NCC football star Broc Rutter leaves behind legacy

The NCC football program has seen plenty of success over the last decade. Much of that success has come from the last four seasons with a 45-6 overall record. The Cardinals have seen many great players wear the “NC” logo, but only one of them stands out from the rest.

That one player is Broc Rutter, ’20.

Before attending NCC, Rutter was the star quarterback at Neuqua Valley High School in Naperville, Ill. Rutter would lead the Wildcats to two IHSA playoff appearances before drawing interest to play collegiate football.

Football has always been something Rutter has dominated, but his first love for any sport came on the hardwood.

“I would play any sport you can think of,” said Rutter on The Fresh Take Podcast. “The main sports were basketball, baseball and football, but I’ll golf, play tennis or do anything I can compete in. Growing up, basketball was my first true love.”

It was a good thing Rutter later fell in love with football. The style of play Rutter had was to sit on the outside, shoot from beyond the arc and not play defense. There were times when Rutter’s dad would talk to him about the importance of getting back on defense and taking chargers.

Rutter didn’t draw attention to college basketball coaches, but he was able to gather scholarship offers in football. On Feb. 4, 2015, Rutter signed his National Letter of Intent to play at Division I FCS school, Indiana State University.

“He’s one of these players that don’t come around often,” said Neuqua Valley head football coach Bill Ellinghaus. “There wasn’t a player on the team that didn’t like playing with Broc. He made everyone around them better. I say this often, but he was like another coach on the field.”

Having spent one season with the Sycamores, he didn’t like his time at Indiana State and didn’t want to be part of their culture. Eventually, Rutter would enter the transfer portal.

During Rutter’s recruitment in high school, NCC was involved in that process. Even though Rutter was committed to Indiana State, the coaches and players developed a strong relationship with the Naperville native. This would be an easy decision for Rutter’s next chapter of his football career.

“It was a no-brainer,” said Rutter. “I got my release from Indiana State and not even a week later I chose NCC. I knew the culture, wanted to go somewhere I could win and trust the right people. After the first practice, I knew I made the right decision.”

Video by Greg Williams

When Rutter got to NCC, the rest was history. He shattered NCC career, season and game records. Rutter has set career records in pass completions, pass attempts, yards per game, completion percentage, passing yards and passing touchdowns. Eventually, Rutter became the Division III all-time leader in passing yards.

It didn’t stop there. Rutter won the CCIW Art Keller Offensive Player of the Year Award three times, earned First Team All-CCIW four times and was named an AP All-American twice. Then, he was named the recipient of The Gagliardi Trophy, the premier individual award in Division III football and helped NCC win the 2019 Division III NCAA National Championship.

The accolades and statistics speak for Rutter’s ability to play the game of football. But it’s what he does off the field that made him the person he is today.

“The first thing you notice about Broc is the maturity,” said NCC offensive coordinator Brad Spencer. “He has the ability to relate to people, has a great attitude and is always positive. He’s a magnet, he can be friends with anyone and just after one practice we knew he was going to be special.”

Teammates and coaches will say Rutter has always been a great leader throughout his high school and college career. It was his senior season where that leadership role made the biggest impact.

In the first three seasons at NCC, the Cardinals had made the playoffs but were unable to get past the second round. There was doubt that Rutter could lead his team to the goal of a national championship, let alone past the second round of the playoffs.

Rutter silenced the doubters.

“It means everything to me,” said Rutter on embracing the leadership role. “That’s what everyone will remember the most. Once we got on the field in fall camp, we knew we had something special. Credit to the coaches and my teammates for all the hard work we put in.”

After winning the national championship, Rutter was gaining the attention of NFL teams. He threw at the Northern Illinois Pro Day and the Northwestern Pro Day. Rutter was able to showcase his talent and had the opportunity to speak to NFL scouts.

“As the NFL scouts kept calling, the thing I would say about Broc is that ‘he’s a once-in-a-coaching-lifetime player,’” said Spencer. “He’s that type of level of a man, player and competitor.”

In the 2020 NFL Draft, Rutter ended up going undrafted. However, it didn’t take long for the NCC quarterback to find a team. Rutter signed with the San Francisco 49ers and earned a signing bonus of $279.

Unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the 49ers had to cut their training camp roster size. Rutter was one of those cuts.

Rutter ended up going back to NCC to train and coach. He was also in one class that he wasn’t able to finish due to the NFL Draft process. Virtually, he completed and enjoyed his last class in sports budgeting and finance.

After finishing his education at NCC, on Jan. 20, 2021, Rutter signed with the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League (CFL) and will report to training camp on May 10.

“All Broc needs is an opportunity,” said NCC head football coach Jeff Thorne. “I think he will be able to showcase his skills. Broc’s decision-making is phenomenal and what separates him from the others is his accuracy. He is going to be great.”

The hope for Rutter is that he can succeed in the CFL, which could lead to another opportunity in the NFL. If not, Rutter has thought about sticking with football and looking into coaching gigs.

After the season, before the NFL was a possibility, Rutter got some help from Thorne and Spencer to potentially become a graduate assistant coach at NCC.

“It’s incredible what he has done for the program,” said Thorne. “You can’t really put it into words. He’s an amazing human being and that goes beyond football. He’s just a special guy and puts everyone else’s well-being before his.”

NCC wasn’t able to play football in the fall and won’t be playing spring games either. The fall decision came from the CCIW and the spring decision came from the program. However, it’s going to be hard to replace someone like Rutter in the future.