 and voted one of the 100 Greatest Bears of All-Time. Fencik did a lot of broadcast analysis of the Bears and had a successful career in business and also had a prominent role in the “Super Bowl Shuffle” video.
Guy Murdock (C, Barrington)
College: Michigan
Draft: 1972 16th round (396th pick) by Houston Oilers
Murdock went from Barrington to become an instrumental part of Michigan’s rise to a national power under Bo Schembechler. Murdock started in Schembechler’s first three seasons and was a two-time first-team all-Big Ten pick as the Wolverines went 28-5 and lost to Stanford and Jim Plunkett 13-12 in the 1972 Rose Bowl.
Going to the NFL was the other extreme as he played all 14 games for a Houston Oilers team that went 1-13 and made the United Press International’s All-Rookie Team. Murdock was cut before the 1973 season but got another shot at pro football in the upstart World Football League with the Chicago Fire in 1974. Murdock was the team MVP as he blocked for players such as former Northern Illinois star and future NFL running back Mark Kellar. The Fire were extinguished after a year and Murdock stayed on as the Winds became Chicago’s WFL franchise in 1975, but they folded after just five games and the doomed league was out of business a month later. Murdock stayed in the area and became a successful businessman.
Marv Berschet (C-G, Arlington)
College: Illinois
Draft: 1952 16th round (187th pick) by Washington
Berschet didn’t look like he was on a path to become the first player from one of the MSL’s core schools to play in the NFL. The 6-2, 220 lineman hadn’t played a varsity snap at Illinois when he started his 1951 senior season as a third-stringer. Berschet moved into the starting lineup early and led the Illini to an 8-0-1 season and a 40-7 romp over Stanford in the Rose Bowl in the first nationally televised college football game.
The late-round pick made 10 starts and played 16 games for Washington in 1954-55 before becoming a successful farmer in Ohio. Berschet passed away in 2011 at 81.