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Jordan Thompson Jared Thomas Joe Gaziano Trent Goens Nathan Fox Simba Short John Moten Cameron Green Adam Lemke-Bell Tommy Vitale Montre Hartage Flynn Nagel Charlie Fessler Trae Williams Jelani Roberts Alonzo Mayo Steven Reese Andrew Otterman Lloyd Yates Jacob Murray
Following a relatively quiet offseason, Northwestern's football program will welcome members of its 2015 recruiting class to the program on Feb. 4 for National Signing Day. Even with de-commitments from some of the Wildcats' top targets, Pat Fitzgerald and co. still managed to put together a solid class. As of now, Northwestern's crop of new talent ranks 47th nationally, according to 247 Sports, the same rank they had last year. We'll be putting out player capsules like these in the lead up to National Signing Day so you can learn more about this new bunch of Wildcats.
QUICK HITS
POSITION: Wide Receiver
HEIGHT: 6-2
WEIGHT: 185
HOMETOWN: Buford, GA
HIGH SCHOOL: Buford
247 COMPOSITE RATING: ★★★ (.8200)
NATIONAL RANK: 1583
POSITION RANK: 182
STATE RANK: 168
OTHER OFFERS: Arkansas State, Georgia State, Miami (OH) and Virginia
MORE: 247 Profile | Hudl | Twitter
BACKGROUND
Even after locking up four wide receivers for the 2015 class, Pat Fitzgerald wasn't done adding targets for his young quarterbacks. Steven Reese committed to Northwestern during an official visit several weeks ago. The 20th commit in NU's 2015 class, Reese was expected to be the final piece in Fitzgerald's incoming class. However, after Zach Allen's de-commitment last week, Northwestern may look too add another prospect.
— Steven Reese (@StayNappy) January 27, 2015
Northwestern swiped in at the last minute and picked up Reese, who only held one other offer from a power 5 school (Virginia). The 3-star recruit has good size for a wide receiver at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds and he runs a 4.48 40-yard dash, according to 247sports. Reese played free safety in high school as well, and with so many receivers in NU's 2015 class, don't rule out Reese playing on defense for the Wildcats.
The tape shows a hard-hitting safety and run stopper who is also a ball hawk in coverage. Reese shows off good hands catching passes and snagging interceptions. He runs good routes and uses his agility to get open. Reese seems like more of a possession receiver, ideal for Northwestern's spread offense.
OUTLOOK
Wide receiver is Northwestern's slimmest position right now, but don't expect Reese to contribute right away. Northwestern has three other receivers in this class ranked ahead of Reese, and their one other receiver coming in, Jelani Roberts, is a 5-foot-8 speedster.
Reese is another case where only time will tell where he plays. With the potential for safety Simba Short to move to linebacker, NU may elect to throw Reese in the secondary, where he actually looked best on tape. The coaches will get a better look at him in camp and give him time to add more muscle onto his 6-foot-2 frame. The Wildcats lack depth at safety and receiver, so Reese will find some role at NU.