In a stunning turn, Brendan Zurbrugg flipped from Syracuse to Northwestern on Monday to give the Wildcats their quarterback for the Class of 2024.
Zurbrugg, a 6-foot-3, 185-pounder from Alliance (Ohio), had just committed to Syracuse on June 18. But then the Orange received a verbal commitment from three-star Georgia quarterback Jakhari Williams yesterday.
That development apparently didn't sit well with Zurbrugg, who announced his commitment as a "flip" and didn't even bother to officially announce his decommitment from Syracuse.
Northwestern didn't offer Zurbrugg until June 16, the first day of his official visit to Syracuse. It looked like the Wildcats were too late to the party, as Zurbrugg wound up announcing his commitment to the Orange just two days later.
At the same time, Northwestern was also pursuing three-star quarterback Karson Gordon, a UNLV commitment who came to Evanston for an official visit on June 19-21. But the Wildcats were unable to get him to flip his commitment.
NU coaches at that point appeared to be in a tough spot after it was apparent that Gordon was sticking with the UNLV program. But lo and behold, Zurbrugg wound up a Wildcat just a day after Williams picked the Orange.
That's welcome news to offensive coordinator Mike Bajakian, who has had problems recruiting high school signal callers in his three years at the helm.
Zurbrugg collected a total of 15 scholarship offers, with Northwestern and Syracuse as the only Power Five programs on his list. He also held offers from seven MAC and two Ivy League schools.
As a junior in 2022, Zurbrugg completed 76% of his passes for 2,184 yards and 23 touchdowns for Alliance. He showed his dual-threat ability by adding 804 yards and 11 TDs rushing.
Zurbrugg's father, Chris Zurbrugg, played quarterback at Michigan in the 1980s and served as Wolverine head coach Jim Harbaugh's backup.
Zurbrugg is the 12th member of Northwestern's class and its first quarterback. The class is currently ranked 49th in the nation by Rivals.
