I'm going to publish this as a story tomorrow morning, but will post it here first....
The Northwestern Wildcats offered a scholarship to three-star 2018 quarterback Quincy Patterson last month. But they offered the star from Chicago (Ill.) Solorio Academy as a superback, not a quarterback.
Time will tell whether or not that becomes an issue for Patterson, who would like to play quarterback in college. Right now, however, he is just thrilled to have an offer from a school that he’s always had his eye on.
“I was extremely excited (to get an NU offer) considering I’ve always loved Northwestern, even in elementary school,” said Patterson. “I love that academically they are one of the top schools in the nation, and their football program follows that same status of being one of the top in the country.”
Patterson’s emphasis on academics is not just lip service. He holds a 5.1 GPA at Solorio – on a 4.0 scale – so it’s obvious that he takes his education very seriously. He wants to major in mechanical or materials engineering in college.
Patterson received his Northwestern offer in September, but he has been talking to assistant coach Jerry Brown since last March. He has already visited the school twice – last spring for a practice and last month for the Nebraska game. He said that both visits were “great” for reasons that go beyond football.
“They make you feel at home and everything isn’t all about football to them, and they make that quite obvious by the conversations they have with you,” he explained.
The big question regarding Northwestern’s recruitment of Patterson may come down to position. The six other schools on his offer list – Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi State, New Mexico, Penn State and Syracuse – have offered him as a quarterback, and that’s where Patterson would like to play at the next level.
The offer as a superback will not disqualify Northwestern from the race by any means, but it may make it a little tougher for the Wildcats to land him. In order for him to pick Northwestern, Patterson will have to be so certain that it’s the right place for him that he’s willing to give up his desire to play quarterback in college.
“I believe that when I actually look into what I want in a school and Northwestern blows everyone out of the water, then the position won’t matter to me,” he said. He went on to say that position “could possibly have an effect (on the decision), depending on how other schools compare to them and how next season goes.”
In other words, if all things are equal or close to equal, Northwestern could be facing a more difficult burden than the other schools in the race.
It’s certain that Northwestern does a pretty good job of checking all of the boxes on Patterson’s wish list for a college program. When asked what factors he will consider in making his decision, Patterson says that “as of now, I’m looking for a very high graduation rate, coaches I connect with, and an overall great feeling being on campus.”
There’s also little doubt that Patterson could excel in a superback role should he decide to choose Northwestern. He is 6-foot-4 and 229 pounds, and his highlight tape shows far more runs than passes and highlights his athleticism.
Patterson has been making the rounds to campuses this fall. In addition to Northwestern, he has visited Purdue, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois and Penn State. He says that will be “taking a lot of visits these upcoming months.”
Northwestern is by far the closest school to home, but Patterson says “location doesn’t matter much to me at all.”
The Northwestern Wildcats offered a scholarship to three-star 2018 quarterback Quincy Patterson last month. But they offered the star from Chicago (Ill.) Solorio Academy as a superback, not a quarterback.
Time will tell whether or not that becomes an issue for Patterson, who would like to play quarterback in college. Right now, however, he is just thrilled to have an offer from a school that he’s always had his eye on.
“I was extremely excited (to get an NU offer) considering I’ve always loved Northwestern, even in elementary school,” said Patterson. “I love that academically they are one of the top schools in the nation, and their football program follows that same status of being one of the top in the country.”
Patterson’s emphasis on academics is not just lip service. He holds a 5.1 GPA at Solorio – on a 4.0 scale – so it’s obvious that he takes his education very seriously. He wants to major in mechanical or materials engineering in college.
Patterson received his Northwestern offer in September, but he has been talking to assistant coach Jerry Brown since last March. He has already visited the school twice – last spring for a practice and last month for the Nebraska game. He said that both visits were “great” for reasons that go beyond football.
“They make you feel at home and everything isn’t all about football to them, and they make that quite obvious by the conversations they have with you,” he explained.
The big question regarding Northwestern’s recruitment of Patterson may come down to position. The six other schools on his offer list – Illinois, Indiana, Mississippi State, New Mexico, Penn State and Syracuse – have offered him as a quarterback, and that’s where Patterson would like to play at the next level.
The offer as a superback will not disqualify Northwestern from the race by any means, but it may make it a little tougher for the Wildcats to land him. In order for him to pick Northwestern, Patterson will have to be so certain that it’s the right place for him that he’s willing to give up his desire to play quarterback in college.
“I believe that when I actually look into what I want in a school and Northwestern blows everyone out of the water, then the position won’t matter to me,” he said. He went on to say that position “could possibly have an effect (on the decision), depending on how other schools compare to them and how next season goes.”
In other words, if all things are equal or close to equal, Northwestern could be facing a more difficult burden than the other schools in the race.
It’s certain that Northwestern does a pretty good job of checking all of the boxes on Patterson’s wish list for a college program. When asked what factors he will consider in making his decision, Patterson says that “as of now, I’m looking for a very high graduation rate, coaches I connect with, and an overall great feeling being on campus.”
There’s also little doubt that Patterson could excel in a superback role should he decide to choose Northwestern. He is 6-foot-4 and 229 pounds, and his highlight tape shows far more runs than passes and highlights his athleticism.
Patterson has been making the rounds to campuses this fall. In addition to Northwestern, he has visited Purdue, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois and Penn State. He says that will be “taking a lot of visits these upcoming months.”
Northwestern is by far the closest school to home, but Patterson says “location doesn’t matter much to me at all.”
