PlayersSeasonJake Langlois Shows No Signs of Stopping as He Looks to Add Another Championship to His Resume

After playing his first year of professional volleyball in the United States with the Utah Stingers, Jake Langlois put his mark on the NVA. Not only did Jake spearhead to move to take first in the league, but his performance also earned him the MVP and Best Outside Hitter of the tournament. Just as other US National Team players have done for the NVA, including David Lee and Russel Holmes, Jake has set the bar for the rest of the league this season. However, his success last year has only been one of many as Jake’s career has skyrocketed since he started playing at BYU.

Only playing soccer and golf before reaching BYU, Jake’s only exposure from the sport would have been from his dad’s stories of playing for the club team while at BYU. However, like most people who go through a ten-inch growth spurt in their senior year, as Jake did, he needed a new sport where his height would give him an advantage. Joining the team as a walk-on, Jake was a sponge to all the new skills it took to play the sport, getting to watch and learn from other BYU greats like Taylor Sander and Ben Patch. But what helped prepare Jake to lead the cougars and play amongst the best athletes in the world was his pure enjoyment of playing volleyball. Where other teammates had been locked in their positions for years, Jake had the freedom to pick up all of his skills at once and become any player he wanted to be.

https://magazine.byu.edu/article/walk-on-to-all-star/ 

Since starting his volleyball journey, Jake has been on a nonstop ride to the top, smiling through every challenge he has faced. Twice being named an AVCA First-Team All-American and two-time All-MPSF First Team Selection, Langlois led his team to the NCAA Finals in his last two years at BYU. Following his graduation, Jake spent two years playing in two of the world’s most prestigious professionals with Gi Group Monza in Italy A1 and MKS Będzin in the Polish PlusLiga. Jake was also selected for the US national team, where the fun hasn’t stopped. With the USA, Jake has won a Bronze medal in the 2018 World Championships and a 3rd (2018) and 2nd (2019) place finish in the Volley Nations League. With the VNL looking to restart again with an NBA-style bubble hosted in Rimini, Italy, Jake is highly likely to be back on the international stage this May.

https://www.volleyball.world/en/vnl/2021/competition/event-intro 

“So far, it’s been an awesome time joining the Utah Stingers. It’s fun to play with a lot of the people I played with at BYU. I am hoping to see the NVA grow into something like the NBA, MLB, and NFL. Once people see men’s volleyball, I know they are going to be drawn to it instantly.” – Jake Langlois

The NVA is proud to have such an outstanding player in the league, representing his Alma Matter with plenty of other all-star Cougars on the Utah Stingers. The 2021 NVA season is fast approaching, and fans won’t want to miss all the action! Make sure to check out the Stingers website (https://stingers.nvausa.com/) and follow the team on Instagram (@stingersnvausa) and Facebook to get weekly media updates of the team. To find out more about Jake, you can find him on Instagram and watch him live-streamed this season on the NVA YouTube page!