Northwestern Wildcats running back Evan Hull (26) runs past the defense of Illinois linebacker Milo Eifler (5) in the third quarter at Ryan Field in Evanston on Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020. Credit: John J. Kim via TNS
Location: Evanston, Illinois
2020 record: 7-2
Head Coach: Pat Fitzgerald
2021 record so far: 0-5
Record vs. OSU since 2010: 1-6
What’s Happened So far in 2021:
After falling to Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship in 2020, the Wildcats started off the 2021 season with a 38-21 loss to Michigan State. Northwestern could not hold back the rushing attack of Michigan State, which was led by junior running back Kenneth Walker III with 264 yards and four touchdowns. Northwestern will look to have a bounce-back game Saturday against Indiana State, which began its season with a 26-21 victory against Eastern Illinois.
Key Offensive Players:
Keeping balance in an offense is key to making sure the defense isn’t able to get the jump on a team who is overly pass- or run-heavy. Helping to make sure this team isn’t overly reliant on its passing game would have been junior running back Cam Porter, who was ruled out for the rest of the season due to injury. Sophomore Evan Hull fills the void left by Porter and played well in the season-opener against Michigan State. Hull received a bulk of the carries in their second half against Michigan State totaling up to 87 yards on nine carries, bringing an impressive 9.7 yards per carry.
Key Defensive Players:
On the defense, the secondary lost two of their elder statesmen in Greg Newsome II and JR Pace, so the defense will be heavily reliant on their extremely talented safety to lead the young defensive backs. That safety is junior Brandon Joseph. Joseph had six interceptions last season and totaled 52 tackles and is looking to continue this momentum. Joseph had eight tackles against Michigan State and will likely continue to be a bright spot on an otherwise abysmal defense throughout this season.
Weaknesses:
With the team facing great running backs every single week within the Big Ten, the run defense is something to be concerned about for the Wildcats — who allowed nearly 300 total rushing yards in their opening game. The team will be looking for better play out of their linebackers to help shore up the run defense in the coming weeks if they have any hope of making a play for the Big Ten title this season. The second-largest concern for the Wildcats is at the kicker position, in which they missed two field goals in the season opener during pivotal, momentum-altering moments. The team has Michigan State transfer kicker Jack Olsen ready to jump in and may see playing time sooner rather than later with the Wildcats’ longtime placekicker Charlie Kuhbander standing on thin ice.
