Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Welcome Six Non-Scholarship Players to 2007 Squad
5/24/2007 12:00:00 AM | Football
May 24, 2007
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern head football coach Pat Fitzgerald announced today the addition of six non-scholarship student-athletes to the Wildcats' 2007 roster.
In recent years, scholarship reductions have increased the importance of attracting quality walk-ons to a football program. In addition, many walk-ons earn full scholarships while attending Northwestern. In the last eight years, the Wildcats have awarded 21 full scholarships to walk-ons.
"Our non-scholarship players invest greatly in our program and we try to reward as many as possible," said Fitzgerald. "We are excited to have these six young men join our program."
Northwestern's six walk-ons for 2007 are offensive lineman Doug Bartels (Caledonia, Ill./Rockford Boylan Catholic), long snapper John Henry Pace (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central), linebacker Pat Pohlen (Villa Park, Calif./Villa Park), running back Jacob Schmidt (Rhinelander, Wis./Rhinelander), defensive lineman Andrew Struckmeyer (Vienna, Va./Thomas Jefferson) and defensive back Ricky Weina Jr. (Union Grove, Wis./Union Grove Union). Pace is transferring to Northwestern after attending the University of Miami (Fla.) his freshman year.
Northwestern begins its preseason camp on Sunday, Aug. 5, in preparation for its Sept. 1 opener vs. Northeastern.
The following are the biographies of NU's six walk-on student-athletes:
Doug Bartels
6-4 • 285
Caledonia, Ill. • Rockford Boylan Catholic
Projected Position: Offensive Line
High School: Named to the NIC-9 All-Conference team (defensive tackle) and the Rivals Class 5A-8A All-State (defensive lineman) team in 2006 ... NIC-9 Conference Outstanding Scholar-Athlete recipient in 2005 and 2006 ... Lettered two years as a center and defensive tackle for the Titans ... Rockford Register Star Prep Athlete of the Week (12/14/2006) ... Totaled 56 solo tackles his senior season ... 2006 Academic All-State selection ... Helped lead the Titans to the 2006 Class 7A state playoffs in 2005 and '06--Boylan reached the second round in 2005 and the quarterfinals in 2006 ... Also lettered in track and baseball, and played basketball ... National Honor Society two years ... Coached by Dan Appino.
Personal: Born Douglas William Bartels on 5/30/1989 ... Son of David and Carol Bartels ... Uncle, Alan Lettow, played football at Wisconsin (1967-71) ... Interested in pre-medicine.
John Henry Pace
5-11 • 210
Hinsdale, Ill. • Hinsdale Central
Projected Position: Long Snapper
2006: Attended the University of Miami (Fla.).
High School: Lettered two years as cornerback, safety and long snapper at Hinsdale Central ... Helped lead the Red Devils to the West Suburban Silver Conference title (undefeated) and Class 8A state quarterfinals his junior year and the state semifinals his senior year ... Also lettered in track (sprinter and pole vaulter) ... 2006 College Board AP Scholar with Distinction Award ... 2004-06 West Suburban Conference All-Academic honoree ... National Merit Scholar ... NHS and Academic Dean's List (all eight semesters) ... 2004-06 Illinois Scholar Awards ... 2003-05 Scholar-Athlete Award (track and football) ... Hinsdale Central's Outstanding Student of the Month (Sept., 2005) ... Coached by Tony Lombardi.
Personal: Born John Henry Bates Pace on 2/5/1988 ... Son of Greg and Patsy Pace ... Brother, Greg Jr., was a four-year letterman and long snapper at Colorado (2002-05) ... Father, Greg, was a place-kicker at Illinois ... Played prep football with 2007 NU signee Jack DiNardo ... Plans to major in mechanical engineering.
Pat Pohlen
6-3 • 225
Villa Park, Calif. • Villa Park
Projected Position: Linebacker
High School: Played linebacker and tight end for the Spartans ... Three-year letterwinner and two-year captain ... Finished with 92 tackles his senior year, the second-highest total by a Century League player ... Two-time Scholar Athlete of the Year (2005-06) ... Eric Bartrom Memorial Scholarship recipient as a senior ... Selected to play in Orange County's North-South All-Star game ... Helped the Spartans to an undefeated league season and a SOCAL Division 3 semifinalist berth his sophomore year ... Finished second in the Century League his junior year ... Totaled 14 tackles, 2 forced fumbles and 2 receptions for 24 yards in one game ... Also lettered in basketball and played baseball ... Two-time AP Scholar ... Gold Medallion Award winner (4.0-plus GPA all four years) ... Coached by Pat Mahoney.
Personal: Born Patrick Joseph Pohlen on 1/3/1989 ... Son of Pat and Kimberly Pohlen ... Father played offensive tackle for Notre Dame ... Cousin, Jeannette Pohlen, was California's basketball player of the year ... Interested in pre-medicine.
Jacob Schmidt
5-10 • 200
Rhinelander, Wis. • Rhinelander
Projected Position: Running Back
High School: Two-time All-Wisconsin Valley Conference selection at running back and cornerback (2005-06) ... Two-time team MVP and team captain (2005-06) ... Rushed for 2,150 career yards and piled up over 3,000 yards of total offense ... On defense, totaled 85 tackles and 7 interceptions ... Rushed for 148 yards on 18 carries and scored 3 TD's vs. Lakeland ... Also had a 138 rushing yards, 3 TD's and 3 interceptions vs. Merrill ... Earned 11 varsity letters in four sports--three in football, four in baseball, two in basketball and two in hockey ... All-conference honoree in baseball (team's leading hitter and RBI leader) and a two-year captain ... Hit three grand slams his senior season ... NHS member for three years ... Honor Roll all four years ... Coached by Jim Moore.
Personal: Born Jacob Andrew Schmidt on 11/15/1988 ... Son of Ken and Kerri Schmidt ... Attended same high school that produced Steelers' Hall of Fame center Mike Webster ... Interested in biomedical engineering.
Andrew Struckmeyer
6-2 • 245
Vienna, Va. • Thomas Jefferson
Projected Position: Defensive Line
High School: 2006 AAA All-Liberty District defensive lineman ... Colonials' 2006 Defensive MVP ... Earned honorable mention AAA All-Liberty District honors as an offensive lineman in 2005 ... Four-time Scholar Athlete (2003-06) ... Three-year letterwinner ... Team captain ... Three academic letters (awarded for GPA greater than 3.8) ... Two-year starting offensive guard (2005-06) and starting defensive tackle (2006) ... Latin Honor Society member (2005-07) ... Coached by Tim O'Reilly (2003-05) and Tim Puvogel (2006).
Personal: Born Andrew Gerald Struckmeyer on 4/30/1989 ... Son of Sandy and Dianne Struckmeyer ... Interested in a journalism career.
Ricky Weina Jr.
5-11 • 175
Union Grove, Wis. • Union Grove Union
Projected Position: Defensive Back
High School: Two-time second-team All-Lakeshore Conference defensive back (2005-06) ... All-Racine County defensive back (second-team selection in 2005, honorable mention in 2006) ... 2006 team captain ... Team's Most Improved Player in 2005 ... For career (2005-06), totaled 8 interceptions, 6 fumble recoveries, 107 solo tackles, 60 assisted tackles, 4 TFL's, 5 blocked kicks, 3 sacks and 2 defensive TD's ... Helped the Broncos win back-to-back conference titles in 2005-06 (2005 title was school's first since 1977) ... Also helped the Broncos gain their first playoff berths since 1998, including the school's first at home ... Broncos went 6-5 his junior year and 9-2 (7-0 league mark) his senior season ... Returned an interception 85 yards with no time remaining in the first half of a game vs. Waterford to take the lead and clinch a playoff berth ... Returned a blocked punt for a game-winning TD vs. Westosha Central in 2005, which ended an 11-game losing streak ... Also lettered in basketball and played baseball ... National Honor Society and Honor Roll each year ... Coached by Jeff Urban.
Personal: Born Ricky John Weina Jr. on 2/15/1990 ... Son of Ricky and Tiffany Weina ... Plans to major in economics.
