The defending Super Bowl champions are bringing in one of the Wildcats' all-time sack leaders.
Although he surprisingly didn't hear his name called over the weekend, Aidan Hubbard is still headed to the NFL.
The former Northwestern edge rusher has agreed to a contract with the Seattle Seahawks as an undrafted free agent, the Wildcats announced on social media. Hubbard — a fifth-year senior — was widely projected to be selected in the later rounds of the NFL Draft, but went unpicked.
Hubbard spent five years in Evanston, where he climbed up the program's all-time sack leaderboard. The Cleveland, Ohio, native appeared in 47 out of 50 possible career games after redshirting his true freshman season and was remarkably consistent off the edge.
Opposite Anto Saka, Hubbard compiled 20.5 sacks and 26.5 tackles-for-loss during his time at Northwestern. He set career-bests in 2025 with 7.5 sacks and 10 tackles-for-loss, despite missing two games to injury, leading the Wildcats in both categories.
Hubbard ranks No. 5 in Northwestern history with 20.5 sacks. In the 'Cats' GameAbove Sports Bowl win over Central Michigan, Hubbard became the first NU player since 1995 to tally at least two sacks in a bowl game. He went for three sacks and a forced fumble to help the Wildcats topple the Chippewas, 34-7.
Wisconsin quarterback Tanner Mordecai (8) is sacked by Northwestern defensive lineman Aidan Hubbard (91) during the third quarter of their game Saturday, November 11, 2023 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisconsin. Northwestern beat Wisconsin 24-10.The Athletic's Dane Brugler gave Hubbard a sixth-round or seventh-round draft grade, ranking the 23-year-old as the No. 30 edge rusher in the 2026 NFL Draft Class.
"Hubbard isn’t the most dynamic edge presence, but he combines savvy pass rush and tough-minded run defense to be useful," Brugler wrote in his draft guide, The Beast. "With continued development, he can lock down an NFL depth role on the edge."
Now, Hubbard heads to the defending champions. The Seahawks won Super Bowl LX in February, largely because of their menacing defensive front seven. Hubbard will look to add to that core behind fellow edge rushers DeMarcus Lawrence, Uchenna Nwosu and Derick Hall.
Northwestern was represented at the NFL Draft by a pair of offensive linemen. Left tackle Caleb Tiernan was selected in the third round by the Minnesota Vikings, while the Baltimore Ravens picked right guard Evan Beerntsen in the seventh. Hubbard was anticipated to be NU's third player drafted, which would've marked the third time since 2021 that Northwestern had at least three players taken in the same year.
Defensive back Fred Davis II, who signed with the Washington Commanders, was the first former Wildcat to agree to a deal as an undrafted free agent. Hubbard was the only other Northwestern UDFA as of Saturday night.