Former Northwestern Commit Flips, Now Headed to Clemson Tigers

Ryan Cole

Oct 24, 2025, 22:15

Ryan Cole

Oct 24, 2025, 22:15

Updated at: Oct 24, 2025, 22:15

Talented linebacker Brayden Reilly decommits from Northwestern, chooses Clemson.

Three-star linebacker Brayden Reilly of the 2026 recruiting class reversed his Northwestern commitment earlier this week. Now, he's made a new decision, and will head to Clemson to start his college football career.

It's an unfortunate loss for the Wildcats. The 6-foot-3, 205 lbs Ohio native committed to Northwestern back in May, but he's picked up new offers since then. Whenever a player commits that early, this is always a risk.

According to 247Sports, Reilly is the No. 30 linebacker in the class and the No. 19 player out of Ohio. Rivals, the other industry standard recruiting site, views him similarly as a prospect. It lists Reilly as the No. 48 linebacker and the No. 29 player in his state. So, Rivals is a little more pessimistic, but not by much.

Looking at the timeline of events, it's fairly obvious what happened here. After Reilly committed to the Wildcats, he didn't receive any more offers until this month. All of the sudden, within a week, Vanderbilt, Clemson and Michigan all submitted offers.

Clearly, Reilly's perception among the top programs in the country rose significantly this season. It's hard to say no to a storied program like Clemson with as much recent history of winning as the Tigers have. That's a battle Northwestern doesn't want to have to fight.

Ultimately, losing out on Reilly isn't a disaster. This sort of thing happens in the recruiting world, and coaches move on to different players. Reilly took advantage of a better opportunity for him, and it is what it is.

But the 'Cats do need to find a new generation of linebackers. Two years ago, with Xander Mueller and Bryce Gallagher roaming the field, it was undeniably a position of strength. Mac Uihlein has also been very solid throughout his career, especially this year.

But, he's a senior, and the next generation will need to emerge. Reilly could have been a part of the solution, but the 'Cats will now have to adjust their vision for the future knowing he won't be in it.

Reilly is also currently teammates with linebacker Aden Reeder in high school, another Northwestern target. Reeder is currently committed to Wisconsin, so the Wildcats would need him to make a similar decision.

The presence of Reilly in Evanston probably didn't matter in that separate recruiting chase, but it also couldn't have hurt.

Former Northwestern Commit Flips, Now Headed to Clemson Tigers