February 4, 1999
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern head football coach Randy Walker announced the signing of 21 high school seniors to national letters of intent to begin playing for the Wildcats in 1999.
Walker's first recruiting class at Northwestern reaffirms the school's position as a national recruiting power. The Wildcats signed student-athletes from 11 different states with a concentration in the Midwest. NU welcomes seven student-athletes from Illinois, two from Minnesota and one each from Wisconsin and Ohio.
"I want to credit Rick Taylor and President Bienen for acting decisively and getting our staff in place so we could hold on to a very strong class," said Walker. "I also want to credit the former staff for building a quality program able to attract top student-athletes to Northwestern."
"The credit of this recruiting class is two-fold," said Rick Taylor, NU's athletic director. "Randy Walker and his staff deserve credit for maintaining a great majority of the verbal commitments. Also, you must credit the student-athletes themselves for sticking to their commitments."
A list of signees as well as bios on each student-athlete appears below.
1999 Northwestern University Football Recruiting Class
Player Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School Matt Anderson OL/DL 6-4 250 Belvidere, Ill./Belvidere Louis Ayeni RB/DB 6-0 185 Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury Ray Bogenreif TE/DE 6-5 232 Cedarburg, Wis./Marquette Chris Brown RB/DB 6-3 205 Naperville, Ill./North Vince Cartaya FB/LB 6-4 225 Miami, Fla./Miami Jesuit Jaison Cook WR/DB 6-0 175 Duquesne, Pa./Duquesne Matt Danielson QB 6-2 220 Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams Pat Durr FB/LB 6-2 225 St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles Regis Eller FB/LB 6-1 225 Minneapolis, Minn./Breck Brandon Evans RB/DB 5-11 185 Kennesaw, Ga./Harrison Ronnie Foster WR/DB 6-3 195 Peoria Heights, Ill./Peoria Heights Austin King OL/DL 6-4 265 Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian Zak Kustok QB 6-1 212 Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg Derek Martinez OL/DL 6-6 255 San Jose, Calif./Bellarmine College Prep. Carl Matejka OL/DL 6-5 280 Houston, Texas/Clear Brook Gabe Nyenhuis OL/DL 6-4 245 St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles Kunle Patrick WR/DB 6-1 195 Brooklyn, N.Y./Poly Prep Country Day Mark Roush RB/DB 6-1 185 Richmond, Va./Douglas Freeman Jon Schweighardt WR/DB 5-10 170 Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton-Warrenville South George Woods OL/DL 6-2 270 La Mirada, Calif./La Mirada Eric Worley TE/DE 6-4 245 Marshfield, Mass./Marshfield
Matt Anderson
6-4, 250
Belvidere, Ill./Belvidere
Projected Position: Offensive/Defensive Line
High School: Named first-team all-state by the Chicago Sun-Times, the Illinois Coaches Association and the Champaign News-Gazette ... Named second-team all-state by the Chicago Tribune ... First-team all-conference in football and track ... Selected to play in the Illinois State Coaches All-Star Game ... Team captain ... Lettered four times in high school (2-football, 2-track) ... High school team recorded a 9-2 record his senior year and were conference champions ... Seven-time honor roll member ... Three-time high honor roll member (4.0) ... High school coach was Mike Hearn.
Personal: Son of Bradley and Diane Anderson ... Born 12/24/80 ... Chose NU over Missouri, Yale, Dartmouth and Ball State.
Louis Ayeni (pronounceed eye-YEN-ee)
6-0, 185
Woodbury, Minn./Woodbury
Projected Position: Running Back/Defensive Back
High School: Named first-team all-state by the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Minneapolis Star Tribune and Associated Press ... All-conference, AP all-metro State championship game Most Valuable Player ... Team MVP ... Conference MVP ... Seven-time Athlete of the Week ... Team captain ... School career leader in yards (3,504) and touchdowns (47) ... Ran for 2,112 yards, 34 touchdowns his senior season, both school records ... Returned seven punts for 270 yards and three touchdowns ... Ran for 1,114 yards and 17 TDs in six playoff games leading team to Class 5A state championship ... In 1997, played in only four games due to a broken arm and rushed for 665 yards ... Named honorable mention all-conference his sophomore year after rushing for 727 yards and nine TDs ... Academic all-conference ... Lettered seven times as a prep (3-football, 4-track) ... High school coach was Gary Halvorson.
Personal: Son of Babs and Flora Ayeni ... Born 2/5/81 ... Chose NU over Wisconsin, Kansas and Iowa.
Ray Bogenrief (pronounced BOGEN-reef)
6-5, 232
Cedarburg, Wis./Marquette
Projected Position: Tight End/Defensive End
High School: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel all-area and all-state ... Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Top-15 state prospect ... First-team all-conference as a tight end and defensive end ... Ranked the No. 8 tight end prospect in the Midwest by Rivalnet ... David Flynt National Top 200 player ... Max Emfinger's National Top 500, top 25 defensive end ... Team captain ... As a senior, had 32 receptions for 515 yards and 11 touchdowns on offense ... On defense recorded 19 sacks and three fumble recoveries ... As a junior, first-team all-conference at tight end and defensive end ... Had 21 catches for 391 yards and seven touchdowns as a junior, also recorded 17 sacks and three fumble recoveries ... Will compete in the Wisconsin All-Star Shrine Bowl ... Lettered six times as a prep (3-football, 3-basketball) ... Four-year honor roll member ... High school coach was Dick Basham.
Personal: Son of Ray and Delores Bogenrief ... Born 11/29/80 ... Sister, Maggie, plays tennis at Wisconsin ... Chose NU over Stanford, Michigan State, Iowa, Harvard and Wisconsin.
Chris Brown
6-3, 205
Naperville, Ill./Naperville North
Projected Position: Running Back/Defensive Back
High School: SuperPrep All-American ... Prep Football Report All-American ... First-team all-state ... Daily Herald first-team all-area ... Named Player of the Year by the Naperville Sun ... Team captain ... Rushed for 1,250 yards and 15 touchdowns his senior season ... Also recorded 45 tackles at outside linebacker his senior year ... Rushed for 1,050 yards, 15 TDs and four receiving TDs his junior season ... Led team to state quarterfinals his junior season and the state semifinals his senior season ... Lettered in both football and track ... Has run a 13.9 in the 110 hurdles and a 10.9 in the 100 meters ... High school coach was Larry McKeon.
Personal: Son of Levelle and Barbara Brown ... Born 4/17/81 ... Brother, Levelle, played fullback for NU from 1995-98 ... Chose NU over Michigan State, Boston College, Iowa, Purdue, Wisconsin, and Illinois.
Vince Cartaya (pronounced Car-TIE-yah)
6-4, 225
Miami, Fla./Belen Jesuit Prep
Projected Position: Fullback/Linebacker
High School: SuperPrep All-American ... SuperPrep Elite 100 ... PrepStar All-Region ... Two-time all-state and all-county selection ... Team MVP ... Team captain ... Recorded more than 300 tackles in his career at linebacker ... Picked off seven career passes, five as a senior Caught 17 touchdowns in his career at tight end ... Will play in the Nike Dade vs. Broward County All-Star Game ... Earned 10 letters as a prep (3-football, 2-basketball, 5-track) ... Runs an 11.2 100 meters ... Also runs the 110- and 300-meter hurdles and throws the shot put and discus ... National Honor Society ... Spanish Honor Society ... Honor Roll all four years ... High school coach was Richard Stuart.
Personal: Son of Omar and Lucie Cartaya ... Born 12/30/80 ... Chose NU over Florida State, Florida, Wisconsin, Michigan State and Boston College.
Jaison Cook
6-0, 175
Duquesne, Pa./Duquesne
Projected Position: Wide Receiver/Defensive Back
High School: Two-time Pittsburgh Post Gazette first-team all-area ... Two-time Daily News first-team all-area ... Two-time first-team all-conference ... Forced four fumbles, intercepted five passes and returned three of those for touchdowns his senior season at cornerback Recorded 700 yards passing, 555 yards rushing his senior season at quarterback ... Three-year letterwinner ... Nominated for Big 33 Classic ... National Honor Society ... Honor roll ... High school coach was Pat Monroe.
Personal: Son of Henry and Victoria Cook ... Born 12/23/80 ... Brother, Bilal, plays football at Kansas Chose NU over West Virginia, Michigan State and Rutgers.
Matt Danielson
6-2, 220
Rochester Hills, Mich./Rochester Adams
Projected position: Quarterback
High School: Named honorable mention all-state, all-region, all-league, Team MVP and team captain as a senior ... Led high school to the playoffs for the first time in schools history ... In the fall of 1998, he led his prep school to an undefeated season ... Team captain ... Completed over 60% of his passes ... Best game he threw for was 430 yards and six touchdown passes ... Lettered four times as a prep (2-football, 2-baseball) ... All-region and all-league in baseball ... Team captain in baseball ... High school coach was Jim DeJaeger.
Personal: Son of Gary and Kristy Danielson ... Born 6/18/79 ... Father was an NFL quarterback for the Detroit Lions and Cleveland Browns and now is a college football commentator for ABC Sports ... Grandfather, George King, is a former athletic director and basketball coach at Purdue ... Chose NU over Purdue.
Pat Durr
6-2, 225
St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles
Projected Position: Fullback/Linebacker
High School: PrepStar All-Region ... SuperPrep All-Region ... Chicago Sun-Times third-team all-area ... Chicago Tribune third-team all-state ... Champaign News Gazette all-state ... Named first-team all-area by the Aurora Beacon News, Daily Herald, Press Republican and Kane County Chronicle ... Gridiron Report second-team all-state ... Two-time all-conference selection ... Two-year team captain ... Team MVP his senior season ... Recorded 112 tackles, 95 solo, 11 tackles for loss, four passes broken up, two interceptions and two forced fumbles his senior season ... Lettered eight times as a prep (3-football, 4-baseball, 1-basketball) ... First-team all-conference and all-area in baseball ... Honor roll all four years ... High school coach was Buck Drach.
Personal: Son of Ed and Cathi Durr Born 3/3/81 ... Was a high school teammate of fellow NU recruit Gabe Nyenhuis ... Chose NU over Ohio State, Illinois, Syracuse, Purdue, Kansas State, Missouri, Indiana, Notre Dame and UCLA.
Regis Eller
6-1, 225
Minneapolis, Minn./Breck
Projected Position: Fullback/Linebacker
High School: USA Today Honorable Mention All-American ... Rated the fifth-best linebacker prospect in the country by The Sporting News ... SuperPrep All-American ... Tom Lemming's Prep Football Report All-American ... Two-time all-conference and all-state ... Two-time Minneapolis Star Tribune All-Metro ... Recorded 144 tackles, 90 solo, and 17 sacks his senior year ... Set a state record with 22 sacks his junior season ... Recorded 58 sacks in his career ... High school won the state championship as a sophomore ... Lettered five times as a prep (3-football, 2-basketball) ... Honor roll member ... High school coach was John Thiel.
Personal: Son of Carl Eller and Mahogany Eller-Sharon ... Born 8/11/80 ... Father was an all-pro defensive end for the Minnesota Vikings ... Attended same high school as Wildcat quarterback Gavin Hoffman ... Chose NU over Iowa, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Minnesota, Colorado, Iowa State and Kansas.
Brandon Evans
5-11, 185
Acworth, Ga./Harrison
Projected Position: Running Back/Defensive Back
High School: PrepStar All-American ... Atlanta Journal-Constitution "Georgia Top 50 Recruits" ... National Recruiting Advisor All-SEC team ... SuperPrep All-Dixie Region ... Alliance Sports All-South ... All-city, all-metro as a senior ... Team captain and team MVP Named Player of the Week by the Marietta Daily Journal ... Recorded 92 tackles and five interceptions his senior season ... Also rushed for 1,246 yards and seven touchdowns ... Has run a 10.8 100-meter dash ... Lettered six times as a prep (3-football, 3-track) ... Named Outstanding Foreign Language Student his junior and senior years ... High school coach was Bruce Cobleigh.
Personal: Son of Terry and Kismet Evans ... Born 4/24/81 ... Father was an All-American defensive back at North Carolina Central University and played professionally with the Seattle Seahawks ... Chose NU over Stanford, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Vanderbilt, Maryland, Boston College and South Carolina.
Ronnie Foster
6-3, 195
Peoria Heights, Ill./Peoria Heights
Projected Position: Wide Receiver/Defensive Back
High School: All-state, all-area, all-conference Team captain ... Rushed for 1,386 yards, 27 touchdowns and averaged 10 yards per carry ... Set school records for touchdowns and rushing yards in a single season ... Also lettered in basketball and track ... Class A state champion in the 400 meters ... Has run a 10.7 100-meter dash ... Averages 20 points and 12 rebounds a game on the hardwood ... National Honor Society ... Honor roll ... High school coach was Steve Hatdield.
Personal: Son of Ronald Lee and Mary Dean Foster ... Born 12/22/80 ... Cousin, Darryl Ashmore, was a former Wildcat offensive lineman and plays professionally with the Oakland Raiders Cousin, A.J. Guyton, plays basketball for Indiana ... Chose NU over Indiana, Illinois, Iowa State.
Austin King
6-4, 265
Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian
Projected Position: Offensive/Defensive Line
High School: Named first-team all-state by the Cincinnati Enquirer and the Cincinnati Post ... First-team all-conference, all-district and all-city ... Team captain and team MVP ... Team's Most Valuable Offensive and Defensive Lineman after his junior and senior seasons ... Graded out at 93% as a senior on offense ... On defense, recorded 67 tackles, three tackles for loss, two sacks and six fumble recoveries ... Named second-team all-conference as a junior and honorable mention all-conference as a sophomore ... Will compete in the Ohio North-South All-Star Game and Big 33 Game ... Lettered seven times as a prep (3-football, 2-basketball, 2-baseball) ... Dean's List seven-straight semesters ... National Honor Society ... High school coach was Tom Stickley.
Personal: Son of Doug and Mary Beth King ... Born 4/11/81 ... Chose NU over Boston College, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, Louisville, Cincinnati, Bowling Green, Ohio U. and Miami (Ohio).
Zak Kustok (pronounced KOO-stock)
6-1, 212
Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg
Projected Position: Quarterback
Transfer from Notre Dame: Did not see action as a freshman ... Decided to transfer after the Irish switched to an option offense ... Has three years of eligibility remaining ... Dean's List.
High School: Ranked as the 97th best prospect nationally by the Chicago Sun Times ... Named to Detroit Free-Press Best of the Midwest team ... Special mention all-state by Sun Times and Chicago Tribune ... Started every game his last three seasons, played the final six as a senior with a separated left shoulder and final two with separated right shoulder ... Threw for 948 yards and nine touchdowns his senior season in '96 ... Also ran for 643 yards and six TDs ... Threw for 1,410 yards and 14 TDs in '95 ... Threw for 1,193 yards and eight TDs in '94 ... Two-time all-league pick ... Two-time captain Earned six letters as a prep (3-football, 3-basketball) ... Special mention all-area in basketball by Chicago Tribune and Sun Times ... Academic All-State.
Personal: Son of Al and Jeanie Kustok ... Born 2/24/79 ... Father played football at Illinois ... Chose NU over Kansas, Louisiana State and Miami.
Derek Martinez
6-6, 255
San Jose, Calif./Bellarmine
Projected Position: Offensive/Defensive Line
High School: Named first-team all-conference in football and basketball ... San Jose Mercury News Player of the Week ... Recorded 16 tackles, one sack and broke up four passes as a defensive lineman ... Lettered seven times as a prep (2-football, 3-basketball, 2-track) ... Finished sixth in the state in the shot put ... Puts the shot 54 feet nine inches ... Averages 13 points and 11 rebounds in basketball ... High school coach was Mike Janda.
Personal: Son of Gary and Margaret Kirk ... Born 6/18/81 ... Chose NU over Arizona, Stanford, Washington, California, Southern California and Oregon State.
Carl Matejka (pronounced Ma-TEE-kah)
6-5, 280
Houston, Texas/Clear Brook
Projected Position: Offensive/Defensive Line
High School: Named a Houston Chronicle Top 10 Area Offensive Lineman ... First-team all-district his junior and senior seasons ... Offensive Lineman of the Year Wolverine Leadership Award Academic all-state ... KHOU Scholar Athlete of the Week ... Lettered five times as a prep (3-football, 2-baseball) ... Second-team all-district in baseball ... National Honor Society ... Honor roll four years ... High school coach was Jim Hatfield.
Personal: Son of Carl and Diane Matejka ... Born 10/8/80 ... Chose NU over Purdue, Air Force, Tulsa, Texas Christian and Cornell.
Gabe Nyenhuis (pronounced NINE-heis)
6-4, 245
St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles
Projected Position: Offensive/Defensive Line
High School: SuperPrep All-American ... Chicago Sun Times first-team all-area and all-state ... Chicago Tribune first-team all-state ... 1998 IFSFCA all-state first team ... Champaign News Gazette first-team all-state ... First-team all-conference as a junior and senior Upstate Eight Conference Defensive Player of the Year as junior and senior ... Daily Herald all-area first team ... Aurora Beacon News all-area first team ... Daily Herald Player of the Week ... Kane County Chronicle All-Area Defensive Player of the Year ... Team captain ... Most Valuable Lineman as a junior and senior ... Recorded 76 tackles, 24 assists, 31 tackles for loss (-189 yards), broke up two passes, forced six fumbles, blocked two kicks and had one fumble recovery his senior season ... 1997 Elgin Courier-News and Press-Republican all-area first team ... Chicago Tribune all-state special mention as a junior ... Chicago Sun Times all-area special mention as a junior ... Champaign News-Gazette special mention as a junior ... High school coach was Buck Drach.
Personal: Son of Paul and Sue Nyenhuis ... Born 6/26/81 ... Was a high school teammate of fellow NU recruit Pat Durr ... Chose NU over Illinois, Iowa, Ohio State, Michigan, Michigan State and Nebraska.
Kunle Patrick (pronounced Koon-lay)
6-1, 195
Brooklyn, N.Y./Poly Prep Country Day
Projected Position: Wide Receiver/Defensive Back
High School: SuperPrep All-Northeast Region ... New York Daily News all-city ... Named a member of the Heisman High School All-Star Team ... Junior Heisman Award winner All-state first-team ... Team Defensive Player of the Year ... Three-year letterwinner ... Recorded 87 catches for 1,570 yards in his prep career ... High school coach was Dino Mangiero.
Personal: Son of Ray and Janet Alexis-Mongroo ... Born 4/26/81 ... A native of Trinidad ... Chose NU Michigan State, Minnesota, Georgia Tech, Rutgers and Notre Dame.
Mark Roush
6-1, 185
Richmond, Va./Douglas Freeman
Projected position: Running back/Defensive back
High School: SuperPrep All-Mid Atlantic Region ... PrepStar All-ACC region ... Two-time all-district selection ... All-region after his junior season ... Team captain ... Team MVP his sophomore and junior seasons ... 1998 state winner of the Wendy's High School Heisman Award ... Lost his senior season due to injury ... Rushed for 1,160 yards, a seven yards per carry average, and 15 touchdowns his junior year ... Recorded 87 tackles on defense in his career ... Holds school records for most yards in a game (245) and most touchdowns in a game (5) ... Lettered nine times as a prep (3-football, 6-track) ... Two-time all-state selection in track ... Three-time all-district and all-region in track ... School record holder in the 300-meter hurdles and 4x100 relay ... Academic all-district and all-region in football and track ... National Honor Society ... High school coach was Bob Brinkley.
Personal: Son of John and Susie Roush ... Born 8/16/80 ... Brother, Luke, plays football at Duke ... Chose NU over Duke, Ohio and Navy.
Jon Schweighardt
5-10, 170
Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Warrenville South
Projected Position: Wide Receiver/Defensive Back
High School: Tom Lemming's Prep Football Report All-American ... Two-time Chicago Sun Times all-area and all-state team Two-time Chicago Tribune all-state team ... Two-time Daily Herald all-area team ... Two-time conference MVP ... Only junior to be named MVP in the DuPage Valley Conference ... Two-time winner of the Red Grange Award ... Team MVP after his junior and senior seasons ... Team captain ... State record holder for both receiving yards in a season, receiving yards in a career, and touchdown receptions in a season ... Set record for most receptions in state championship game (13) ... High school won the state title his senior year ... Caught 81 passes for 1,450 yards and 17 TDs his junior year ... Caught 93 passes for 1,577 yards and 24 touchdowns his senior season ... Lettered five times as a prep (2-football, 3-track) ... Took third in the state 110 meter hurdles ... Academic all-conference in both football and track ... High school coach was John Thorne.
Personal: Son of Thomas and Barbara Schweighardt ... Born 5/26/81 ... Chose NU over Illinois and Iowa State.
George Woods
6-2, 270
La Mirada, Calif./La Mirada
Projected Position: Offensive/Defensive Line
High School: SuperPrep All-Star and All-American ... Los Angeles Times Dream Team ... Long Beach Press Telegram Dream Team ... All-CIF Division IX first team ... Suburban League Defensive Lineman of the Year ... All-league and all-area first team ... Fox Sports West first team ... Recorded career totals of 35 sacks and 199 tackles ... National High School All-Strength Team ... High school recorded a 13-1 record his senior year and lost in the state final ... Will play in the California vs. Texas Shrine All-Star Football Classic and the All-Star East vs. West Game ... Lettered eight times as a prep (3-football, 3-wrestling, 2-track) ... Placed third in state wrestling championships as a senior Runs on the 4 x 100 relay team which placed first in the conference meet in 1997 ... Honor roll four-straight years ... Golden State Examination Academic Excellence Award High school coach was John Mele.
Personal: Son of George and Brenda Woods ... Born 8/1/81 ... Chose NU over USC, UCLA, Washington, Purdue, Arizona and Hawaii.
Eric Worley
6-4, 245
Marshfield, Mass./Marshfield
Projected Position: Tight End/Defensive End
High School: SuperPrep All-American ... Ranked the 11th-best tight end in the nation by SuperPrep ... All-conference ... Caught 12 balls for 250 yards and two touchdowns his senior year ... In seven games on defense, recorded 50 tackles, five sacks ... Caught 15 balls for 270 yards and three touchdowns his junior year ... Lettered six times as a prep (3-football, 3-track) ... Runs an 11.5 100-meter dash ... Boston Globe All-Scholastic ... Patriot Ledger All-Scholastic ... Honor roll ... High school coach was Lou Silva.
Personal: Son of Jack and Mary Worley ... Born 7/22/81 ... Chose NU over Boston College, Purdue and Duke.