Most prospective Georgetown recruits travel to campus and are given a tour of the campus and the city. Rowan Brumbaugh didn't have to go that far for a close look at the University. Born in New York and raised in New England, Rowan spent his formative years in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, DC, where his father (a Washington-born novelist and documentary film producer) and mother (a British-born actress and author) had settled. Growing up just a few blocks from the campus, he knew the area as well as anyone.

Brumbaugh played his high school basketball at Northfield (MA) Mount Hermon School, earning ESPN Top 100 honors with averages of 13.1 points, 4.7 assists, and 3.6 rebounds a game. Though recruited by former Georgetown coach Patrick Ewing in the fall of 2021, Brumbaugh signed with Texas, but did not play as a freshman, and entered the transfer portal at the conclusion of the 2022-23 season. He signed with Georgetown on April 10, 2023, with this message in his social media account: "Meant to be."

As a freshman, Brumbaugh started 20 games for the Hoyas, fighting off a pair of slumps at mid-season and towards the end of the 2023-24 season that limited his time on the court. He led the Hoyas in scoring in four games, with a season high 24 against Xavier and finished second in assists.