From one catch in four years to 23 catches in one year, Hunter Welcing has walked an arduous journey. But he’s emerged from it a Wildcat star.
After years of battling injuries and limited playing time, the graduate student tight end has suddenly blossomed into one of Northwestern’s most dynamic offensive weapons this season. With 23 catches for 268 yards, Welcing is now a key fixture of a Wildcat offense that just a couple months ago remained uncertain about the role tight ends would play in Zach
Lujan’s playbook.
“It’s been kind of a long time coming,” Welcing said. “But I feel very grateful to get to this point and be able to showcase the player that I am.”
As the season began, Welcing ensured his name would be hard to overlook. His first career touchdown catch against Western Illinois signified him as an asset to quarterback Preston Stone. He’s maintained a high level of consistency, catching a pass in ten of the 11 games he’s played this season.
Welcing’s touchdown haul against Purdue earlier this season led to a more profound role. Two weeks ago against Michigan, Welcing unleashed a breakout performance — leading the ‘Cats offense with a career-high four catches for 81 yards against one of the best defenses in the country. Despite the loss, his effort earned him a place on PFF College’s Big Ten Team of the Week.
Then, this past weekend in a pivotal match against Minnesota, Welcing made arguably his greatest play as a Wildcat. With the ‘Cats down three points and facing a 3rd-and-10 with under two minutes to play, quarterback Preston Stone fired a pass to the tight end. Although he caught the ball short of the sticks, Welcing used his physicality to fight his way for the first down, carrying multiple defenders with him.
It was a pivotal moment in the game, and a culmination of preparation that began years before that catch was made.
Welcing acknowledged the significance of these milestones and the emotion that comes from them. While he takes time to recognize his accomplishments, Welcing never stops looking for the next chance to make an impact.
“Knowing the road was so long to get to this point, it makes those moments a little bit bigger and more emotional,” Welcing said. “In the moment they’re obviously big, but I’m also focusing on the next play. Getting that next play is one of the biggest things to look forward to.”
Welcing committed to Northwestern on March 9, 2019 as a 17-year-old, dubbed by scouts as one of the best high school tight ends in Illinois.
But football wasn’t always Welcing’s dream job. From the time he was four years old, he hoped to be a professional hockey player, with aspirations of earning a college scholarship and eventually making the NHL.
As Welcing got older, his dreams shifted from the ice to the turf. In his sophomore year at Lake Zurich High School, a friend encouraged him to try out for the football team.
It wasn’t long before he fell in love with the game. A summer of conditioning and weeks devoted to building muscle pushed him from drive to execution. He soon became a team standout and three-star college recruit.
Welcing’s high school success also came with its share of adversity, however. Just three weeks after committing to NU, he tore his ACL during a spring seven-on-seven tournament, causing him to miss the first half of his senior season.
“There’s definitely a lot of life lessons in there, kind of going to the injury history and whatnot,” Welcing said. “But I feel like a lot of the injuries kind of made me more grateful, and ultimately my hard work got me to this point.”
Welcing entered college in 2020, amid a crowded Wildcats tight end room where crafting a niche proved formidable.
He appeared in just four games in 2021 as a redshirt before an injury knocked him out for nearly all of 2022. Welcing carved out a special teams role in 2023, playing 53 snaps across eight games. He found consistent playing time as a junior last season, where he appeared in all 12 games and recorded his first-career reception with a 20-yard catch.
Even in those small moments, head coach David Braun noticed something special in Welcing. The coach’s offseason evaluations reinforced to him that Welcing deserved a bigger role in the offense this year.
“I think there was this moment where we thought we could have found ways to utilize him more last year,” Braun said. “And to his credit, Hunter has had quite a journey, a lot of things to overcome, including injury. His consistency over the course of the last year-and-a-half, in terms of his practice habits, he’s given us no choice but to position him for not only more opportunities to be on the field but more opportunities in the passing game.”
Those opportunities were fought hard for, and Welcing is doing his work justice.
There are several tools in Welcing’s arsenal that have led to his sixth year assurgence.
One element that Braun has commended him for is his versatility. Tight ends are often asked to play a hybrid offensive role — blocking during run plays and being a receiver option during pass plays. While most tight ends tend to excel in one role and be more of a liability in another, Welcing has put immense focus on being effective in both areas.
That goal started in high school, where Welcing began improving his physicality and bulking up to match the weights of other Big Ten tight ends. While he said both elements were crucial to making sure he was prepared for the run game, he is still looking to get even better in that area of his game.
“It’s just kind of something that happened over time, but further developing myself in the run game is probably the biggest transition I need to be an even more effective tight end,” Welcing said.
While humble about his skills, Welcing made clear the aspect of his game he feels most confident in right now.
“My athletic ability,” Welcing said. “I make sure to use that in both the passing game, using the speed to get around guys, and also when it comes to blocking, using my explosiveness to knock guys off the ball or create space for them.”
Welcing’s contributions extend beyond the field and into the locker room. As one of the oldest veterans on the team, the graduate student has embraced a leadership role within a relatively younger tight end room.
The tight end balances his leadership with continuing to seek advice from his own mentors: former Wildcat tight ends Marshall Lang and Thomas Gordon, both of whom have appeared on NFL practice squads. Welcing values the kinship he’s formed with the tight end room over the years, something that has benefited each player both on and off the field.
“It’s like a lot of personalities and characters, but I feel like we’re probably one of the closest position groups on the team,” Welcing said. “They’re always able to lean on the guys like myself or former tight ends to gain that experience or insight to get to that point of preparation.”
As he closes the book on six years with Northwestern, Welcing describes this final stretch as “bittersweet,” given the relationships he’s built through his time as a Wildcat. Playing under two coaches and with hundreds of different teammates has helped him grow as a person and player, as he’s embraced being a touchpoint for newcomers getting acclimated to NU’s culture.
One of those players is quarterback Preston Stone, whom Welcing said he formed a special bond with this offseason.
“He transferred here in the spring, so building that relationship from the start was something that was important to me,” Welcing said. “Spending time in the facilities, spending time throwing routes, it’s something that I want to do as a starting tight end to build that bond.”
Connections like these will remain long after Welcing’s departure from Northwestern. But for now, his focus centers on two things: winning the final game of the season and taking advantage of postseason opportunities.
The season he’s worked six years for is now in the home stretch. Welcing will meet it with the same adversity and hunger for opportunity that has carried him this far. But above all, he wants to enjoy every minute and punctuate his breakout year in the best way possible.
“I’m obviously very excited,” Welcing said. “I really want to go on a high note, continue to finish wrapping up the season well, and hope it’ll be an awesome experience.”
