Northwestern OT Commit Nick Herzog Talks Commitment Decision, Work Ethic

Herzog is ready to "work, work, work" for the purple and white.

On June 10, Northwestern secured a commitment from the fourth member of its Class of 2022 when offensive tackle Nick Herzog announced his decision on Twitter. Herzog broke down his commitment decision in an exclusive interview with Sports Illustrated's Wildcats Daily. You can watch the full interview at the top of this page. 

Committed 🐾 #NWO #GoCats pic.twitter.com/aY5Vj7VjUl

— Nick Herzog (@Nick_Herzog74) June 10, 2021

Herzog, a 6'4", 270-pound offensive tackle out of Blue Valley High School (Stilwell, Kan.), received Power 5 offers from Iowa, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, Stanford, Vanderbilt and Virginia. He also held offers from Group of 5 schools Memphis and Middle Tennessee State plus Ivy League offers from Pennsylvania and Princeton.

Despite having offers from a dozen schools, Herzog said that the decision to commit to Northwestern became clear as soon as he made his official visit to Evanston on June 4.

"When I went on my official, that's when it really sealed the deal," Herzog explained. "It just backed up everything that I thought and believed prior to being on campus."

When making his commitment decision, Herzog had three main boxes that his future program needed to check: great coaching, development, and academics. Northwestern not only checked each box, but exceeded Herzog's expectations for each category.

"It's about the people," Herzog said. "The relationships that I've developed at Northwestern were just so much different than anything else that I experienced throughout my recruiting process."

Herzog was especially attracted to the stability of Northwestern's coaching staff.

"Talking to all the coaches and staff during my official visit—every single one of them—the common theme was: this is my dream job. This is where I want to be. Northwestern is home for them throughout their careers."

"Knowing that they're where they want to be and they're happy with where they're at makes it feel safe," Herzog continued. "It makes it feel like I'm not going to have to worry about learning under a new coach in two years after I get there. You know that that coach is going to be there for the next four years. It honestly makes it feel a little bit like home, so that's definitely was was a major decision factor for me."

In addition to the program's stability, Herzog is grateful for the opportunity to be coached by a staff that has created one of the best developmental programs in college football. 

"The second thing was the development," said Herzog. "Coach Anderson is a guy, as we've seen with Rashawn Slater, he just made a guy a First Round Draft pick."

Herzog is referring to OT Rashawn Slater, who was selected in the First Round (13th overall) in the 2021 NFL Draft by the Los Angeles Chargers. Slater played right tackle at Northwestern and was developed by offensive line coach Kurt Anderson.

"Lastly was education," Herzog continued. "Northwestern checks the box for that. It's not about four years, it's about 40. When I'm done playing football, because, as you know, football ends for everyone someday, you've got to get dominant in the career field as well. That's something that I think Northwestern will do for me."

Herzog has already begun discussing areas of improvement with his future coaches at NU, including Anderson and head coach Pat Fitzgerald. The OT is focused on improving multiple skills, including hand placement and footwork, before he arrives in Evanston.

"I just want to be become a craftsman in my trade," Herzog explained. "For me, it's developing all those little skills. I work a lot on my hand placement, and you know, my feet are huge for me, especially at the high school level."

"There's going to be a ton that I learned when I go to college," Herzog said. "I only know a fraction of what football is, and I'm really excited to learn under coach Anderson. So for me, I'm just trying to continue to develop everything, you know, whether that's in my past Pro, or in my run game, I'm just trying to get better at every little single thing that I can."

In addition to adjusting to college life and time away from home, Herzog looks forward to the faster pace of college football.

"It's gonna be a lot faster," Herzog said of the college game. "It's kind of like going from JV to varsity in high school. The speed just goes that much faster. It's not something that I'm super worried about... I'm excited for it."

One thing that Herzog is most excited about is being surrounded by equally-motivated teammates.

"I feel like I'm gonna be surrounded by a lot of like minded people. Not only on the field, but in the weight room and in the classroom."

When it comes to putting in work on the field and in the weight room, Herzog says Northwestern athletes are second to none.

"You don't have to get on them to make them get after it," he said. "You don't have to try and convince them to do all their sets... You're going to be surrounded by guys that are going to make you better, which is what I'm really excited for and looking forward to as as the time comes."

When asked what he wants Northwestern fans to know about him before he puts on a purple and white uniform, the future Wildcat emphasized his desire to grow and learn.

"I'm gonna work. I'm gonna work, work, work, work, work. If something's not looking right, just know that I'm working on it. I'm always working."

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