Good things, the saying goes, sometimes come in small packages. News flash — good things also often come in big packages.

Such is the case with Noxon Red Devil standout senior Cade VanVleet, who recently signed a letter of intent to attend Montana Tech in Butte.

VanVleet, who finished second in the state B-C Track and Field championship last year with a 50-plus foot throw in the shot put ring, was awarded a track scholarship to the Butte school, where he will also compete in the discus and javelin.

VanVleet, a solidly built 6-0 senior was also widely known and respected for his bruising play on the football field, where opposing defenders often seemed uninterested in tackling the hulking, 260-pound running back.

And while he will focus on track, VanVleet said he will also try out for the Orediggers’ football team.

“I will be a walk-on for the football team,” he said. “If I make it, good for me. If I don’t I guess that would be good for my body in terms of the pounding and wear and tear”.

VanVleet, who is currently participating in spring training with the Noxon track team, said he will major in civil or mechanical engineering while at Montana Tech, a school with an outstanding reputation for its engineering programs.

After another outstanding season on the football field this fall, VanVleet suffered a leg injury in the early going of the basketball season. His knee has recovered but he was kept out of the rest of the basketball season as a precaution against re-injury.

Noxon track coach Scott Richardson said VanVleet’s participation with the track team will give the young, rebuilding Red Devils a boost with his expected point production in the shot put and discus events, as well as the javelin.

“He’s the kind of kid who comes along only so often,” Richardson said. “He’s one of a kind”.

VanVleet has been named to numerous all-District teams, and last year was selected to the All-state B-C track team based on his second place finish in the shot put.