Breaking down the Class of 2024

The dust has settled and Northwestern's Class of 2024 is complete with familiar and new faces.

The Wildcats came into the day with 13 public commitments and added NLIs from silent commits linebacker Matthew Smith and edge rusher Qayvier Johnson to reach their final mark of 15, ranked 88th in the country at publication.

It was a lighter class than usual in terms of star power and overall number of commits. It marked the first class since 2019 without a four-star and featured six two-stars or lower in Rivals' database, the most since Northwestern signed seven in 2012.

But it's important to factor in David Braun's contract situation, he was extended in the long-term on Nov. 15, and the turmoil of this summer, when placing this class in its historical context.

On top of that, it's also key to factor in Northwestern's high-retention rate on its existing roster so far. The Wildcats have lost just three scholarship athletes in the portal, one of the lowest numbers in the NCAA. Northwestern has often taken fewer players than most of their Big Ten compatriots, that's even more evident, and well-reasoned, this year.

All things considered, Braun and his staff have done a solid job recouping what they could from the class when he took the interim job and building off it late in the cycle.

The first and last public commitments to Northwestern before Signing Day came from the Land of Lincoln. Tight end Patrick Schaller committed all the way back on Nov. 13, 2022 and quarterback Ryan Boe, from Batavia (Ill.) was the last public commit on Dec. 16 of this year. They are joined by wide receiver Carson Grove from Arlington Heights (Ill.) Hersey.

I'd normally talk about going coast-to-coast with wide receiver Hayden Eligon II from Los Alamitos, Calif. and running back Dashun Reeder from Greenville, S.C., but the Wildcats went even further this season. They crossed the pond to earn a commitment from British cornerback Timi Oke, who played for the NFL Academy in London, England.

At the end of the day, Northwestern's 15 commits came from nine different states and an entirely different country.

In past seasons, the Wildcats often locked up the bulk of their recruiting classes by June and made one or two late additions in November and December. This season, in the wake of Pat Fitzgerald's firing in July and then with Braun receiving the full-time job in mid-November, Northwestern got the bulk of their work done later in the cycle.

Among the 15, six remain from Fitzgerald's original class. Grove broke the ice with a July 31 commitment to Braun, safety Tito Williams was next on Oct. 4, and then defensive end Braxton Strong kicked off the final wave of five commitments from Nov. 19 - Dec. 19.

Add in Smith and Johnson as the icing on top, and the Wildcats got to 15, tying 2014 for their fewest signees in a class in Rivals' records.

Don't expect Braun to make that kind of timeline a habit, but given his constraints with an interim tag and setting to work late in the cycle, he has done an admirable job to salvage a recruiting class that, at one point, fell out of Rivals' Top 100 team rankings.

OFFENSE (6):

Offensive line (1): Idrys Cotton

Quarterback (1): Ryan Boe

Running back (1): Dashun Reeder

Wide receiver (2): Carson Grove, Hayden Eligon II

Tight end (1): Patrick Schaller

DEFENSE (9):

Defensive tackle (1): Troy Regovich

Defensive end (3) : Callen Campbell, Braxton Strong, Qayvier Johnson

Linebacker (1): Matthew Smith

Defensive back (2): Terrion Hicks, Timi Oke

Safety (2): Tito Williams, Sean Martin

Patrick Schaller: NR at TE, 21st in Illinois

Idrys Cotton: NR at OL, 18th in Michigan

Tito Williams: NR

Callen Campbell: NR

Terrion Hicks: NR

Troy Regovich: NR

Dashun Reeder: NR at RB, 12th in South Carolina

Hayden Eligon II: NR

Timi Oke: NR

Carson Grove: NR

Ryan Boe: NR

Sean Martin: NR

Matthew Smith: NR

Qayvier Johnson: NR