Football | February 1
DeKALB, Illinois – Northern Illinois University head coach
Thomas Hammock announced the addition of seven freshmen to its 2023 incoming class on Wednesday, the first day of the February signing period.
The latest group join the
18 players who signed National Letters of Intent in December and the
six additions, including five transfers, who joined the team in January on the first day of spring semester classes.
"This is a good group of players who all played well during their senior seasons," Hammock said. "We evaluated them as seniors and feel they can help our football team. We're happy to have them as Huskies. They help fill some needs as we look to build depth and create competition at every position. We will continue to build our roster throughout the spring and summer as we work to develop our team going into the 2023 season."
Eight of NIU's nine February recruits are from Illinois or a neighboring state, including three "locals" in defensive back Ethan Tierney of DeKalb (DeKalb HS), running back Garrett Gensler from Rochelle (Rochelle Township HS) and tight end Tyler Gaines out of Rockford's Thomas Jefferson High School.
"Adding six guys from Illinois and eight of nine from the Midwest is a big deal," Hammock said. "We always want to take care of guys from the state, that's an important part of our roster as is bringing in talent from this region. We've also got Kobe [Askew] in this group, who is coming in along with his high school teammate [December signee] Jay'shon [Thomas]."
NIU Football February 2023 Recruits
| Name |
Pos. |
Hgt. |
Wgt. |
Cl. |
Hometown (High School) |
| Kobe Askew |
WR |
6-1 |
192 |
Fr. |
Cataula, Ga. (Harris County) |
| Tyler Gaines |
TE |
6-3 |
220 |
Fr. |
Rockford, Ill. (Thomas Jefferson) |
| Garrett Gensler |
RB |
6-1 |
200 |
Fr. |
Rochelle, Ill. (Rochelle Township) |
| Tyler Gentile |
DB |
6-2 |
187 |
Fr. |
Oak Forest, Ill. (Oak Forest) |
| Landon Hron |
OL |
6-4 |
295 |
Fr. |
Hartford, Wisc. (Hartford) |
| Chase Hutchinson |
LB |
6-2 |
190 |
Fr. |
West Des Moines, Iowa (Valley) |
| James Smith Jr. |
WR |
6-6 |
185 |
Fr. |
Calumet Park, Ill. (H.L. Richards) |
| Ethan Tierney |
DB |
6-1 |
185 |
Fr. |
DeKalb, Ill. (DeKalb) |
| Danny Vuckovic |
K |
6-0 |
190 |
Fr. |
Kildeer, Ill. (Lake Zurich) |
The Huskies' complete 2023 signing class and 2023 roster is just one topic Hammock will address during "A Night with NIU Football" on Friday, February 10 in the Novak Room at Fatty's Pub & Grille. Fans are invited to join Hammock, members of the NIU coaching staff and special guests at this free event from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
Enjoy appetizers and a cash bar while catching up on all the offseason activities, preparations for the upcoming season and more. Representatives will be on hand to take season ticket and Huskie Athletic Fund renewals and to provide expertise on NIU and the NIL landscape and collectives. While the event is free to attend, pre-registration is required. To RSVP,
click here.
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