RB Trumpy’s living his dream

Wheaton North running back Mike Trumpy rushed for 1,664 yards and 19 touchdowns as a junior last fall.
(Herb Shenkin/Naperville Sun)

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Mike Trumpy committing to play football at Northwestern is as surprising as Chicago voting Democratic. The Wheaton North running back has dreamed about playing tailback in the Big Ten since he was 6 years old, and Northwestern was the right fit.

When Trumpy called Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgerald last week to inform him of his decision, he was confident he had considered all of his options and satisfied there was no better place for him than NU.

‘‘There was no reason to go any further,’’ Trumpy said. ‘‘Schools were still calling, inviting me to come to their one-day camps, requesting film, asking me to visit their campus. But Northwestern has been my favorite since last fall, and nothing has happened to change my mind.’’

The 6-foot, 200-pound junior, a nephew of former Illinois and NFL tight end Bob Trumpy, also got scholarship offers from Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northern Illinois, Western Michigan, Miami of Ohio and Eastern Michigan. Notre Dame, Alabama, Tennessee, Colorado, Louisville, Georgia Tech and all the Big Ten and Mid-American Conference schools expressed interest.

‘‘From last fall, when he said Northwestern was his favorite, we got him to agree to go through the process and compare everything to Northwestern,’’ said Dave Trumpy, Mike’s father. ‘‘This wasn’t about accumulating scholarship offers. We wanted to make sure a 17-year-old made a good decision. He said he was 99 percent certain, and we wanted to be sure he was 100 percent certain.’’

Mike Trumpy did his due diligence. He visited several schools, heard dozens of sales pitches, compared Brand A to Brand B to Brand C and said the recruiting process wasn’t as much of a distraction as it was for other players.

‘‘I’m ready,’’ he said. ‘‘Why wait?’’

Why Northwestern?

‘‘From the beginning, I knew what kind of a program I wanted — great academics, great athletics, great people in the program and a chance to play early,’’ Trumpy said. ‘‘Academics is my No. 1 thing. Northwestern is a top-15 school. I want to major in business, to prepare for life after football. And I think Northwestern will help me to do that.

‘‘I went to other schools to see if Northwestern was the right fit. I’m not looking for anything else. I’ve made my commitment, and I don’t plan to change my mind. I would never de-commit. You should keep your word.’’

One coach told Trumpy he was one of the top five running backs in the country. He wasn’t impressed.

‘‘Some people tell you what you want to hear,’’ he said. ‘‘I know I am not one of the top five right now, but I want to prove I can be in college. I want to prove that I am a four-star running back, no matter what the recruiting services say.’’

In addition to his parents, Trumpy said he received good advice from close friend Nick Adamle, a lineman at NU, and from former Wheaton North coach Matt Foster. He has been very impressed with Mick McCall, the Wildcats’ new offensive coordinator.

In fact, it was Adamle who tipped off Fitzgerald to Trumpy’s ball-carrying skills. Fitzgerald sent then-assistant Eric Washington, now with the Bears, to scout Trumpy during Wheaton North’s loss to Glenbard North. Trumpy rushed for 234 yards and two touchdowns. Washington’s verdict? Trumpy has what it takes to play in the Big Ten.

Trumpy thinks he is a good fit for NU’s offensive system. The Wildcats have produced nine 1,000-yard rushers since 1995. With five tailbacks on the current roster — seniors Tyrell Sutton and Omar Conteh, sophomore Stephen Simmons and redshirt freshmen Scott Concannon and Jacob Schmidt — Trumpy thinks he has a good opportunity to see playing time sooner than later.

Bob Trumpy has reminded his nephew that he must focus on running routes and pass blocking.

‘‘Only those two things will keep you on the field in college on third down, no matter how great a runner you are,’’ Bob Trumpy said.

Recruiting analyst Tom Lemming said Trumpy has all the qualities to be a Big Ten running back and reminds him of former Hinsdale Central star Brian Musso, who also played at NU.

‘‘He is explosive and has great speed and great running instincts,’’ Lemming said. ‘‘He is a natural at the tailback position.’’

Last fall, playing for a 5-5 team in arguably the most competitive conference in the state, Trumpy was named to the Sun-Times All-Area team and led the DuPage Valley by rushing for 1,664 yards and 19 touchdowns. He averaged seven yards per carry and stood out against Class 8A champion Naperville North (178 yards), 8A runner-up Glenbard North (234) and 7A runner-up Wheaton Warrenville South (161).

Trumpy also is an outstanding hurdler on Wheaton North’s highly rated track and field squad. He has been timed in 4.5 seconds for 40 yards, 10.7 seconds for 100 meters and 14.28 seconds for the 100-meter high hurdles, the third-fastest time in the state this spring. In the Proviso West indoor meet in February, he was timed in 7.4 seconds in the 55-meter high hurdles to tie Olympian Greg Foster’s record.

Lemming said the commitments of Trumpy and Glenbard North quarterback Evan Watkins might trigger a new era in NU recruiting.

‘‘Northwestern is making its presence felt in Chicago,’’ Lemming said. ‘‘They are making a statement that they can recruit successfully against Illinois, Notre Dame, Michigan, Wisconsin and Iowa in the area.’’