LOGAN, Utah - When Joe Palange graduated from St. Edward High School (Lakewood, Ohio) in 2012, he never would have imagined the long and winding road he was about to embark on.

"Nobody really recruited me out of high school, so I sent my highlight tape to every college and only got walk-on opportunities," Palange explained. "Then I got a scholarship offer to a Division I-AA school and took the opportunity."

That opportunity was at William & Mary, which is located in Williamsburg, Va., and 516 miles from his hometown of Cleveland, Ohio. Palange redshirted the 2012 campaign as a scout team fullback for the Tribe, but that was the only season he spent with the program.

"I got there and I just didn't fit in culturally with the school and the program, and I knew I didn't really want to be there," Palange said.

So, he switched schools and enrolled at Oklahoma in Norman, which is 1,071 miles from Cleveland.

"I talked to some of the schools that offered me an opportunity to walk-on and the coaches at Oklahoma told me they really wanted me to come and be a preferred walk-on there," Palange said. "I just felt like it was the best opportunity for me, so I went there and it was a really hard journey."

Palange did not play for the Sooners during the 2013 season, but the following year, he was tabbed Oklahoma's Scout Team Offensive Player of the Year.

"I was nobody for a long time and worked really hard to try and get my name out there and be a guy for them," Palange said. "Eventually, I was one of the only walk-ons who was on the two-deep and traveling. That was a great situation and I was excited and really liked it there."

However, Oklahoma co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Josh Heupel was relieved of his duties at the conclusion of the 2014 season.

"When coach Heupel left, I no longer really fit in the offense and was pretty displaced," Palange said. "I didn't really do anything at practice and was pretty lost. I didn't really know what to do and I didn't really know anybody."

Heupel was then hired by Utah State as its offensive coordinator for the 2015 season, which also proved to benefit Palange.

"Coach Heupel was really the only guy and coach I knew, so he told me I could come out here with him," Palange said.

Which is exactly what Palange did. He made the move to Logan, which is 1,722 miles from Cleveland, and enrolled at Utah State.

However, Palange was not able to get on the field in his first year with the Aggies.

"They thought I would be eligible last year, so I came out here and then I wasn't," Palange said. "It's okay, though. It was frustrating and it's definitely been a real long journey, but I'm glad to be here and glad to finally be playing."

For the first time as a collegiate student-athlete, Palange was able to play in a football game on Sept. 1 when Utah State defeated Weber State 45-6 in the season opener for both teams.

"It was fun," Palange said. "Honestly, I always feel like playing the game is so much easier than practice, so it just slowed down for me and I had a lot of fun. It was great and it was exciting."

The 6-foot-1, 250-pound Palange is a very physical tight end and does a great job of blocking at the point of attack.

"He's big and he's strong," said first-year assistant head coach Mike Canales, who coaches both the Aggie tight ends and running backs. "He's not afraid to put his helmet on somebody and block. Blocking is probably his biggest strength and that's what his forte is. Being big and strong allows him to do that and he plays with a lot of confidence. We have great trust in him."

Palange has played in all 11 games for the Aggies this season and made his one and only start against Arkansas State on Sept. 16. He is still looking for his first career reception at the collegiate level.

"Joe's work ethic is off the charts," Canales said. "I've never been around a kid that has such determination to be successful and he works extremely hard. He's always watching film and he spends all the time that he needs to prepare and wait for his opportunity, and he's taken advantage of every opportunity. I'm just so proud of him."

Back home, Palange is affectionately known as Joey Fingers, a nickname given to him by his dad due to the fact that when he was a kid, he had "fat hands."

The son of Mike and Mary Therese Palange, who was a three-year letterwinner at St. Edward HS, is majoring in sociology and on track to graduate in December.