Northwestern Offers 2027 Wide Receiver With Other Big Ten Interest

Ryan Cole

Oct 2, 2025, 21:13

Ryan Cole

Oct 2, 2025, 21:13

Updated at: Oct 2, 2025, 21:13

As the season rolls on, Northwestern continues to be active in the recruiting cycle. Yesterday, the Wildcats officially offered a 2027 wide receiver named Chuck Alexander Jr. from Ohio. He's unranked by 247Sports and Rivals as of right now, but that doesn't tell the full story.

There's a tendency among college sports fans to judge a recruit's value solely based on an arbitrary star ranking. To be clear, those rankings matter -- getting a five star is a huge win for a program. They're based on real scouting, and so they should absolutely carry weight.

The problem becomes when folks ignore other aspects of someone's profile. The reality is, these are high school prospects who are, quite literally, growing every day. Sometimes they get better. Sometimes they get worse. Sometimes they simply haven't played in front of the right people yet to get noticed.

One thing to look for in an unranked recruit is their list of offers. That can tell an entirely different story than the ranking itself, and that is the case with Alexander Jr.

The receiver certainly has the size to play on the outside, standing at 6-foot-3 and weighing 180 lbs. He also has offers from major program besides Northwestern including Iowa, Indiana, Wisconsin, West Virginia, Maryland, Louisville and Kentucky.

Not only is that a long list of power conference programs, it's a list that includes some real heavy hitters. Indiana is coming off a College Football Playoff berth, and it looks primed to potentially repeat that campaign.

Wisconsin has traditionally recruited at a higher level than Northwestern. So has Iowa. There's a lot of competition here from within the Big Ten for the 'Cats to contend with.

All this is to say, expect Alexander Jr. to pick up a star ranking at some point. Talent evaluators listen when that many programs are expressing their interest. It's an undeniable positive sign for an unranked player.

Sep 27, 2025; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats head coach David Braun (center) watches the game against the UCLA Bruins during the first half at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images

As far as fit, Northwestern needs wideouts, and that's no secret. This season has been a massive struggle in that department. Outside of Griffin Wilde, the 'Cats simply haven't had any other reliable options in the passing game. It's massively hamstrung quarterback Preston Stone.

Obviously, a player like Alexander Jr. wouldn't be here for quite a while, but Northwestern will want to avoid this situation in future years.

It's struggled to have success bringing in freshmen quarterbacks and turning them into starters. If the model is going to be 'get the best transfer you can,' then NU has to start taking advantage of that talent and experience. Providing weapons is the best way to do that.

Northwestern Offers 2027 Wide Receiver With Other Big Ten Interest