Northwestern
Wildcats
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2008 NU Season
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2008 NU Preview
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2007 NU Season
2008 Schedule
CFN Prediction:
6-6
2008 Record: 9-4
Aug. 30
Syracuse W 30-10
Sept. 6 at Duke W 24-20
Sept. 13 Southern Illinois
W 33-7
Sept. 20 Ohio W 16-8
Sept. 27 at Iowa W 22-17
Oct. 4 OPEN DATE
Oct. 11 Michigan State L 37-20
Oct. 18 Purdue W 48-26
Oct. 25 at Indiana L
21-19
Nov. 1 at Minnesota W 24-17
Nov. 8 Ohio State L 45-10
Nov. 15 at Michigan W 21-14
Nov. 22 Illinois W 27-10
Alamo Bowl
Dec. 29 Missouri L 30-23 OT |
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2007 Schedule
CFN Prediction: 6-6
2007 Record:
6-6
Sept. 1
Northeastern
W 27-0
Sept.8
Nevada
W 36-31
Sept. 15
Duke
L 20-14
Sept. 22 at
Ohio State L 58-7
Sept. 29
Michigan L 28-16
Oct.
6 at
Mich St W 48-41 OT
Oct.
13
Minn.
W 49-48 2OT
Oct.
20
Eastern Mich
W 26-14
Oct.
27 at
Purdue L 35-17
Nov.
3 Iowa
L 28-17
Nov.
10
Indiana
W 31-28
Nov.
17 at
Illinois L 41-22 |
2009 Recruiting
Class
Five Best Prospects
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1. Patrick Ward |
OL |
6-6 |
295 |
New Lenox, IL |
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2. Damien Proby |
LB |
6-0 |
208 |
Las Vegas, NV |
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3. Davon Custis |
DE |
6-5 |
220 |
Columbus, OH |
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4. Will Studlien |
LB |
6-2 |
220 |
Sunbury, OH |
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5. Evan Watkins |
QB |
6-6 |
230 |
Carol Stream, IL |
Rest Of
The Class
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Anthony Battle |
DE |
6-3 |
230 |
Chicago, IL |
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Jeff Budzien |
K |
5-11 |
155 |
Hartland, WI |
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Arby Fields |
RB |
5-8 |
187 |
Rancho Cucamonga, CA |
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Davion Fleming |
DB |
6-0 |
210 |
Upland, CA |
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Cooper Gerami |
DB |
5-11 |
192 |
Lafayette, LA |
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Roderick Goodlow |
LB |
6-2 |
202 |
Dallas, TX |
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Drew Moulton |
WR |
5-11 |
164 |
Midland, MI |
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Taylor Paxton |
OL |
6-5 |
265 |
Englewood, CO |
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John Plasencia |
DE |
6-5 |
245 |
Tampa, FL |
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Tim Riley |
LB |
6-3 |
220 |
Oswego, IL |
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Tyler Scott |
LB |
6-4 |
220 |
Warren, OH |
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Brian Smith |
OL |
6-6 |
277 |
Cuyahoga Falls, OH |
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Mike Trumpy |
RB |
6-0 |
197 |
Wheaton, IL |
Dec. 29
2008 Alamo Bowl
Missouri 30 … Northwestern 23 OT
Missouri overcame a sluggish and sloppy performance to win in overtime on a
seven-yard Jeremy Maclin touchdown catch. Northwestern went backwards on its
overtime possession, with a fumble forcing a fourth down Hail Mary into the end
zone, picked off by William Moore. Mizzou got the spark it needed with a minute
left in the first half on a 75-yard Maclin punt return for a score, but the
Wildcats answered right away coming out of the locker room on a 46-yard
touchdown catch from Ross Lane Northwestern got three touchdown passes from C.J.
Bacher including a 35-yarder to Eric Peterman to start the scoring and a 23-yard
to Ross Lane to give the Wildcats a 23-20 lead. Jeff Wolfert made three field
goals for Missouri, including a 37-yarder to tie it up with just under three
minutes to play, but he missed a 44-yarder with no time left on the clock to
force overtime.
Player of the Game:
Missouri LB Sean Weatherspoon made 17 tackles, 2.5
tackles for loss, half a sack, broke up a pass, and made two quarterback
hurries.
Stat Leaders: Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 27-43,
304 yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 29-114. Receiving: Rasheed Ward, 7-101, 1
TD
Missouri - Passing: Chase Daniel, 27-44, 200 yds, 2 TD, 3
INT
Rushing: Derrick Washington, 15-44. Receiving: Chase Coffman, 7-67
Inside The Box Score ...
5 Thoughts on the Alamo Bowl …Third down conversions: NU 11-of-21 – Mizzou
7-of-16 … Sacks: Mizzou 5 for 43 yards – NW 1 for 1 … Total offense: NU 376 – MU
311 … Chase Daniel threw three interceptions and was outpassed by C.J. Bacher
304 yards to 200 … 2nd quarter time of possession: NU 12:24 – Mizzou
2:36.
Nov. 22
Northwestern 27 …
Illinois 10
Northwestern took a 13-0 lead into halftime as Stephen Simmons ran for a
one-yard score and Ross Lane caught a 14-yard touchdown pass for all the points
the team would need. Illinois came out of the locker room and put together its
best drive of the day, finishing with a one-yard Jason Ford touchdown run, but
that would be it for the end zone. The Cats put it away with an 18-yard Eric
Peterman catch as part of a run of 11 unanswered points in the final 9:08.
Player of the game:
Northwestern DT Kevin Mims made seven tackles, two
sacks, and forced a fumble
Stat Leaders: Illinois - Passing: Juice Williams, 20-36,
212 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Juice Williams, 25-94. Receiving: Daniel Dufrene, 6-51
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 22-33, 230 yds, 2 TD,
1 INT
Rushing: Stephen Simmons, 22-69, 1 TD. Receiving: Eric Peterman,
8-111, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ... Nine wins?
Northwestern? Give the coaching staff credit for patching things together
through major injuries and a loss to Indiana that should’ve set an awful tone
for the final stretch. Against Illinois, the offense got hot early and came
through with enough points early on to set the tone and make the Illini press.
The NU defense took care of things with a great pass rush and a nice day against
the run. NU needs Tyrell Sutton back for the bowl, Stephen Simmons is too
limited, but there’s no arguing with the overall results. This season showed
that Pat Fitzgerald really can coach.
Nov. 15
Northwestern 21 … Michigan 14
In lousy weather conditions that eventually turned into a snowy day,
C.J. Bacher connected with Ross Lane for a 17-yard touchdown early
in the second half and with Eric Peterman for a 53-yarder just over
two minutes later. The Northwestern defense did the rest as
Michigan, who outgained NU 264 yards to 257, couldn’t get back on
the board after getting a three-yard touchdown run from Nick
Sheridan in the first quarter and a three-yard blocked punt for a
score from Ricky Ross midway through the second.
Player of the game:
Northwestern QB C.J. Bacher completed
17-of-29 passes for 198 yards and two touchdowns with two
interceptions
Stat Leaders: Michigan - Passing: Nick
Sheridan, 8-29, 61 yds
Rushing: Carlos Brown, 23-115. Receiving: Greg
Mathews, 5-46
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 17-29, 198
yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Stephen Simmons, 22-56, 1 TD. Receiving: Ross
Lane, 7-77, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ...
Northwestern needed a big win in the Big House. Michigan might be
struggling, to put it mildly, but it was coming off a dominant win
over Minnesota and was shut down by the Northwestern defense,
especially though the air. The Wildcat offense didn’t exactly show
up with the running game. Stephen Simmons isn’t the type of back to
work around, and to beat Illinois next week, the offense will either
need a huge game from C.J. Bacher or the coaching staff will have to
get extremely creative.
Nov. 8
Ohio
State 45 … Northwestern 10
Ohio State got a huge day out of its backfield as Chris Wells ran
for a two-yard score and a 55-yard dash in the first half, while QB
Terrelle Pryor threw three touchdown passes highlighted by a
34-yarder to Brian Robiskie in the fourth. Northwestern tied it at
seven with a one-yard Mike Kafka scoring run, but that would be it
outside of a 25-yard field goal.
Player of the game:
Ohio State RB Beanie Wells ran 28 times
for 140 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Northwestern - Passing: Mike
Kafka, 18-27, 177 yds, 1 INT
Rushing: Mike Kafka, 29-83, 1 TD. Receiving: Eric
Peterman, 6-78
Ohio State - Passing: Terrelle Pryor, 9-14, 197
yds, 3 TD
Rushing: Chris Wells, 28-140, 2 TD. Receiving: Brian
Robiskie, 3-58, 2 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ...
Northwestern likely wouldn’t have had won against Ohio State even if
C.J. Bacher and Tyrell Sutton were in the backfield, but the
injuries have proven to be too big a problem. Mike Kafka did what he
could, but he was a one-man offense with Omar Conteh out. If
Northwestern has to win on Kafka’s arm, there will be problems. Now,
after the way Michigan played against Minnesota, there has to be a
concern that the Wolverine defense could stuff the Wildcat ground
game. Kafka will have to start pushing the ball deeper if Bacher
isn’t able to go.
Nov. 1
Northwestern
24 … Minnesota 17
Minnesota came into the game as the nation’s leader in turnover
margin, but it turned out to be a late interception that lost the
game. Tied at 17 and pushing for a possible late game-winning score,
Gopher QB Adam Weber’s pass was tipped into the hands of Brendan
Smith, who weaved and worked his way 48 yards for the touchdown with
12 seconds to play. That big defensive moment overshadowed the
terrific game from Mike Kafka, the Wildcat quarterback who ran for
217 yards and threw a perfectly lofted 36-yard touchdown pass to
Jeremy Ebert along with a two-yard touchdown pass to Josh Rooks.
Minnesota got a pick six of its own with a perfectly timed play from
Traye Simmons, who took a Kafka pass 23 yard for a second quarter
score. Neither offense scored in the second half.
Player of the game:
Northwestern QB Mike Kafka completed
12-of-16 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns with two
interceptions, and he ran 27 times for 217 yards
Stat Leaders: Minnesota - Passing: Adam Weber,
31-51, 327 yds, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Adam Weber, 16-53. Receiving: Ben Kuzina,
7-98
Northwestern - Passing: Mike Kafka, 12-16, 143
yds, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Mike Kafka, 27-217. Receiving: Jeremy Ebert,
3-48, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ... All of
a sudden, Northwestern goes from left-for-dead after a loss to
Indiana, and with C.J. Bacher and Tyrell Sutton out, to right in the
hunt again for really big things after the stunning win over
Minnesota. With seven wins, Northwestern is going to a bowl game for
sure; it’s all gravy now. It’s time to get greedy with Ohio State,
at Michigan and Illinois to go. Win two of the three and a New
Year’s Day Florida bowl is possible. Win all three and (gasp!) an
at-large BCS spot is actually in play.
Oct. 25
Indiana
21 … Northwestern 19
Northwestern turned it over five times, lost RB Tyrell Sutton and QB
C.J. Bacher to injuries, and couldn’t stop Ben Chappell. Filling in
for a banged up Kellen Lewis, Chappell threw a 43-yard touchdown
pass to Damarlo Belcher in the first quarter, and he ran for a
three-yard score. Mitchell Evans threw 28-yard touchdown pass on a
trick play to Tandon Doss for a third quarter 21-12 lead and, as it
turned out, the win. Sutton ran for a one-yard touchdown, but was
lost to a wrist injury, and Bacher ran for a three-yard touchdown,
and tried to come out and play, but limped when he was out there.
Player of the game:
Indiana S Austin Thomas made 10 tackles
and two interceptions
Stat Leaders: Northwestern - Passing: C.J.
Bacher, 21-34, 155 yds, 2 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 27-77, 1 TD. Receiving: Ross
Lane, 5-31
Indiana - Passing: Ben Chappell, 21-34, 219 yds,
1 TD
Rushing: Bryan Payton, 11-42. Receiving: Tandon Doss,
8-107, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ... In a
disastrous game for Northwestern, the Wildcats lost to Indiana, lost
RB Tyrell Sutton to a wrist injury, and for a time, QB C.J. Bacher
to a hamstring problem. At six wins, the
Wildcats are bowl eligible, but they were eligible last year, too.
They need a seventh win to be assured of a bowl game, and it’s not
going to be easy with at Minnesota, Ohio State, at Michigan and
Illinois to close out. On the plus side, the pass rush was excellent
with Corey Wootton remaining unblockable. However, the D didn’t
force any turnovers to offset the five the O gave up.
Oct. 18
Northwestern 48 … Purdue 26
Purdue led 6-0 after the first quarter on two Carson Wiggs field
goals, and then the Northwestern offense went nuts. Eric Peterman
caught a 45-yard touchdown pass to start the scoring, and then he
hit Sidney Stewart on a 30-yard scoring pass. C.J. Bacher ended up
with three touchdown passes and a touchdown run as the Wildcats went
on a 48-13 run broken up by a 32-yard Greg Orton touchdown catch and
a two-yard Kory Sheets run. Sheets added a 76-yard touchdown dash
when the game was well out of reach. Purdue turned it over five
times.
Player of the game:
Northwestern QB C.J. Bacher completed
20-of-33 passes for 230 yards and three touchdowns with an
interception, and he ran 15 times for 41 yards and a score.
Stat Leaders: Purdue - Passing: Curtis Painter,
26-41, 273 yds, 1 TD, 3 INT
Rushing: Kory Sheets, 17-168, 2 TD. Receiving: Desmond
Tardy, 8-87
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 20-33, 230
yds, 3 TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 18-96. Receiving: Jeremy
Ebert, 4-65
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ...
Northwestern can come up with a big exhale after getting over the
hump and becoming bowl eligible with a dominant win over Purdue. C.J.
Bacher started to look like the C.J. Bacher of last year, while the
offense was diverse and creative to blast away on the poor
Boilermaker defense. On the down side, losing star LB Malcolm
Arrington to an injury will hurt. The defense is playing well and it
can’t afford to be without its key run stopper for too long.
Oct. 11
Michigan
State 37 … Northwestern 20
MSU jumped out to an early 17-0 lead helped by good field position
and Northwestern mistakes. Javon Ringer ran for two touchdowns and
Brian Hoyer threw short touchdown passes to Garrett Celek and Andrew
Hawken to keep the Spartans comfortably ahead. The Wildcats got the
offense moving, outgaining MSU 459 yards to 297, but couldn’t get
closer than 10 points after the first quarter. C.J. Bacher threw a
six-yard touchdown pass to Rasheed Ward and ran for a four-yard
score, but he threw two interceptions.
Player of the game:
Michigan State RB Javon Ringer ran 35
times for 124 yards and two touchdowns
Stat Leaders: Northwestern - Passing: Brian
Hoyer, 14-20, 169 yds, 2 TD
Rushing: Javon Ringer, 35-124, 2 TD. Receiving: B.J.
Cunningham, 4-44
Michigan State - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 34-61,
283 yds, 1 TD, 2 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 23-139. Receiving: Ross Lane,
9-113
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ... As good
as the Wildcats have been, they can’t make mistakes and beat a team
like Michigan State. The three turnovers, without forcing any, and
with few big deep plays, NU never got any hold of the game. C.J.
Bacher was throwing, attempting 61 passes, but he wasn’t able to get
the ball in a place where his receivers could do anything with it.
Even with the passing game the focus, Tyrell Sutton had a fantastic
game. Purdue and Indiana are beatable over the next few weeks. The
Wildcats can quickly get back on track.
Sept. 27
Northwestern 22 … Iowa 17
Northwestern is off to its best start since 1962 by scoring the
final 19 points of the game and holding on a late Hawkeye drive. C.J.
Bacher threw three touchdown passes, including two to Eric Peterman
in the second half. The defense shut out the Hawkeyes over the final
32 minutes while holding on as Iowa got down to the Wildcat eight in
the final few minutes before stalling. Iowa turned the ball over
five times, but got out to a bit early lead on an 18-yard Shonn
Greene touchdown run and a 45-yard Andy Brodell touchdown catch. But
Northwestern was too sharp on both sides of the ball the rest of the
way.
Player of the game: Northwestern QB C.J. Bacher went 28-of-45
for 284 yards, three touchdowns, and an interception, while running
three times for 15 yards.
Stat Leaders: Northwestern - Passing: C.J.
Bacher, 28-45, 284 yds, 3 TDs, 1 INT
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 24-77. Receiving: Rasheed Ward,
10-94, 1 TD
Iowa - Passing: Ricky Stanzi, 21-30, 238 yds, 1
TD, 1 INT
Rushing: Shonn Greene, 21-159, 1 TD. Receiving: Andy
Brodell, 8-126, 1 TD
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean,
Basil? ... There are still going to be doubters
considering the schedule isn’t all that tough, but the win over Iowa
at Iowa should open some eyes. Tyrell Sutton was held in check, but
C.J. Bacher stepped up. The defense gave up yards, and got ripped up
in the first half, but it started to force turnovers and held firm
in the second half. Now it’s time to truly get excited. There’s an
off-week before home games against Michigan State and Purdue. With
no Penn State or Wisconsin on the schedule, it’s time to start
dreaming big.
Sept. 20
Northwestern 16 ... Ohio
8
Amado Villarreal hit
three first half field goals and Omar Conteh ran for a one-yard
score as Northwestern beat Ohio to get out to a 4-0 start for the
first time since 1962. Ohio was able to get a 12-yard Andrew Mooney
touchdown catch in the third quarter, but it had two field goal
attempts blocked in the second half. The Wildcats held Ohio to just
four yards rushing helped by five sacks, but QB C.J. Bacher threw
four interceptions. Malcolm Arrington made 11 tackles, a sack, and
three tackles for loss with a forced fumble for the Wildcats.
Player of the game:
Northwestern DE Vince Brown had seven tackles, four tackles for
loss, three sacks, a forced fumble, and a blocked kick.
Stat Leaders: Ohio- Passing: Boo Jackson, 27-42,
228 yds, 1 TD, 2 INTs
Rushing: Donte Harden, 9-19. Receiving: LaVon
Brazill, 9-79
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 18-35, 133
yds, 4 INTs
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 9-76. Receiving: Eric
Peterman, 7-61
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ... The defense has
played better than it has in years. The test will come against Iowa
next week, but the Wildcats stuffed the Ohio running game with a
tremendous game from the defensive line. Ohio had to worry about
Corey Wootton, and Vince Brown came up big making big play after big
play, while Malcolm Arrington was all over the place. However, the
offense struggled as C.J. Bacher still has yet to find his groove
this year. Four interceptions and only 133 yards on 18-of-35 passes
aren't going to get it done in the Big Ten.
Sept. 13
Northwestern 33 ...
Southern Illinois 7
Amado Villarreal hit
four field goals and Tyrell Sutton scored on touchdown runs from 44
and 15 yards out in an easy win. The Wildcats held the Salukis to a
19-yard Larry Warner touchdown run and 263 yards of total offense,
but SIU hurt itself with ten penalties for 105 yards. Northwestern
came up with six sacks to SIU's 0.
Player of the game:
Northwestern RB Tyrell Sutton ran 17 times for 101 yards and three
touchdowns, and caught five passes for 16 yards.
Stat Leaders: Southern Illinois - Passing: Chris
Dieker, 14-22, 115 yds
Rushing: Larry Warner, 16-58, 1 TD. Receiving:
Bryce Morris, 4-32
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 21-29, 184
yds
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 17-101, 3 TDs. Receiving:
Ross Lane, 5-49
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ... That's what you're
supposed to do to an inferior team. Northwestern had few problems
with Southern Illinois with a balanced offense and a great day from
the defense. 3-0 is 3-0, even though the schedule hasn't been that
great and Ohio is up next. At some point, the team will need C.J.
Bacher to revert to his 2007 form. He was fine against SIU,
completing 21-of-29 passes, but he hasn't been the playmaker he was
last season despite having more experienced talent around him.
Sept. 6
Northwestern
24 … Duke 20
Northwestern got a two-yard touchdown run from Omar Conteh with just
over nine minutes to play to take the lead, and then the defense
held on with two big stops late in the game. Duke had its chances,
but it failed to capitalize with a penalty and a few misfires ending
deep drives. Tyrell Sutton ran for two Wildcat touchdowns in the
first half, but Duke hung in with two Nick Maggio field goals and a
16-yard Thaddeus Lewis scoring run. Duke outgained Northwestern 472
yards to 328.
Player of the game:
Northwestern S Brendan Smith made 11 tackles
Stat Leaders: Duke - Passing: Thaddeus Lewis,
24-42, 256 yds
Rushing: Clifford Harris, 18-86, 1 TD Receiving:
Johnny Williams, 11-135
Northwestern - Passing: C.J. Bacher, 14-31, 226
yds
Rushing: Tyrell Sutton, 16-66, 2 TD. Receiving:
Rasheed Ward, 5-60
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ...
Northwestern is learning how to win. This is a good team with plenty
of veteran talent, but it was in for a dogfight against Duke. The
Wildcat offense wasn’t humming. C.J. Bacher wasn’t on, the running
game was held to 77 yards, and the defense couldn’t get off the
field, but still the team came up with the victory in a charged up
environment, at least for Duke. 2-0 is 2-0, and while the Cats still
have yet to be tested by a mid-level team, as long as they improve
each week, they’ll be a player in the Big Ten race.
Aug. 30
Northwestern 30 ...
Syracuse 10
Syracuse held a 10-9 lead midway through the third quarter thanks to
a 36-yard Patrick Shadle field goal and a two-yard touchdown run
from Curtis Brinkley, and then Northwestern took over with 21
unanswered points on a 12-yard Tyrell Sutton touchdown catch, a
26-yard interception return for a score from Brendan Smith, and a
two-yard Josh Rooks scoring grab. In all, C.J. Bacher threw three
touchdown passes for the Wildcats, but it was Sutton and a running
game that rumbled for 269 yards and controlled the game.
Player of the game:
Northwestern RB Tyrell Sutton ran 21 times for 144 yards and caught
four passes for 41 yards and a touchdown
Stat Leaders: Syracuse
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Passing: Andrew Robinson, 14-28, 103 yds, 1 INT
Rushing:
Curtis Brinkley, 9-49, 1 TD. Receiving: Donte Davis, 4-38
Northwestern
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Passing: C.J. Bacher, 23-35, 215 yds, 3 TDs, 1 INT
Rushing:
Tyrell
Sutton, 21-144, 1 TD. Receiving: Andrew Brewer, 6-48
Whoopty doo. What does it all mean, Basil? ...
The Wildcats needed a little while to warm up against Syracuse, and
then the offensive line took over and Tyrell Sutton looked like the
Tyrell Sutton of old. The defense did a fantastic job of swarming
around the Syracuse ground game and didn't allow Andrew Robinson to
do much deep with the passing game. Offensively, C.J. Bacher was
fine in the new up-tempo passing offense, but he could stand to be a
bit more accurate. Give him another week or so and the offense
should start humming, but as this game showed, as long as Sutton and
Omar Conteh are running well, all will be fine.
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