by Kevin Trahan (@k_trahan)
- Northwestern had a number of high level recruits on campus this week, especially as it tries to get its quarterback class set. A reminder from last week, NU's three QB prospects look like Chris Durkin (Ursuline, OH), Deshone Kizer (Central Toledo Catholic, OH) and Clayton Thorson (Wheaton North, IL). Thorson visited on Feb. 22. We'll keep an eye on this as it develops.
- Ohio ATH Dareian Watkins now has 17 offers, including Big Ten foes Illinois, Iowa, Michigan State and Wisconsin. NU was one of the first schools to offer him and he'll visit Evanston next week. He hasn't narrowed down his list of favorites at all.
- Northwestern hosted highly-touted TE (okay, superback) Nic Weishar this weekend. The Marist, Ill. product has 19 scholarship offers, including Michigan and Notre Dame. According to Chris Emma of PurpleWildcats.com, he'll visit Michigan on March 10 and Notre Dame on April 13. Weishar has yet to put together a list of favorites, but here's a snippet from the Scout.com article, along with what he had to say about NU:
For Weishar, it’s still too early to form a list of favorites, but he likes Northwestern’s odds of being a finalist.
“What I see from them,” he said, “with the great relationships I’ve built with the coaching staff, I definitely think they’ll be in the mix.”
- Brady Taylor doesn't have a Northwestern offer yet, but he visited NU this week and told ESPN.com that it's his favorite so far. Taylor has offers from Toledo, Ohio and Bowling Green. He has also taken two visits to Indiana, and will go there a third time. He seems like Northwestern type of kid, or at least has the approach that Fitzgerald would like his recruits to have:
“They’d definitely be toward the top just because you get a Big Ten atmosphere while still getting an education,” Taylor told ESPN.com, “and that’s important for me because football doesn’t last forever. I want to be able to do something out of college that will benefit me. They would definitely be toward the top if they offer.”
- Northwestern also had four-star corner Parrker Westphal of Bolingbrook (IL) on campus this weekend for an overnight visit. He didn't have tons to say, other than it went well. Obviously, this would be a big get for NU, as Westphal boasts offers from Ohio State, Florida, Michigan, Notre Dame and many others. However, he's a long way from making a decision. Check out more from Wildcat Report, who also reported that OL Tommy Doles, who has Michigan and Iowa State offers, was on campus, as well.
- As always, check out more recruiting news from our friends at PurpleWildcats.com.