When David Braun was the defensive coordinator at North Dakota State, the Midwest and Illinois was his recruiting territory.
He had laid the groundwork for the FCS dynasty's next quarterback to be Ryan Boe from Batavia (Ill.). He handed off his recruitment to the rest of the Bison staff when he took the Northwestern job in January. They took it from there, hosting Boe in February, offering in May and getting a commitment in June.
But when Braun secured a long-term extension at Northwestern, and his whirlwind rookie season was over, the 2023 Big Ten Coach of the Year went back for the quarterback that was suddenly in his backyard.
"They started talking to me two or three weeks ago," Boe said. "Braun was a big fan of me when he was the interim head coach and he was saying he didn't want to pursue me as a quarterback while he didn't have the job for sure...
"He was the first one to actually start getting me recruited [at NDSU]."
Boe came to Evanston for an official visit last weekend, committed to Braun there and then announced five days later, on Friday.
Read more about Northwestern's quarterback for the Class of 2024 in this WildcatReport premium story.
