Ohio State could be set to face a former five-star quarterback recruit when it travels to Evanston, Illinois, in 2019.
The Northwestern football program announced Monday that Hunter Johnson, a transfer from Clemson who was ranked as the No. 2 overall quarterback in the recruiting class of 2017 by 247Sports' composite rankings, had committed to become a Wildcat.
The former No. 1 ranked QB in the class of 2017 commits to Northwestern. Welcome to the family, @HunterPh413.
— Northwestern Football (@NUFBFamily) June 11, 2018
: https://t.co/s31jENWSaN#B1GCats pic.twitter.com/dXDU3sHPBH
A native of Brownsburg, Indiana, Johnson saw playing time in seven games for Clemson last season as a true freshman, completing 21 of 27 passing attempts for 234 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Johnson was surpassed on the Tigers' depth chart this spring, however, by Trevor Lawrence – the No. 1 overall recruit in the entire class of 2018 – which might have prevented Johnson from ever ascending to the starting job.
Johnson will sit out the 2018 season per NCAA rules, but becomes the immediate favorite to succeed Clayton Thorson as Northwestern's starting quarterback in 2019, when Ohio State is set to play the Wildcats at Ryan Field (Oct. 19).
