Northwestern may have swung and missed on its third running back target on Saturday, but the Wildcats are far from out with their Class of 2016. In fact, with 19 commitments already in the fold, they are still ahead of the count with a little more than five months to go until National Signing Day.
Northwestern failed to land coveted Kansas City prospect A.J. Taylor on Saturday. The four-star athlete, whom the Wildcats were recruiting as a running back, committed to Wisconsin over finalists NU and Maryland.
Taylor was the third top running back to spurn the Wildcats for another school. Three-stars Tre Bryant, who committed to Kansas State earlier this month, and Jeremy Larkin, who picked hometown Cincinnati in June, were the others.
Taylor choosing Wisconsin -- which, ironically, recruited him as a wide receiver -- means that the running back slot is now wide open for Kene Nwangwu, the lone back on Northwestern’s offer board. The two-star from Frisco (Texas) Heritage named Northwestern one of his favorites, along with Kansas. He has yet to visit Evanston but is planning to take an official in the fall.
Nwangwu doesn’t have any competition right now, but the Wildcats could always decide to offer another running back that impresses them early in the season. With so few scholarships available across college football, Northwestern could be in an advantageous position with a late-blooming senior.
Plus, the Wildcats feel that adding a second running back in this class is not necessarily a priority. They already have two-star Jesse Brown on board, and they enter the 2015 season with four scholarship running backs who have at least three years of eligibility remaining: Justin Jackson, Solomon Vault, Auston Anderson and John Moten.
Nwangwu is also the type of player who could play a variety of different positions because of his speed. He may have been offered as a running back, but defensive back could also be a possibility should he ultimately choose to become a Wildcat.
At this point, with just two or three scholarships remaining, Northwestern is content to sit back and see how things unfold. They will be evaluating the first few weeks of senior video of several prospects to see if they are worthy of offers. They also have to evaluate the fourth-year players on their current roster to see who plays themselves into or out of an invitation to play a fifth year. That could impact the scholarships numbers either way.
Northwestern may also opt to hold onto a scholarship or two for the possibility of late decommitments. In addition to players who flat-out change their minds, the end of the regular season brings about coaching changes, and those changes often lead to decommitments.
So even though they missed on a potential difference maker on Saturday, Northwestern will still get a few more swings.
Northwestern failed to land coveted Kansas City prospect A.J. Taylor on Saturday. The four-star athlete, whom the Wildcats were recruiting as a running back, committed to Wisconsin over finalists NU and Maryland.
Taylor was the third top running back to spurn the Wildcats for another school. Three-stars Tre Bryant, who committed to Kansas State earlier this month, and Jeremy Larkin, who picked hometown Cincinnati in June, were the others.
Taylor choosing Wisconsin -- which, ironically, recruited him as a wide receiver -- means that the running back slot is now wide open for Kene Nwangwu, the lone back on Northwestern’s offer board. The two-star from Frisco (Texas) Heritage named Northwestern one of his favorites, along with Kansas. He has yet to visit Evanston but is planning to take an official in the fall.
Nwangwu doesn’t have any competition right now, but the Wildcats could always decide to offer another running back that impresses them early in the season. With so few scholarships available across college football, Northwestern could be in an advantageous position with a late-blooming senior.
Plus, the Wildcats feel that adding a second running back in this class is not necessarily a priority. They already have two-star Jesse Brown on board, and they enter the 2015 season with four scholarship running backs who have at least three years of eligibility remaining: Justin Jackson, Solomon Vault, Auston Anderson and John Moten.
Nwangwu is also the type of player who could play a variety of different positions because of his speed. He may have been offered as a running back, but defensive back could also be a possibility should he ultimately choose to become a Wildcat.
At this point, with just two or three scholarships remaining, Northwestern is content to sit back and see how things unfold. They will be evaluating the first few weeks of senior video of several prospects to see if they are worthy of offers. They also have to evaluate the fourth-year players on their current roster to see who plays themselves into or out of an invitation to play a fifth year. That could impact the scholarships numbers either way.
Northwestern may also opt to hold onto a scholarship or two for the possibility of late decommitments. In addition to players who flat-out change their minds, the end of the regular season brings about coaching changes, and those changes often lead to decommitments.
So even though they missed on a potential difference maker on Saturday, Northwestern will still get a few more swings.
