By Frank Rajkowski, SJU Writer/Video Producer

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. - After playing two seasons of Division I football at the University of Minnesota, Jimmy Buck went in search of a different kind of experience.

And he said he found exactly what he was looking for at Saint John's University.

"I enjoyed my time (with the Gophers) and I learned a lot," said the 6-foot-3, 210-pound wide receiver out of Orono High School, who redshirted during the 2019 season at Minnesota and is now a sophomore in terms of eligibility.

"But the biggest thing that made me decide to transfer was that I wanted to do things outside of football while still playing for a program that competes at a really high level."

In Collegeville, Buck has been able to do both those things. He's made an immediate impact on the Johnnie football team this fall, adding even more depth to an already-strong receiving corps.

And with several of the team's top receivers sidelined during last Saturday's non-conference matchup with Martin Luther at Clemens Stadium, he stepped up to fill the void – finishing with seven catches for 148 yards and two touchdowns in a 55-7 victory.

"That felt great," Buck said. "It was just nice to be out there contributing. 

"We have a lot of great receivers on this team and they're all great guys. I really enjoy playing with them. We look at it like we're all competing with each other, not against each other. We all push each other and that makes us all better.

"Every single day of the week I can see improvement in both myself and everyone else on the field."

Buck is making his mark off the field as well. He earned Academic All-Big Ten honors with the Gophers a year ago and has continued to thrive in the classroom since first transferring to SJU at the start of the spring semester earlier this year.

He's also thrown himself into the team's fundraising efforts for the St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, a pediatric treatment and research facility that specializes in treatment of children's diseases – especially leukemia and other forms of cancer. 

Buck is serving as this year's recruitment director. It's a cause that has long been important to him, dating back to his days at Orono High School.

"My grandma passed away from breast cancer when I was a senior (in high school)," he said. "I had already been involved with St. Jude before that. But seeing cancer up close and feeling its impact that way made it even more personal. That was so hard, and I can't even imagine what it's like for families dealing with childhood cancer.

"I was part of our St. Jude committee at Orono and we got together with other schools to fundraise. I didn't really find an outlet at the U to keep going with it. But when I got here, I saw that one of our quarterbacks, Chris Backes, was really involved with St. Jude. So I reached out to him right away to ask how I could get involved."

Buck, a psychology major with a minor in neuroscience, hopes to one day pursue a career in the mental health field.

"I just really enjoy studying how the human mind works," he said.

That's a trait apparent to those around him as well. SJU offensive coordinator Kole Heckendorf said Buck is one of the most inquisitive players he has ever coached.

"He asks the most questions of any player we've had in the nine years I've been here," Heckendorf said. "He wants to know what he's supposed to be thinking on every play.

"He's worked his tail off since he first got here last semester," he continued. "Not just on the field, but off. Our offense isn't always the easiest to pick up, but he spent all of spring football working on it. And he stayed up here all summer with our quarterbacks and wide receivers and kept working. 

"He's really pushed himself to keep learning and improving."

And now Buck is hoping that hard work continues to keep paying off. His team – which is 2-0 and ranked as high as No. 5 in the first American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) poll of the 2021 season – faces a big matchup this week against Bethel (2-0, ranked No. 13 by D3football.com).

Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. Saturday at Clemens Stadium. It's the MIAC opener for both teams and the debut of cross-divisional play as the Johnnies are now in the Northwoods Division, while the Royals are members of the Skyline Division.

"I know winning conference and national championships is always the goal here, and I really feel like we have the talent to do that this season," Buck said.

"I'm going to go out there and keep giving my all. And if I do that, hopefully the results will take care of themselves."