Northwestern’s 2019 recruiting class current has 15 commits (counting Hunter Johnson), meaning we can expect several more commitments to fill out the class. One thing to note: with Hunter Johnson’s commitment, it appears as if the NU staff is content to stand pat at quarterback — all of the QBs NU offered after Cale Millen decommitted have now committed elsewhere.

As it currently stands, here are the positional breakdowns of the class:

• QB: 1
• RB: 0
• WR: 2
• SB: 1
• OL: 3
• DL: 3
• LB: 2
• CB: 2
• S: 1

With that in mind, here are some updates on recent recruiting developments for Pat Fitzgerald & Co:

RB Jirehl Brock commits to Iowa State

Brock, a four-star running back out of Quincy, Illinois, committed to Iowa State this past Friday after appearing to narrow his list to Northwestern, Minnesota and the Cyclones. Brock’s decision isn’t crippling for Northwestern, but it hurts. NU has no running back commits in the class to this point, and Brock would’ve been the highest recruit at the position since Justin Jackson. He would’ve been the highest-ranked recruit in the Northwestern class by a decent margin, and, while recruiting rankings are the end-all, be-all, securing top in-state talent is always nice.

Plus, losing a recruiting battle to Iowa State is puzzling. The Cyclones already had a running back commit, and they haven’t been nearly as successful as Northwestern in recent years. They also don’t have, you know, the nicest facility in college football opening up this summer. We’ll never know exactly why Brock made the decision, but, from an outsiders perspective, it’s at least a little bit weird.

NU currently has offers out to four uncommitted backs, though its prospects don’t appear great for any of them. Wandale Robinson has offers from Alabama, Michigan and Ohio State, Nathaniel Peat holds a Stanford offer, Kenan Christon holds USC and Stanford offers and Aaron Young — who has shown some interest — holds offers from Stanford, Penn State and Michigan State (and all experts predict he’s headed to Rutgers).

Running back is currently one of the deeper positions on the roster, so missing out on a back in the 2019 class wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world, but the coaching staff typically tries to add at least one per class. Expect the coaching staff to extend more offers to RBs at some point.

Northwestern makes top 10 for talented lineman

The Wildcats are in the hunt for Washington, DC area lineman Walter Rouse, who included included NU in his final 10 schools.

At 6-foot-6, Rouse is a mauler, and top schools are interested. With Ohio State, Michigan, Penn State and Stanford in on Rouse, he’ll be a tough get, and he’s a player Northwestern typically doesn’t get. But, according to Wildcat Report, Rouse felt like he could’ve committed when he took an official visit Northwestern. For him to take an official to NU — one of five official visits he can take — theoretically means NU is in his top five, which is encouraging. His recruitment is blowing up, which doesn’t bode well for NU. Experts have Rouse pegged as going to Stanford. We’ll see, but Rouse could be a huge get for Fitz, at a position he hasn’t really been able to recruit at a high level. Speaking of elite offensive linemen...

Son of NU legend puts NU in top five

Myles Hinton would easily be the highest recruit in Northwestern history, and he has NU in his top five, along with some big names.

Hinton is the son of Chris Hinton, an All-Pro NFL lineman for the Indianapolis Colts and a First-team All-American at Northwestern in 1982. He went fourth overall in the 1983 draft, and was included in trade that allowed the Broncos to move up to No. 1 overall to draft John Elway.

Myles Hinton is the top-ranked offensive lineman in the 2020 class, and would be a massive coup for NU. He’s still probably a major long-shot though — his older brother Chris Hinton Jr. — committed to Michigan for the class of 2019 last August.

Texas safety includes NU in final three

Northwestern already has a commitment from a Texas safety in Corien Azema, but Brandon Joseph, a three-star out of College Station, has narrowed his list to NU, Texas Tech and Arizona.

Joseph has taken official visits to all three of those schools, so he’ll probably commit at some point this summer. All predictions have Joseph staying in state and going to Texas Tech.