Hard work and perseverance paid off for this former walk-on, who developed into one of the finest route runners in the collegiate game. Even though he has experience at split end and flanker, professional scouts feel that his ability to come up with the clutch catches in a crowd might lead to a move to slot receiver at the next level.

Swan's fearlessness and ability to separate after the catch made him a fan favorite in Madison when he was finally given his opportunity to play in 2006. The Kinesiology major has also excelled in the classroom, earning Academic All-Big Ten Conference honors the last two years, in addition to adding ESPN Academic All-District V and UW's Ivan B. Williamson Scholastic Award accolades.

"Luke Swan is a good football player," head coach Bret Bielema stated after his receiver's stellar performance vs. Washington State in the 2007 opener. "He's smart and intelligent."

Swan was a two-time All-State selection by the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association at Fennimore High School. He added All-Region honors from Prep Star and twice was named to the All-Conference and All-Area squads. He also excelled in the classroom, adding National Honor Society accolades, in addition to being named to the "Who's Who Among High School Students."

The team captain and Most Valuable Player hauled in 121 passes for 2,234 yards (18.5-yard average) and 26 touchdowns as a receiver, including 1,443 yards with 17 scores on 72 receptions (20-yard average) in 2001. He also competed as a defensive back, coming up with 10 interceptions as a junior and 18 for his career.

The multi-talented athlete also served as team captain for the school's basketball squad. He earned All-Conference hoops honors twice. In track, he was named the squad's MVP. He was a two-time conference champion in the long jump, helping the team add titles in the 100-meter dash, 300-meter intermediate hurdles and 200-meter dash as a junior.

Despite all of his prep school honors, Swan enrolled at Wisconsin as a walk-on in 2003. He spent that season competing on the scout team. In 2004, Swan saw limited playing time. He appeared briefly vs. Illinois and earned Scout Team Player of the Week honors vs. Central Florida, but did not have any catches.

Swan earned Academic All-Big Ten Conference honors in 2005. He was listed third on the depth chart at split end, appearing in eight games (Bowling Green, Temple, Indiana, Purdue, Illinois, Iowa, Hawaii and Auburn) behind Brandon Williams and Jarvis Minton, but did not catch a pass.

With Brandon Williams and Jonathan Orr graduated, the Badgers turned their starting receiver positions over to Swan and Phil Hubbard. The Academic All-District V choice started 10 of 13 games (team opened with a two-tight end formation vs. Western Illinois, Northwestern and Iowa). He snared 35 passes for 595 yards (17.0-yard average) and five touchdowns. He had 26 catches go for at least 10 yards, including nine grabs for more than 20 yards apiece; 28 receptions produced first downs, and he converted 11-of-16 third-down plays and one on fourth down. In addition to his five scoring grabs, he had key catches that set up 11 other touchdown drives and four series that ended with field goals.

Throughout 2007 preseason drills, Swan showed vast improvement over a very productive junior campaign. He would quickly establish himself as a receiver to be feared in the Big Ten Conference. In the first game of the season vs. Washington State, all eight of his catches produced first downs, as he totaled 170 yards with a pair of touchdowns.

In 26 games at Wisconsin, Swan started 13 contests. He hauled in 52 passes for 892 yards (17.2-yard average) and seven touchdowns, adding 42 yards on six punt returns (7.0-yard average) while also posting an assisted tackle. He had 47 catches for first downs, as he converted 18-of-23 third-down plays and one more on fourth down. Proving to be a clutch receiver, he had big catches that set up 22 touchdown drives and six other series that finished with field goals.

Positives: Has a compact frame that could carry at least another 10 pounds of bulk, but he has good chest, arm and shoulder definition, a tight waist and abdomen, good thickness in his thighs and calves, along with low body fat … Demonstrates exceptional lateral agility and balance … More quick than fast, but shows the timing, arm extension and leaping ability to make plays outside his frame … Agile, deceptive runner with the crisp cutting ability to set up and separate from the defender after the catch … All-around athlete with great elevation going for the high passes … Has very good body control throughout his route progression and flashes the flexibility to get to the off-target throws … Very sharp to turn in and out of his patterns and shows ease of movement getting his head turned around to look the ball in … Puts in the extra hours studying tapes and is alert to coverage and locating the soft areas on the field … Quick to settle into the openings in the zone and understands his role for the offense -- coming up with the tough catches over the middle … Effective coverting his patterns and maintaining eye contact with the quarterback to come back for the ball when the pocket is pressured … Assertive going for the ball in a crowd and times his leaps well to get to the ball at its high point … Even though Swan is more quick than fast, he uses an initial burst and lateral agility to get a smooth release off the line … Active with his hands in attempts to defeat the press and has the loose hips to separate after the catch … Makes sharp cuts coming out of his breaks and has an array of moves to get into his route cleanly … Smooth in his patterns and is physical working off and riding up the defender to get to the ball in flight … His concentration and ability to track the ball in flight allow him to make the tough grab … Does a nice job of settling into the zones and shows natural hands to look in and secure the ball … Is the type that builds up his acceleration nicely, demonstrating the athletic agility to adjust to the ball in flight … Flexible making adjustments to uncover and has the quick vision to come back for the ball when the pocket is pressured … Relies more on his lateral moves to separate after the catch than an explosive burst, but is elusive enough to gain some yardage going over the middle … His coordination and vision help when getting his hands up nicely to secure the ball away from the frame without having to break stride … Runs crisp routes while showing the lateral agility and balance to elude after the catch … Sharp in his cuts and does a nice job of sinking his weight and opening his hips to get under most balls thrown to him in the short-to-intermediate area … Shows loose hips in his patterns and the body control to separate after executing sharp cuts … Maintains eye contact with the backfield to work back for the ball and is very effective locating and settling into the zone's soft areas … Shows a good ability to sell his fakes and, even though he is used mostly as a zone route runner, he works hard in his patterns and is quick to find the open area … Very sharp making his cuts and is alert to activity in the backfield to come back for the poorly thrown ball … Reads the defensive back's moves well and shows great anticipation ability, knowing when to come in or out on his breaks … Most effective on comeback routes, where his deceptive speed is a benefit … Has the balance and body control to keep his feet along the sideline and is fearless fighting for the ball in a crowd … Does a nice job making body adjustments in coverage to get to the ball at its high point … Has the loose hips and body control to get to the off-target tosses and looks very natural extending for the ball in flight … Determined to come up with the ball in traffic and has that contortion ability to easily work his way under the ball to catch it in stride … Uses his body control and balance to catch and turn with the ball without having to gather in his cuts and will generally put himself in good position to catch the ball with his hands extended … Times his leaps well and has had just four of 82 passes targeted to him be deflected by the opposition during his career at Wisconsin … Uses his body well when executing his vertical skills and does a good job of securing and catching the ball, despite absorbing some punishing hits … Generates proper hand placement to get a good push off the snap and has the softness and extension skills to look the ball in without breaking stride.

Negatives: Lacks the deep speed and explosion to go vertical, but has good quickness in his stride when working horizontally (has the hand placement and loose hips to push off the defender and get valid yardage after the catch) … Shows some ability to separate on deep routes, but does not have the second gear to elude in the open field (must build up to top speed rather than generate suddenness) … Lacks the ideal arm length you look for in a receiver, but he looks smooth and natural extending for the ball … Does not have the power to run through arm tackles or the speed to fly past defenders in the open field … Has the vision to settle into the soft areas on the field, but is not the type that will get much yardage after the initial hit (lacks explosion in the deep area) … Because of his marginal strength, Swan is not effective blocking at the line of scrimmage, lacking the bulk and hand punch to sustain … He willingly gets in the way of the defender, but is better stalking in the second level than when asked to block in-line.

Compares To: WAYNE CHREBET-ex-New York Jets … Much like Chrebet, Swan is an exceptional route runner whose balance and lateral agility allow him to ride up on a defensive back and easily separate after the catch. He needs to improve his overall strength, as he is a marginal in-line blocker, but he will not hesitate to face up to an opponent. It is his deceptive quickness and balance -- allowing him to set up his moves and separate -- that is of value. With teams relying more on multiple-WR formations, Swan is a perfect fit for the slot receiver position.

No injuries reported.

Campus: 4.62 in the 40-yard dash … 305-pound bench press … Bench presses 225 pounds nine times … 485-pound squat … 305-pound power clean … 37.5-inch vertical jump … 9'10" long jump … 3.98 20-yard shuttle … 29 ¾-inch arm length … 9 1/8-inch hands … Right-handed … 25/34 Wonderlic score.

Attended Fennimore (Wis.) High School, playing football as a wide receiver and defensive back for head coach Tom Uecker … Two-time All-State selection by the Wisconsin Football Coaches Association … Added All-Region honors from Prep Star and twice was named to the All-Conference and All-Area squads … Also excelled in the classroom, adding National Honor Society accolades, in addition to being named to the "Who's Who Among High School Students" … The team captain and Most Valuable Player hauled in 121 passes for 2,234 yards (18.5-yard average) and 26 touchdowns as a receiver during his career, including 1,443 yards with 17 scores on 72 receptions (20-yard average) in 2001 … Also competed as a defensive back, coming up with 10 interceptions as a junior and 18 pass thefts for his career … The multi-talented athlete also served as team captain for the school's basketball squad … Earned All-Conference hoops honors twice … In track, he was named the squad's MVP … Two-time conference champion in the long jump, helping the team add titles in the 100-meter dash, 300-meter intermediate hurdles and 200-meter dash as a junior.

Kinesiology major, twice earning Academic All-Big Ten Conference honors and added Academic All-District V accolades as a junior … Son of Chris and Scott Swan … Born 9/05/84 … Resides in Fennimore, Wisconsin.