Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Welcome Four Non-Scholarship Players to 2006 Squad
6/22/2006 12:00:00 AM | Football
June 22, 2006
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern head football coach Randy Walker announced the addition of four non-scholarship student-athletes to the Wildcats' 2006 roster.
Over the last 11 years, scholarship reductions have increased the importance of attracting quality walk-ons to a football program. Walker, who greatly values the contributions of every player on his roster, has awarded 19 full scholarships to walk-ons in his first seven seasons at Northwestern.
"Our walk-ons invest greatly in our program and we try to reward as many as possible," said Walker. "With 85 scholarships, identifying quality student-athletes is extremely important to the success of our football team."
Northwestern's four walk-ons for 2006 are offensive lineman Keegan Grant (Coal City, Ill./Coal City), punter Mark Ison (Powell, Ohio/Olentangy Liberty), safety James Nussbaum (Greenwood, Ind./Center Grove) and wide receiver Reilly Sullivan (Scottsdale, Ariz./Horizon).
Northwestern finished 7-5 last year (5-3 Big Ten) and earned its third bowl berth since 2000. The Wildcats have posted a 14-10 cumulative Big Ten record since 2003.
The following are the biographies of NU's four walk-on student-athletes:
Keegan Grant
6-2 • 285
Coal City, Ill. • Coal City High School
Projected Position: Offensive Lineman
High School: Started at offensive tackle and defensive tackle for Illinois High School Association Class 4A state semifinalists ... Named first-team all-state offensive lineman by Chicago Tribune and first-team defensive lineman by Morris Daily Herald ... Earned Coal City Lineman of the Year and Varsity Athletic awards ... Received an Academic All-State Award by the Illinois High School Football Coaches' Association ... Named a all-area scholar athlete by the Kankakee Daily Journal ... National Honor Society member ... 2006 Illinois State Scholar ... Also a four-year letterwinner in wrestling and track and field ... Finished fourth in the IHSA Class A wrestling meet (275-pound weight class) ... Broke Coal City shot put record by 3' 5-1/2'' ... Qualified six times for IHSA state tournaments in his three sports ... Became first Coal City athlete to qualify for three IHSA state tournaments in the same year (2004-05) ... Coached by Lenny Onsen.
Personal: Born Keegan Brian Grant on 3/15/88 ... Son of Brian Grant ... Interested in a career in medicine.
Mark Ison
6-0 • 195
Powell, Ohio • Olentangy Liberty High School
Projected Position: Punter
High School: Two-time first-team all-Ohio Capital Conference honoree ... Played receiver, tackle and punter for the two-time OCC-champion Patriots ... Helped lead Olentangy Liberty (10-2 overall) to its first playoff win in school history in 2005 ... Received special mention all-district and second-team all-county honors in 2005 ... Selected as Wendy's High School Heisman Award and Ernie Godfrey Award nominee ... Named Columbus Dispatch and Ohio High School Athletic Association scholar athlete ... Won Honda Math Medal award and honored as a Who's Who Among American High School Students ... Also lettered in basketball, track and soccer ... Coached by Steve Hale.
Personal: Born Mark Robert Ison on 10/5/87 ... Son of Julie and Dave Ison ... Brother, Jared, plays football at Cornell University ... Interested in a computer science career.
James Nussbaum
6-2 • 210
Greenwood, Ind. • Center Grove High School
Projected Position: Safety
High School: Two-time Associated Press all-state, all-Metropolitan Interscholastic Conference, all-metro and all-Johnson county selection ... Led Trojans in rushing, receptions, interceptions, touchdowns, scoring and passes defended ... Team captain and team MVP during senior season ... Intercepted a pass on the last play of game to defeat state champions Warren Central, 50-49 ... 11-time academic all-conference recipient and three-year honor roll member ... Four-year letter winner at Center Grove ... Coached by Eric Moore.
Personal: Born James Timothy Nussbaum on 12/8/87 ... Son of Brenda and Tim Nussbaum ... Father played football and ran track at Wheaton College ... Interested in a career in economics.
Reilly Sullivan
5-11 • 175
Scottsdale, Ariz. • Horizon High School
Projected Position: Wide Receiver
High School: Holds Horizon single-season record with 45 receptions for 768 yards and career receiving record with 80 receptions for 1,394 yards ... Garnered Arizona Republic honorable mention all-state honors ... Caught two or more passes in 22 consecutive games for the Huskies ... Also played defensive back and recorded 121 tackles while tallying three interceptions ... Two-time Arizona Interscholastic Association Scholar Athlete Award winner ... Selected as team captain and MVP team wide receiver ... Played against NU's Keegan Kennedy and alongside kicker and 2006 NU signee Stefan Demos ... Coached by Steve Casey.
Personal: Born Reilly Patrick Sullivan on 8/25/87 ... Son of Cindy and Patrick Sullivan ... Major is undecided.
