Northwestern Wildcats 2021 College Football Recruiting Class Overview
Written by Charlie Beuttel
Twitter: @charlie_cds3
Northwestern had a turnaround season in 2020 as the Wildcats improved from a 3-9 season in 2019 to a 7-2 record with an appearance in the Big Ten Conference Championship Game. Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald led his team to five straight wins to open the season and rose all the way to No. 8 in the rankings before losing 29-20 to Michigan State on Nov. 28. The Wildcats closed out the regular season with a win over Illinois but then fell short against Ohio State in the conference title game. Northwestern rebounded in the postseason to dominate Auburn (35-19) in the Citrus Bowl.
Northwestern’s on the field success translated to the recruiting trail as they secured 14 letters of intent from talented recruits all over the country ready to make a name for themselves in the program. The four-star prospects to sign with the Wildcats last month were linebacker Mac Uihlein from Lake Forest (IL) and offensive tackle Caleb Tiernan from Franklin (MI).
A quarterback who signed with Northwestern was three-star prospect Brendan Sullivan from Davison (MI), who is the 27th rated quarterback in the nation. Two transfers who will help the Wildcats continue to be successful in the Big Ten is quarterback Ryan Hilinski, who is transferring from South Carolina after starting for the Gamecocks as a true freshman, and wide receiver Stephon Robinson who is joining the program from Kansas.
This recruiting class sits near the bottom of the Big Ten but has plenty of room to grow in the next signing period as the Wildcats look to clinch their third division championship in four years in 2021.
Northwestern’s Early Period Signees
LB Mac Uihlein, 6-1, 215, Lake Forest HS-Lake Forest, IL
OT Caleb Tiernan, 6-7, 280, Detroit County Day-Franklin, MI
DE Najee Story, 6-4, 240, Solon HS-Solon, OH
RB Anthony Tyus III, 6-1, 207, Portage Northern HS-Portage, MI
QB Brendan Sullivan, 6-3, 180, Davison HS-Davison, MI
LB Aidan Hubbard, 6-4, 218, St. Ignatius-Cleveland, OH
CB Theran Johnson, 6-0, 170, North Central HS-Indianapolis, IN
TE Lawson Albright, 6-5, 225, Grimsley HS-Greensboro, NC
S Garner Wallace, 6-5, 185, Pickerington Central HS-Pickerington, OH
OT Jackson Carsello, 6-4, 270, Glenbrook North HS-Northbrook, IL
WR Jacob Gill, 6-0, 170, Cardinal Gibbons-Raleigh, NC
OG Josh Thompson, 6-4, 290, Fenton HS-Fenton, MI
CB Ore Adeyi, 5-10, 175, Mansfield Legacy HS-Mansfield, TX
ATH Donnie Gray, 6-0, 190, Deerfield Academy-Deerfield, MA
Photo credit: Chicago Tribune; Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald