Northwestern Wildcats Unveil New Football Jersey Numbers

The newest Wildcats have joined the team for spring practice.

Nov 30, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Northwestern Wildcats wide receiver A.J. Henning (8) celebrates after scoring a touchdown against the Illinois Fighting Illini during the second half at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images | Matt Marton-Imagn Images

Northwestern football began spring practice this week, ushering in a new group of players that should help the Wildcats improve from last season.

The 'Cats have 11 incoming transfers and seven early enrollees from their 20-person high school recruiting class. On Friday, Northwestern announced the jersey numbers that 15 of its 31 new additions will be wearing this fall.

Some notable names are featured in Northwestern's social media post, which contains eight transfers and seven early freshman enrollees. Quarterback Preston Stone is set to wear No. 8, a uniform that previously belonged to wideout A.J. Henning. Stone wore No. 2 during his four years at SMU. High school quarterback recruit Marcus Romain will be in No. 13.

Former four-star wide receiver Chase Farrell wore No. 19 during his freshman season at Stanford, but will be changing to No. 20 at Northwestern after redshirting his lone year in Palo Alto. Fellow wideout transfer Griffin Wilde (South Dakota State) was absent among the new number reveal, which could signal that he is either not on campus yet or has not decided on a number.

Northwestern's most anticipated defensive transfer, former Boilermaker Yanni Karlaftis, will be staying in the same No. 14 that he donned at Purdue. On the offensive side, incoming freshman wide receiver Duke Enongene will also wear No. 14. Northwestern's other early enrollee wideout, Braden Blueitt, is set to be in No. 82.

The Wildcats are rebuilding their offensive line with experienced transfers in Liberty's Xavior Gray, South Dakota State's Evan Beerntsen and Minnesota's Martes Lewis, who officially announced his commitment on Thursday. Gray is keeping the No. 63 that he wore for two years with the Flames, while Beerntsen will be moving from No. 61 to No. 60.

Transfer safety An'Darius Coffey (Memphis) will take two-time captain Coco Azema's No. 0 and tight end Alex Lines (New Mexico State) will wear No. 88, previously held by tight end Marshall Lang. Long snapper Liam Reardon's No. 49 is the same that he wore at Akron.

Two other transfers do not have numbers yet: Minnesota's Lewis and Jacksonville State defensive back Fred Davis II.

Incoming freshman Caden O'Rourke, whose brother, Devin, wore No. 46 at Northwestern from 2018 to 2022, will wear No. 93 for the Wildcats.