Fairbury's Brodie Prellwitz commits to play basketball at Nebraska Wesleyan

One of the most prolific scorers in the modern history of a Southeast Nebraska boys basketball program will be keeping his talents close to home as he announces his college commitment.

In front of a large crowd including family, coaches, and scores of fellow Jeffs, Fairbury senior Brodie Prellwitz formally announced his commitment to continue his basketball career at Nebraska Wesleyan this week.

"It means a lot, this just tops off all the hard work and dedication I’ve put in the last four years. It means everything to me. The feeling is just so good," Prellwitz said this week. "It was awesome, especially seeing the support from the school – everyone was here, from like my classmates, friends, kids that I don’t really talk to throughout the day, everyone was here. And that means a lot, and I think it just shows you what Fairbury’s about though, that close Jeffs pride that we hold. And my family being here, I love it."

He grew up enjoying and playing sports, but basketball was never Prellwitz's top athletic priority - until eighth grade, when he first truly fell in love with now. Now, he becomes the fourth Jeff to commit to play in college for Fairbury head coach Ryan Garver, himself an NWU alum.

"We kind of grew up together a little bit, as well as this whole senior class," Garver said. "I remember meeting him in grade school and thinking what kind of future he might have. He loved basketball, I saw that from the beginning, and he took off in it. He wanted to travel around, get on the court as much as he could. I love the energy he brought with that, for himself and for the program in general."

I didn’t really pay much attention, growing up, to basketball, I played with my friends and stuff, but I really fell in love with the game in eighth grade – that's what kind of sparked it up for me for the rest of my career," said Prellwitz. "[Garver] brought it up to me, and I hadn’t really thought about the idea [of playing in college]. He just brought it up to me and I was like, ‘Why not me?’ And then I started going through the recruiting process and God did the rest for me."

Prellwitz recently broke into the top five on the Jeffs' career points leaderboard, and as the team's leading scorer has helped guide his team to 15 wins this year, tied for the most the Jeffs have won in the last 20 seasons.

"I spent my first three years not with a winning record. It was very frustrating. But this year, it’s a different group. A different group of guys. And I felt like we knew what we could do before the season even started," he said.

"I love where he’s started from and where he’s grown to, not only as a basketball player but as a person as well. He’s really grown a lot, in helping and leading our team throughout this year, and throughout his four years as well," said Garver. "We have a pretty storied basketball program here at Fairbury, so to be up there in the top five with some of those names is really impressive."

Prellwitz said he wouldn't have been able to get to this point without the support of his family.

Especially important for Brodie is his connection with his cousin and longtime best friend and teammate James Martin. James was always the bigger basketball fan of the two and inspired Brodie to love it too.

The Jeffs will face conference foes Milford in the subdistrict semifinal on Tuesday night, what could be one last hurrah for these longtime teammates.

"I just feel like there’s more work to do. Obviously this is a big milestone, but there’s still more to the season," Prellwitz said. "We’ve got subs, starting next Tuesday, and I would love to see us go pretty far, try to make it to state. And throughout my college career, I just want to keep it going. This is a great achievement, I just feel like I just need to keep it going."

Prellwitz will see a familiar face on the roster at Nebraska Wesleyan next season. Crete's Carter Rezny, one of the top scorers in his own high school program's history, announced earlier this week he will also be joining the Prairiewolves in 2026-27.