From TikTok Fame to College Hoops: Jake West’s Exciting Start with Northwestern Wildcats

CHICAGO (WLS) — Jake West, a freshman at Northwestern University, has already made a name for himself with a staggering 1.6 million followers on TikTok, even before stepping onto the basketball court with the Wildcats.

“It all started as a joke with friends after school, and it wasn’t even on my account initially,” West explained. “The videos began to go viral, and I thought maybe I should create my own account and start sharing content. I never imagined it would lead to this, but here we are.”

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West’s content is known for being spontaneous and genuine. “A lot of my videos are quick and natural,” he said. “I’m just having fun, dancing, and being myself.”

Wildcats Head Coach Chris Collins discovered West’s TikTok fame through an unexpected source. “My 18-year-old daughter was the one who told me,” Collins recounted. “She said, ‘Dad, you know Jake has, like, 2 million followers? He’s kind of a big deal.'”

Back home, West was frequently recognized due to his online presence. “People knew who I was,” he said. “Here, it took a bit longer for people to recognize me, but as I’m getting more comfortable and playing well, that’s starting to change.”

“He wants to be a basketball player first and foremost. And I think the social media thing kind of came from out of nowhere. He’s like, ‘Hey, I guess I’ll roll with it now, but I want to be a baller,’” Collins said.

“I want to stick with basketball. Basketball is my first love. Growing up, that’s all I wanted to do was play basketball. And, like I said, that social media stuff kind of just came as a joke, and on the side, naturally. And I definitely didn’t feel like I would get to this point, you know, having millions of followers, but I think it’s cool, ’cause I get to show that I’m a basketball player as well, and what I like to do. And I think I’ve been able to build such a cool fan base because I had different avenues in my life that people like to see,” West said.