Northwestern University Athletics
The New Brew: Andrew Brewer Feature
10/16/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 16, 2008
At Jenks High School in Tulsa, Okla., Andrew Brewer put together a career most high school football players can only dream of.
He quarterbacked the powerhouse Trojans to the 6A state championship as a junior in 2003 and to a runner-up finish in 2004, earning all-state honors in the process. His career numbers were staggering - passing for over 3,700 yards and 45 touchdowns while also rushing for nearly 1,100 yards and finding the end zone a dozen more times. He was even named the Most Valuable Player of the Oil Bowl, an annual showdown pitting the top prep players from Oklahoma against their counterparts from Texas.
It was a foregone conclusion that Brewer would end up playing collegiate ball at a big-time Division I program. But while a number of programs were eyeing his stellar right arm, Northwestern was focused more on the all-state quarterback's hands.
"I really felt like the Lord was leading me to Northwestern," Brewer said. "I thought about staying close to home and playing at Tulsa, but when I came and visited, I knew this was a special place and it felt like a great fit for me."
However the transformation didn't take place over night. After sitting out his entire freshman season, Brewer found himself behind center in 10 games for the Wildcats in 2006. In his first career start against Penn State--in front of 100,000-plus fans--he was a respectable 14-of-30 for 157 yards while also rushing for 41 yards as well. ABC named him the Wildcats' player of the game.
But as the year progressed, C.J. Bachér came back from a preseason injury and solidified his status as the team's starting signal caller against Michigan State. Brewer then found himself being called on to fill a hole at the wide receiver position. His first catch in a Northwestern uniform was a 48-yard grab against Iowa, with the ensuing drive resulting in a Wildcat touchdown. From that point on, he realized his career at Northwestern was about to embark on a slightly different course.
"Honestly, the transition wasn't too difficult," Brewer admits. "I'd always had decent speed, and after playing quarterback for all those years, I knew where receivers were supposed to be. The hardest part of the adjustment was learning to think like a receiver and learning the details that come with playing a new position. It definitely was an eye-opener seeing the game from a different point of view."
After spending the majority of the 2006 season working with the receivers and having a productive off-season, Brewer was poised to have a breakout season as one of Bachér's top receiving threats in 2007. But those hopes were dashed before they even started as Brewer suffered a season-ending arm injury during preseason workouts.
"It was probably one of the toughest things I've ever had to overcome" Brewer said. "I knew it was going to take a lot of hard work to get back, and it made me re-evaluate my priorities. But I knew how I felt about this team and about my teammates, and I was ready to do whatever the team needed me to do."
While there were a number of reasons that drove Brewer to get back to health, perhaps the most influential was the state of the Wildcat program itself. After taking his recruiting visit to Evanston, Brewer said the atmosphere at Northwestern and the emphasis placed on academics was definitely a selling point. But it was the attitude among the Wildcat football players that had the most lasting impression.
"I really hadn't seen anything like it before," Brewer said. "People knew the Northwestern football program was beginning to change, but to actually see these guys taking control of their program was something special. These were players who were out there trying to change the traditions and the expectations of the program, and it was something I felt like I needed to be a part of."
With that motivation serving as a constant reminder, Brewer continued to develop into one of the Wildcats' top receivers. His performance in spring and preseason workouts caught the attention of both coaches and teammates alike, and he is expected to see plenty of action at the "H" receiver position in 2008. Through the first two games of the season, Brewer has caught seven passes for 64 yards in helping Northwestern jump out to a 2-0 start. But as it has been from his earliest days of throwing a football, it's not about the personal accolades for Brewer.
"We want to win the Big Ten, and I'll do whatever the team needs me to do for that to happen," Brewer said. "If that means I don't catch a single pass all season and block for Tyrell Sutton every play, I'm fine with it."
But just for the record, that right arm that was coveted by a handful of other programs is still as dangerous as it was when it was leading Jenks to state championship appearances. After all, you never know when an extra arm on the field may come in handy.
