Could Rowan Brumbaugh be the first member of Northwestern’s Class of 2022?
Rivals national basketball recruiting analyst Jamie Shaw thinks so. On Wednesday, Shaw entered a Northwestern forecast for Brumbaugh, the 6-foot-4 point guard who has been the Wildcats’ top target since picking up an offer in early May.
Brumbaugh, who took his official visit to Northwestern on June 28-30, announced his Top 6 just last week. Northwestern made the impressive list, along with Kansas, Maryland, Miami, Oregon and Texas. The Wildcats wouldn’t beat a blue-blood program like Kansas for a recruit very often, but Brumbaugh could be just the kind of player who bucks that trend.
Shaw said that, while he hasn’t talked to Brumbaugh for quite some time, he “feels pretty good about” his prediction – though he cautioned that any commitment is “never final until they go public and sign the line.”
We also reached out to a source to inquire about Brumbaugh. The source said that things with Brumbaugh are “trending well” for the Wildcats. However, this is not a case of a silent commitment or anything similar.
WildcatReport reported on The Rock last week that Brumbaugh’s parents are sold on Northwestern’s academics and are solidly in the program’s corner. His other official visits were to Georgetown, Wisconsin and Maryland.
Our attempts to reach Brumbaugh since his official visit to Evanston have been unsuccessful.
Northwestern needs a recruiting win after missing out on four point guards in this class already. Denver Anglin (Georgetown), Christian Winborne (St. Joe's), Dasonte Bowen (Iowa) and, just last week, Ben Shtolzberg (Creighton), all spurned the Wildcats for other schools.
Brumbaugh, a Washington D.C. native, plays for Northfield (Mass.) Mt. Hermon, the same New England Prep School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) program that sent former Wildcat Aaron Falzon and current Wildcat Ryan Greer to Evanston.
Head coach Chris Collins has developed strong connections with several NEPSAC schools. In addition to Greer, Boo Buie (Gould Academy) and Casey Simmons (Milton Academy) are also current Cats who played in the league. Former Wildcats from the NEPSAC include Falzon, Rapolas Ivanauskas (Brewster Academy) and Anthony Gaines (New Hampton Prep).
