Throughout his prolific Northwestern career, graduate student wide receiver Bryce Kirtz has accumulated 1,756 yards through the air.
His team-best 573 receiving yards this season –– even after missing two games with injury –– ranks 20th in the Big Ten, and his 15.5 yards per reception is 10th in the conference.
But there’s one glaring statistic that hasn’t popped up on his stat sheet: the graduate student has yet to score a touchdown. He’s the FBS receiving yards leader among those who have yet to hit pay dirt.
Kirtz will have one last shot to do so when he takes on Illinois Saturday at Wrigley Field in what will likely be his final game as a Wildcat.
“(My personal goal), get a touchdown. I haven’t gotten a touchdown yet this year, so I’m looking forward to scoring a touchdown, maybe 100 yards, that would be nice too,” Kirtz told The Daily on Tuesday. “But really, ultimately, (my goal is) winning. A touchdown and a win. That’s all I want.”
It’s been an undulating journey rippling with ups and downs for Kirtz.
The highs: two bowl wins, being named captain and a career-high 215 receiving yards in a comeback stunner over Minnesota. The lows: four knee surgeries, a 1-11 2022 campaign and catching passes from eight different quarterbacks.
“It’s bittersweet,” Kirtz said. “The last one is always sad just because everything comes to an end, but I’m excited to do it one more time with the guys in the locker room.”
A three-star recruit out of Brownsburg, Indiana, Kirtz excelled as a member of the Bulldogs. He earned All-State honors, snagging 2,400 yards and 38 touchdowns throughout his career.
Following in the footsteps of his father, who ran track at Indiana State, Kirtz lettered three times in track and field at Brownsburg High School. He credits running track as how he developed his speed.
“With track, working on the mechanics, continuing to just work on speed every year, I feel like that really helped me to be a college football player,” Kirtz said.
He ultimately chose NU over programs such as Notre Dame, Duke and Indiana, citing proximity to home and high academic standards.
Kirtz caught his first reception against Nebraska in 2020 as a redshirt freshman, making a 20-yard snag on a pass from quarterback Peyton Ramsey. He appeared in all nine games of the COVID-19-shortened season, recording two catches in both the Big Ten Championship and Citrus Bowl.
The 2021 season started with a bang for Kirtz, who recorded 80 yards on seven catches in the season opener against Michigan State. He appeared in the season’s first five games, logging a total of 203 receiving yards, but a non-contact injury sidelined him for the remainder of the year.
“Having those injuries really made me a better person … I feel like it prepared me for life,” Kirtz said. “It definitely prepared me to just keep going, put my head down and not give up.”
He started three games in 2022, the 1-11 season, recording 212 yards on 19 receptions. During the ensuing offseason, a significant change occurred inside the locker room. In July, NU fired head coach Pat Fitzgerald — the coach who helped bring Kirtz to the program — amid a national hazing scandal.
Soon after, defensive coordinator David Braun was promoted to interim head coach.
With Braun at the helm, the ’Cats found themselves bound for the Las Vegas Bowl in 2023 after an 8-5 campaign. The interim tag was removed and Braun was hired permanently. Kirtz said he relished the opportunity to play under both coaches.
“Braun, he’s really laid-back, cool, calm, collected, while (Fitzgerald) was more in-your-face, really high-energy,” Kirtz said. “But they both bring the energy and they both really want to win, and I think the biggest thing is that they both really love their players. (Both of them) want to see you do really well after football.”
Last season was a dream campaign for Kirtz, who earned an All-Big Ten honorable mention after ranking eighth in the conference in receptions and ninth in receiving yards.
His monster game against Minnesota, 10 catches for 215 yards and two touchdowns, enshrined the Brownsburg native in the NU record books as the fourth-most yardage in a single game.
By the time the squad played in the Las Vegas Bowl, he had emerged as one of quarterback Ben Bryant’s favorite targets alongside graduate transfer Cam Johnson. His clutch performance –– five catches, a team-high 68 receiving yards and a go-ahead touchdown –– proved instrumental to the 14-7 win.
In his final season, Kirtz has been a dependable target from whoever is dropping back for NU, whether it’s redshirt sophomore quarterback Jack Lausch, graduate student quarterback Mike Wright, or graduate student quarterback Ryan Hilinski.
The 6-foot, 195-pound wideout is a proven deep-ball threat who knows when to go up and snare a pass.
“I always tell Jack, ‘Just give me a chance to make a play,’” Kirtz said. “I personally know I’m very good at tracking the ball, so I really trust my eyes and my capabilities and make the play. Sometimes, it just happens, and I don’t know how it happens, but it does.”
Last week, in one of the few bright spots of NU’s blowout loss to Michigan, Kirtz made a sliding 39-yard grab.
But, win or lose Saturday, as the game winds down, so will Kirtz’s collegiate career. It will all come to a head in the battle for the Land of Lincoln Trophy.
A six-year journey from the suburbs of Indianapolis to the shores of Lake Michigan, from starring in front of a packed crowd under Friday night lights to taking the field at Ryan Field and Martin Stadium on Saturday afternoons, will end at the Friendly Confines.
“I don’t know if it’ll hit me right away, but when I see those final seconds come off the clock, I’ll definitely get teary-eyed,” Kirtz said. “It was a great experience. That’s why I stayed here for six years. I could have left, but I decided to stay because I love Northwestern.”
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