Recruiting, any college coach will tell you, is a funny business.

You never know why a player will choose a school. For some, it’s the coaching staff. For others, it’s the chance to play early. It could be academics, the campus, location or even a girlfriend.

For new 2018 Northwestern cornerback commit A.J. Hampton, it was about the degree Northwestern offered, as well as the bond he felt with coaches and players on his official visit during the last weekend in January.

But the truth is, he would have signed with Toledo in December and never been available to the Wildcats if not for the vagaries of coaching changes that have ripple effects through the college football, and how one of those changes impacted his father, a college coach himself.

Get the story of how Hampton wound up a Wildcat in this premium WildcatReport premium story.