Johnny O’Brien has been a Northwestern football recruit for a long time, and lately he’s also been a Wildcats football recruiter.
The rising senior quarterback from Fremd was an early addition to coach David Braun’s 2026 class. He’s recently been joined by a flurry of local players, including a Vikings teammate.
“I’ve been committed for over a year,” O’Brien told the Sun-Times. “I was the only commit for a while. The coaches were telling me, ‘You’ve got to be a recruiter for us.’
“They gave me the responsibility of going out and reaching out to kids.”
The Wildcats’ 2026 class is growing, and it’s national in scope with recruits from Pennsylvania to Florida to Texas to California and places in between. But Braun, like his predecessor Pat Fitzgerald, also continues to be an active presence on the Chicago-area recruiting scene.
O’Brien, a 6-2, 180-pound quarterback, is the No. 37 player among Illinois seniors, according to the 247Sports composite rankings. Northwestern’s other local commits are Barrington offensive lineman Owen Fors (No. 38 in Illinois), St. Charles North receiver Keaton Reinke (No. 28), Fremd offensive lineman Owen Jakubczak (No. 30) and Fenwick kicker Noah Sur, who is No. 2 nationally in the Chris Sailer Kicking rankings.
O’Brien’s easiest sales pitch, understandably, was to Jakubczak.
“We hang out every day,” O’Brien said. “I’m really happy that he’s going to be protecting me for a couple more years. Owen, ever since I committed, he’s been hinting, ‘I’d love to go there, too.’ I didn’t need to do too much convincing.”
O’Brien and Fors met a year ago at a barbecue Northwestern hosted for recruits and prospects. Ever since, the pair — who played against each other in the Mid-Suburban West — have been in contact about NU.
Moving on to the next level with players he already knows will make the transition that much easier, O’Brien figures.
“Relationships are such a big thing in college,” O’Brien said. “I’m going to be comfortable on the field with the dogs I know.”
Like O’Brien, national recruiting analyst Clint Cosgrove likes the fit for the new recruits. Most are consensus three-star prospects who fit the Wildcats’ profile.
“They do a really good job of knowing who they are and what their identity is,” Cosgrove told the Sun-Times. "[Braun] is a really good evaluator. He finds the right guys — not just the right talent, but the right guys for his program.”
And this group does have talent, Cosgrove believes.
“I just love the way this kid plays,” he said of Reinke, a 6-3, 205-pounder. “He snaps off his routes. His ability to adjust to the ball in the air to make catches is incredible and his cutting ability is great for a tall kid.”
Cosgrove’s take on Jakubczak, who is 6-3 and 260 pounds: “The thing that impressed me about him is you see the athleticism, the size, the raw talent. ... The one thing you do see on his film is his punch. He’ll knock guys off the ball.”
Fors, at 6-4 and 290 pounds, is an “old-school Big Ten lineman,” Cosgrove said. “A really physical kid, plays through the whistle. ... He has the ability to block at the second level. ... A big, strong, tough, dependable kid.”
