Cats set to host first batch of 2024 official visitors

After pulling in four players from the transfer portal over the last two weeks, Northwestern turns its attention back to high school recruiting this weekend.

The Wildcats are ready to roll out the purple carpet for nine 2024 prospects on the program's first official visit weekend of this recruiting cycle.

The guest list features five offensive prospects -- including one player who is already a Wildcat -- and four defensive prospects. In all there will be one quarterback, two offensive lineman, one wide receiver, one tight end, two defensive linemen, a linebacker and a cornerback. There are two each from Illinois, Michigan and Tennessee, of all places, and one each from California, Ohio and Washington.

Get to know each of the visitors here. And while this will be the first official visit for all of these recruits, we wouldn't be surprised if one or two of them commit relatively soon.

Recruiting picture: Northwestern is the only Power Five offer for Campbell, who also holds offers from Air Force, Army, Columbia and Youngstown State. We wouldn't be surprised if the Michigan UP native winds up a Wildcat soon.

Notes: Campbell is the a two-time state powerlifting champ, doubles as Sault Area's quarterback and is the second player in the history of his high school to get a Power Five offer.

More: Cats offer DL Callen Campbell, a rare Power Five prospect from the UP

Recruiting picture: Powers has a total of 29 offers. Northwestern will be his first official visit, but he has others scheduled with Michigan State, Ohio State and Pittsburgh. The home-state Buckeyes are regarded as the favorite.

Notes: Powers is listed as a safety but Northwestern is recruiting him as a linebacker. The Cats offered him way back in February.

More: Three visits scheduled for Ohio athlete

Recruiting picture: Glover has offers that range from the Ivy League to HBCUs. His Power Five offers are from Georgia Tech, Indiana, Northwestern, Oklahoma State, Stanford and Virginia. He also has an official visit scheduled to Stanford on June 23.

Notes: Glover had an offer and an invitation for an official visit within a week of his first contact with offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian.

More: Northwestern making late push for 2024 QB Aidan Glover

Recruiting picture: Johnson's 17 offers include Power Five schools Cal, Iowa State, Missouri, Northwestern and Wisconsin. He has an official visit to Wisconsin scheduled for the weekend of June 2, as well as an older brother who plays at Mizzou.

Notes: Johnson is a dominant wrestler: a three-time state champion and the No. 1-ranked heavyweight in the country. He may decide to play both sports in college.

More: Two-sport star Dillan Johnson earns Northwestern offer on visit

Recruiting picture: Nicholson's 19 offers include 15 from the Power Five. He has visited several schools already, including Northwestern for a spring practice. His two scheduled official visits reflect his priorities: Northwestern and Stanford.

Notes: Very few prospects can match Nicholson's academic resume. He reports a 4.5 GPA at Memphis University School and a 33 ACT score.

More: Three-star DB Brandon Nicholson talks recent visits

Recruiting picture: Northwestern knows it will come out of this weekend with at least one commitment: Patrick Schaller has been a Wildcat pledge since November. He chose the Wildcats over offers from Boston College and Central Michigan.

Notes: The 6-foot-6 tight end first got Northwestern's attention at a camp last summer. He got an offer during a visit for a game in October and made his commitment a month later.

More: TE Patrick Schaller is Northwestern's first 2024 commit

Recruiting picture: The 6-foot-7 tackle has a full slate of official visits scheduled. After Northwestern this weekend, he's going to Oregon State on June 2, Washington State on June 9, SMU on June 15 and then Duke on June 23.

Notes: Stewart picked up his offer from Northwestern on the night that Wildcat tackle Peter Skoronski was taken with the 11th pick of the NFL Draft by the Tennessee Titans. "I was super excited and honored," he said.

More: Three-star tackle Payton Stewart earns NU offer on NFL Draft night

Recruiting picture: Northwestern just offered VanSickle on Wednesday, and he's already coming in for an official visit. He currently holds offers from six MAC schools, as well as Indiana.

Notes: Things have accelerated rapidly with VanSickle, who has already visited Northwestern once before, in April. This is another prospect the Cats could lock up quickly.

Recruiting picture: Northwestern is thus far the only official visit for the four-star SoCal wide receiver. His offer list is very impressive and Pac-12 heavy, populated by nine conference schools.

Notes: Just getting Waters to visit Evanston is a coup for new WR coach Armon Binns, but it figures to be very difficult to pull a kid out of LA who has offers from USC and UCLA, as well as Oregon.