SB Nation - Tyrell Sutton

Sunday Evening, Coming Down

C.E. Bell — Sun, 09 Sep 2012 23:06:36 -0000

I'm hoarse, hungover, my clothes are still wet, I'm regretting smoking that cigar, and my car is absolutely trashed with tailgate supplies.

And I couldn't be happier. Northwestern is 2-0 against two BCS conference foes.

Of course, I'm sure many of our readers are not quite as happy as Wildcats fans (or Hoosier fans, or Gopher fans, or Buckeye fans, or Spartan fans)....the rest of the B1G is 0-7 against BCS conference competition, after an ugly Saturday that saw the Pac12 drink the B1G's milkshake in three west coast games, Tre Roberson and Jared Abbrederis taken out of the stadium in ambulances (Roberson's lost for the season), and Purdue having their hearts broken in South Bend.

Oh, and I'm pretty sure Sam Ficken just missed another field goal.

Hangovers are a bitch, particularly after losses. So consider this article a chance for you to bitch, moan, and otherwise air grievances. Like Johnny Cash sang, it's Sunday morning (well, technically evening), coming down.

I'll keep the volume of my Wildcat celebration muted out of respect.

A couple of thoughts (and keep in mind, I was tailgating during the afternoon games, so my thoughts are not necessarily well-informed on those games, as I'm only reading recaps/looking at box scores):

Penn State's in for a long season. Yes, PSU left a lot of points on the board....but UVA could have and should have scored a lot more than they did. I'm still wondering why Mike London pulled his QB Michael Rocco for stretches of the 2nd half. And Matt McGloin banging up his elbow confirmed another fear -- if the Lions suffer many/any injuries, there's very little depth on the roster.
The Gophers looked impressive. Sure, they were playing an FCS opponent.....but they beat them up the way a B1G team should beat up an FCS opponent. And don't overlook the benefit in getting the backups some playing time in the 2nd half -- that may be VERY important late in the season, when injuries mount.
Man, I'm depressed about Tre Roberson being lost for the season. I truly think he could have been a special player this year, and he flashed that talent on 50 and 39 yard touchdown runs. But kudos to Indiana for beating UMass, getting a second victory, and continuing to look decent enough to make my "Hoosiers over Penn State" prediction not laughable.
I know you Buckeye fans are excited....Braxton Miller really is looking great. But excuse me for not quite jumping on the OSU bandwagon yet -- UCF stayed in that game for a LONG time. Urban Meyer has the Buckeyes pointed in the right direction, but it'll be interesting to see if the winning continues when the competition gets a little tougher.
Northwestern's defense was excellent last night -- forcing turnovers, getting pressure on Aaron Rodgers' little brother Jordan, and holding Vanderbilt to just 101 rushing yards (an impressive feat, since Vanderbilt's Zac Stacy is the SEC's leading returning rusher -- he only had 36 yards rushing in the game). Very encouraging, and a sign that the Cats might not be as atrocious as they appeared against Syracuse (also note that Syracuse put up 29 points on USC, so they may actually just be a very good offense).
Venric Mark gained 123 tough rushing yards -- he ran between the tackles with authority that surpassed his rather diminutive size, but also has such stellar speed that he was frequently able to get around the edge on option pitches. Next week against Boston College, he has the chance to become Northwestern's first back-to-back 100 yard game rusher since....Tyrell Sutton.
One more note -- nice crowd/attendance for Northwestern. Listed attendance was 31,644 (not great, but it's the largest home opener crowd in years), but it felt like more as the crowd was loud and engaged. I also tailgated in a new spot -- a golf course near the stadium. It was AWESOME. Tailgating on grass is vastly superior to tailgating in a parking lot. (Also, shout out to Hilary Lee, who joined my tailgate crew and brought the cigar that I now regret smoking).
Michigan State is damn good. Pasadena good. Hell, maybe BCS title game good. Just a vicious defense....oh, and Andrew Maxwell is getting better as a QB. This team will be a tough out late in the season. Time for them to crush Notre Dame next Saturday.
What the hell has happened to Iowa's offense, Wisconsin's offense (particularly Montee Ball), and Nebraska's defense? Just atrociously ugly play from all three units. Vandenberg's poor performance is the most perplexing to me -- I really thought he was one of the B1G's best QBs, but he looked like a MAC backup QB against the Cyclones.
Michigan? Wow, you guys got lucky. Air Force rushed the ball at will against the Wolverines, and could have/should have won that game. Also: Denard. See? That's what you should have been doing last week against Alabama. When you have a guy like Denard Robinson with his ability to run the ball, last week's decision to turn him into a pocket passing QB seems like insanity.
And Illinois? You still can't have nice things.

Quick Thoughts On Northwestern-Vanderbilt

Rodger Sherman — Sun, 09 Sep 2012 13:40:54 -0000

Well, that was fun, huh? Two weeks, two nail-biters, two wins over BCS teams., one in the heat of the dome, one in a downpour under the lights.

Here's some notes before I rewatch the game:

First off, not to be a buzz-kill, but I'm not going nuts over this team yet. Sure, the team looks like it could start off with seven wins and the rest of the Big Ten looks shoddy at best, but I don't think this team is significantly better than I did when I made season previews. Way more crazy fun than I thought? Yeah, but we have to remember that this is still a team that just eked out two wins against teams that aren't world-beaters. Northwestern's saving grace thus far has been the turnover battle: Five turnovers for NU's opponents in two games, only one for the Cats. Either that's a trend that continues - which could be the case, as both Kain Colter and Trevor Siemian have shown a tendency to be safe with the ball - or we see a regression to the mean and Northwestern loses some close games. Let's hope it's the former.

Boy, is Venric Mark fun to watch. Sorry I keep using the word "fun", but hey, it fits, right? I was really wrong about him. - I didn't think he was going to be an successful every-down running back, maybe a good player for options - but the guy has crazy wheels and can switch direction effortlessly. I think we're looking at Northwestern's first 1,000-yard rusher since Tyrell Sutton if he can stay healthy.

The defense still has issues, despite holding Vandy to 13 points, but I can't remember an NU squad putting on as solid a tackling performance as Saturday night. When David Nwabuisi gets his hands on someone, they're going down. Also great performances by Chi Chi Ariguzo, who seems to be everywhere he needs to be, and Tyler Scott, who was probably the MVP of that game. Wrapping guys up is going to be a strong suit for a squad that has been awful at it the past few years.

I think Kain Colter will come around. He's missing throws he made last year. But Trevor Siemian can obviously notch this win on his belt, too. I still think Colter is QB1A, but we'll take another look at him and Trevor this week.

.Maybe Northwestern's secondary isn't awful? Jordan Rodgers straight up missed a lot of throws.

Rashard Lawrence's catch clearly wasn't a catch, but whatever. The receiving corps showed its depth: a week after Demetrius Fields was the team's leading receiver by a long shot, he was barely noticeable but other guys like Lawrence and Kyle Prater picked up the slack.

Monday Sips, Where Pro Dreams And Urinals Are Being Smashed, Plus GAME WEEK and Big Daddy Kane

Rodger Sherman — Mon, 27 Aug 2012 14:30:24 -0000

Hey all, some quick links before Northwestern releases its depth chart. Game week stuff - i.e. the same dumb stuff you've come to expect over the past three seasons - will also be around, although I can't set a timetable on that as I'm in transit today.

Maybe Stick to the Small Stuff: It was a pretty bad week for Northwestern players in the pros trying to make cuts. Let's put it this way: ~~Andy~~ Andrew Brewer's one catch, an eight yard snag for Green Bay might have been the best performance by a Northwestern player on any team. And it gets worse!

Backup Wars: With Mike Vick hurt and Mike Kafka still out with a broken hand, NIck Foles is impressing in Philadelphia, and may have taken the backup quarterback gig from Northwestern's favorite backup quarterback.

You could argue that Foles has shown more in three preseason games than Kafka has shown in two years. And whether the coaching staff will admit it or not, Foles just has to be ahead of Kafka at this point. Can they really tell the fan base that Kafka is a more reliable option because he's been here for two years?

That blockquote is so full of :( that I can't even begin to describe it. Meanwhile, the good news is we can induct Foles into the SIPPIN' ON PURPLE HALL OF HATE alongside Jared Sullinger, Meyers Leonard, and orange juice, which I strongly dislike for reasons not related to Syracuse.

Sutton's Gotta Give: Tyrell Sutton got cut by the Seahawks, but he's handling it okay:

I gave it my all. I ain't mad about it. Upset of course. I did what I could when I got n and left it all on the field. #NoRegrets
— tyrell sutton (@AllOfASutton22) August 26, 2012

Got this first class flight tho! Lmao.
— tyrell sutton (@AllOfASutton22) August 26, 2012

He also tweeted that he's out of practice squad eligibility, so that, again, makes it even worse. A big batch of cutdowns come today with rosters going from 90 to 75, so expect more stuff like this.

I like it better when they overlook us: Syracuse's great Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician argues that the Orange's most important game is its first, the season opener against Northwestern. Personally, I think they should be looking forward to their matchup against No. 1 USC in Week 2. Think about how cool it would be if you won! Start studying their schemes n stuff now, or else you won't have any chance! You'll do just fine against us, don't worry.

Warm it up Kain: We've all enjoyed our Kain Colter puns over the past few years, but we finally have confirmation from Teddy Greenstein about the process that went into naming Northwestern's starting QB: (not naming him the starting QB that is, Pat Fitzgerald did that.)

He was born Theodis Kain Colter. Theodis is a family name, and Kain was an inspired selection.

Big Daddy Kane was a favorite rapper from Spencer's youth. Cain, in some cultures, means Warrior's Son. Kain's mother, Stacy, saw the name in a baby book. Both she and Spencer liked that it was uncommon.

Greenstein also covers Kain's obsessive passion for ice cream and the fact that Colter thinks Northwestern would be "stupid" not to play Trevor Siemian at some point. COMMENCE PANICKING THAT QB1 THINKS WE'D BE STUPID TO PLAY HIM AHHHHHH GAME WEEK GAME WEEK GAME WEEK

We Got One!: For those of you whining that Northwestern didn't have any all-conference players, the Sporting News says Northwestern has one! Yippee! Way to be, Ibraheim Campbell.

I Assume You Read It Already, But...: LTP's game week post is essential.

And your tweet of the day: Courtesy of NU alum Zach Braff, who apparently lived in Bobb:

The first week of my freshman year at Northwestern, the football team pulled all the urinals in my dorm off the wall. Good times.
— Zach Braff (@zachbraff) August 25, 2012

That's just ridiculous. What sort of dorm has urinals? Seriously. The main reason I joined a fraternity was the simple pleasure of being able to occasionally pee at a wall with holes in the bottom. If I could, I would install a Wrigley Field-styled trough in my house.

One Less Day Til Football Season, No. 18, Christian Salem

Rodger Sherman — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 20:00:17 -0000

And we've entered the land of quarterbacks! I'm so tired.

No. 18, Christian Salem, freshman, quarterback

Who he be: Northwestern's latest walk-on quarterback sensation is Christian Salem, whose name could also be read as an adjective and place name describing the 1600's Massachusetts community where a bunch of young women got burnt to death and whatnot. Anyway, The Crucible, as I've taken the liberty of nicknaming him, hails from Santa Monica, Calif., where the 6-foot-3, 190 pounder was the starting quarterback and probably served as the star character in at least one 1950's teen movie. However, he didn't receive any offers that I can tell of, leading to my favorite new discovery that this series has shown me, GUYS WHO DIDN'T RECEIVE SCHOLARSHIP OFFERS POSTING HIGHLIGHT VIDEOS OF THEMSELVES ON YOUTUBE:

While I like the video of someone wrecking nonsense in high school - seriously, I have no idea how scouting works, because watching this video made me think this guy is an all-time great, mainly due to his choice of Too $hort as music - I'm really disconcerted by the idea of players featuring their SAT score and GPA in their highlight video. I mean, I just got my transcript back from NU, and I threw that nonsense in the bottom of a sock drawer before even seeing what my GPA was, just for the benefit of plausible deniability should a potential employer ask. Let alone throwing it in a highlight video. Yikes.

Dearly Departed: C.J. Bachér! The greatest half-Asian quarterback possibly in college football history was NU's starter from 2006-2008. He took over very inauspiciously for a team in need of a QB in 2006, as Mike Kafka and Andrew Brewer simply weren't cut out for the job. Although he never really could figure out how not to throw picks, Bacher's completion percentage hovered around 60 percent in his three seasons as a starter. Tyrell Sutton hurt, he threw for 3656 yards as a junior, including a career highlight in a ridiculous 520-yard, 5-TD no-pick game against Michigan State, which he later followed up with 470 and four touchdowns against Minnesota. He was in the UFL for a little bit, but I'm not really sure that league still exists.

Looking forward: Unlike his Salem predecessors, Christian won't be receiving a trial by fire: he'll likely be on the bench for at least a few years with a slim chance of playing down the road. Remember: Matt Alviti.

N(U)FL: A Peek At Northwestern Alumni On NFL Rosters

Rodger Sherman — Mon, 13 Aug 2012 18:52:03 -0000

It's time for preseason football! You know what that means: former Northwestern football players across the country are deluding themselves into believing they can make the cut and achieve regular season NFL glory.

I've saved them the trouble: I took a moment to catch up with the 15 former Cats currently on NFL rosters to look at how likely it is that they make their respective rosters to keep you guys from having to watch the fourth quarters of meaningless preseason games.

Hit the jump to read about the Pro Cats and how they're likely to fare. Let's put it this way: there's going to be some interesting preseason camp battles deciding the professional futures of more than a couple of ex-Cats over the next few weeks, so I'll be paying attention.

Dudes who are definitely gonna play a bunch

Trai Essex, Pittsburgh Steelers: Trai is pencilled in as the starting left tackle for Pittsburgh, meaning he'll be protecting Ben Roethlisberger. Wait, does he have to protect Ben Roethlisberger? Dude's a jerk. Backup and second-round pick Mike Adams is giving him a run for his starting spot, though.

Barry Cofield, Washington Redskins: He's the starter in Washington at nose tackle. Cofield has yet to bust out the taser dance while playing for the Redskins, despite three sacks last year, so that's really the most important thing to look for.

Nick Roach, Chicago Bears: Nick is currently manning the middle linebacker role for Chicago as Brian Urlacher is hurt - Bears fans are wondering if perhaps they should get used to him there. Once Urlacher gets back, Roach will either slide into a reserve role or stick out out at one of the other linebacker slots as the Bears' depth chart suggests. Also, did anybody notice how I put "Roach" after "Kafka"? I sure did, and I'm patting myself on the back for it.

Dudes vying for playing time

Mike Kafka, Philadelphia Eagles: Everybody's favorite crazy-legged quarterback with the name of a Czech author is having some struggles in Iggles' camp. He came into the year as the likely backup to Michael Vick, but broke his non-throwing hand in a game where he struggled, going 5-for-9 for only 31 yards and a pick while backup Nick Foles tossed two touchdowns. Now, Foles is playing as the second-stringer while Kafka is on the sidelines. Nick Foles is a jerk and I hate him. Hopefully Kafka can redeem himself upon his return to play and stake his claim as Vick's No. 2.

Zach Strief, New Orleans Saints: Strief is currently the backup at right tackle behind Charles Brown, who was drafted in the second round in 2010.

Corey Wootton, Chicago Bears: Wootton is listed as second string on the Bears' depth chart behind Israel Idonije alongside Shea McClellin. McClellin is Wootton's, and therefore, SoP's, mortal enemy not only because they're fighting for a spot on the depth chart, but also because the Boise State rookie is wearing Wootton's 99. A jerk of the highest order. Anyway, Wootton can hopefully win playing tim in his third NFL season by doing stuff in practice like this:

Corey wootton fields kickoff, streaks for TD. fans love it
— John Mullin (@CSNMoonMullin) August 11, 2012

Or by continuing to just sack Brett Favre, year-in, year-out.

Sherrick McManis, Houston Texas: McManis is listed at third-string for the Texans, and Texans fans seem to think the former fifth-rounder is safe.

Dudes tryina make the cut

Marquice Cole, New England Patriots: Cole had himself a nice little niche as a gunner on the Jets playing spot minutes at cornerback. Like A MILLION OTHER PEOPLE WHO ALL TURNED OUT TO BE SUCCESSFUL, Cole has now gone to the Jets' division rival, where he might make the roster as a special teams ace. If he does, I will have to root against him.

Jeremy Ebert, New England Patriots: The Pats' seventh-rounder seems likely to go the way of the practice squad on a team laden with WR depth - so much WR depth, he's listed as "other" on the team's depth chart. Sadly, Cole and Ebert are practically fighting for a roster spot: if the team keeps an extra DB, they'll probably take one less WR. Ebert nabbed one catch for four yards in the team's preseason opener.

Drake Dunsmore, Tampa Bay Buccaneers: Dunsmore is really battling for a chance to be a third- or fourth-string tight end job in Tampa Bay, and might make the cut. But he also might not. He reeled in a catch for two yards in Tampa Bay's first preseason game, so, preseason!

Corbin Bryant, Pittsburgh Steelers: Bryant was a practice squadder who got into one game for the Gotham City Rogues, only to see the entire field get blown up under his feet. Behind the Steel Curtain thinks he'll be on the practice squad again

Tyrell Sutton, Seattle Seahawks: After a few years in Carolina followed by a year out of the league, the best running back in recent Northwestern memory is on a squad in Seattle. They haven't released a depth chart, but he's projected as a fourth stringer behind Marshawn Lynch, Robert Turbin, and Leon Washington. At the very least, he can hope to make the roster if Lynch earns a suspension for a DUI accrued over the summer, and maybe even stick regardless. He had two carries and a reception in Seattle's first preseason game.

Yeah, nah

Zeke Markshausen, Kansas City Chiefs: The Syndrome teetered on and off the Chiefs' practice squad roster last season, never staying there for more than a week. He's back on their training camp roster, but at the end of the day he's 5-foot-10 and not that fast.

Andrew Brewer, Green Bay Packers: Brew had a brief tryout with the Eagles, and was cut, and is now having a tryout with the Packers. He seems to have more of an NFL chance than Markshausen, but whatever. In weird news, it seems he's now going by "Andy".

Al Netter, San Francisco 49ers: NU's multi-year starting left tackle is now San Fran's fourth-string right guard. Not a lot of fourth-string right guards in the league.

Jordan Mabin, Baltimore Ravens: Maybe you're also enthusiastic about Jordan Mabin's odds as a fourth-string CB. Not a great year for undrafted NU free agents.

John Gill, FA: I just wanted to point out that the Eagles are really jerks:

That's two Northwestern players signed and released in no time. Teases.

Gone?

Kevin Bentley: The linebacker bounced around the league last year, eventually retiring at years' end.

Luis Castillo: The former first-round pick is in limbo after being released by the Chargers this offseason. He chose to re-sign with San Diego when his mega-contract ran out this offseason, picking them other teams like the Patriots, but was released only a few months later for undisclosed reasons. Injury concerns after he got hurt in the season-opener last year are likely, and the defensive end hasn't yet signed with anybody.

Ike Ndukwe: The offensive lineman isn't on a team right now after a brief stint with the Chargers last year.

So, I don't think I missed any. Did I?

One Less Day Til Football, Nos. 26 and 25, Terrance Brown and Jordan Perkins

Rodger Sherman — Tue, 07 Aug 2012 15:00:27 -0000

Double-dipping today to make up for me sleeping through one of the days this weekend. More stuff later, as always, but for now a pair of dudes from Cali who ain't never played for Northwestern before!

No. 26, Terrance Brown, freshman, safety

Who he be: Terrance is a true freshman from Los Alamitos, California - translation: the tiny Alamos - where the 6-foot-1 safety was ranked as having three stars by Rivals. Which is weird, because he apparently didn't have offers from any other schools?

Dearly departed: Last year Northwestern lost Jordan Mabin, who now is trying to hang on to a roster spot with the Baltimore Ravens, leaving Northwestern as one of the best defensive backs in school history. Mabin started his career with a bang with three picks and a spot on virtually every freshman All-America team. He led the Big Ten in passes broken up as a junior in his last season alongside Sherrick McManis, and capped the season off with his only career pick-six in the bowl game against Texas Tech. Sadly, his career ended with injury against Michigan State this season, but he only missed one game because of it after starting almost every game for four years. Mabin proved his worth as a corner in his early career, but couldn't cause much of a difference in a poor backfield his senior year. Without him, that unit will probably decline further.

The Terrance and Phillips Show: A Comcast Sports Net Chicago production featuring Terrance farting while Jim Phillips discusses his attempts at making inroads into the Chicago media market and his relationship with Pat Fitzgerald while also farting.

Looking forward: T-Brown, as I call him and always have, will probably not play this year!

No. 25, Jordan Perkins, RS Freshman, running back

Who he be: Jordan had committed to Stanford when Jim Harbaugh went to the pros, allowing the Lodi, California native - Lodi Dodi, Lodi likes to party - to choose again. He picked Northwestern and redshirted his freshman season.

Dearly departed: Stephen Simmons was a modest running back and a good return man. He broke onto the scene with a 99-yard touchdown return in an awful game at Ohio State, the last time NU went into the Shoe, which would be NU's only kickoff returned for a touchdown until an equally dreary game against Wisconsin in 2010. Simmons got a few starts with Tyrell Sutton and Omar Conteh hurt, including a notable 21-yard touchdown on a simple draw against Michigan that made him seem like a passable back. He'd put up some alright numbers in meaningless games, but never really played RB that much - he earned a few more starts due to injuries and whatnot, including in 2010 with Jacob Schmidt out and Arby Fields considering transferring, but NU never seemed comfortable giving him the rock. We'll miss the decent kickoff returns, although Venric Mark's better kickoff returns sort of make up for it.

Looking forward: I'm intrigued to see what becomes of Perkins' career. I thought he might have been a candidate to play as a true freshman last year, instead Treyvon Green earned carries while Perkins rode pine. A year later, he's hopefully more physically ready to compete at a Big Ten level. Northwestern will hopefully have some stability at the running back slot with Mike Trumpy healthy, but I think Perkins will earn a few reps this season - perhaps as a pass-catching back? I'm curious to see whether he'll be a successful back and what style he brings.

One Less Day Til Football Season, No. 29, Stephen Buckley

Rodger Sherman — Fri, 03 Aug 2012 14:46:01 -0000

29! That's how many numbers you could count if you had six hands, but you had a minor logging accident as a child and lost your ring finger on hand No. 5. Your dad shouldn't have been letting you go logging at that age anyway, although then again, he did have 10 hands. Your mom had two - that's why you had six. It's an average. What are we talking about again?

No. 29, Stephen Buckley, freshman, running back

Who he be: Stephen was a two-star recruit outta Forney, Texas, where he had offers to schools like Washington State, Kansas State, Navy, Air Force, and others. He played QB in an offense that saw the QB run as much, if not more than throw, but at 6-foot-nothin with a 4.48 40, he was recruited as a running back. Of course, he has a high school highlights Youtube video where he looks dominant, but at this point in the "going through the Northwestern roster" process, I think everybody does, including me.

Nice choice of "Til I Collapse", one of the four songs allowed to pump people up at sporting events. Here's the order of my list that it's in: Reggie, Jay-Z, Tupac and Biggie, Andre from Outkast, Kurupt, Nas, and then me.

Dearly Departed: Mike Trumpy wore No. 29 last year before switching to No. 32, but before him, it was Omar Conteh, best known for the games he started when Tyrell Sutton was out and his one line in Mo Greene's NU Wildcats anthem, inspiring us all to "go far like O-Mar... Conteh", which didn't really work that well.

No Jeff Buckley songs: However, I will tell you that there was an Australian rules football player named Stephen Buckley.

Looking forward: Maybe he'll play running back someday! But not right now :(

Delone Carter Gives Back With Football Camp

Sean Keeley — Tue, 26 Jun 2012 16:01:22 -0000

If there's anyone who has some good lessons to teach the kids back in his hometown, it's Delone Carter. The former Syracuse Orange running back nearly saw his career end twice, once due to an injury that kept him out for an entire season and once due to SnowballGate, before moving on to the NFL where he's trying to become the No. 1 RB for the Indianapolis Colts.

Carter and a whole host of guests shared their life lessons and insight into leadership and integrity at Carter's inaugural football camp at Copley-Fairlawn Middle School on Saturday.

The talented coaching staff for the camp was made up of former Stow High School graduate and current welterweight champion Shawn "Showtime" Porter (19-0, 15 KOs), former Archbishop Hoban and current Seattle Seahawks running back Tyrell Sutton, former New England Patriots linebacker and president and chief executive of the Leaders of Tomorrow Initiative Jason Carthen, Syracuse defensive back Shamarko Thomas and several others from around Northeast Ohio.

We’re here to talk about school and doing something with your life instead of idolizing these music videos and stuff like that."

Carter tore a ligament in his thumb during OTAs but expects to be back for camp in a few weeks.

MnB B1G Preview: Sharing a drink with Rodger from Sippin' on Purple

Zach Travis — Thu, 31 May 2012 18:00:19 -0000

After a week off we are back with another Q&A with the enemy. This time, Rodger Sherman of our Northwestern themed SBN sister site Sippin' on Purple was kind enough to take the time to answer some of my questions and tolerate my lame attempts at humor.

If you aren't already a fan of Sippin' on Purple, you should jump on board the bandwagon. It is a great site for all things Northwestern. On with the show...

Last year some writers, including myself, were looking at Northwestern as a possible dark horse contender for the Big Ten title, but the wheels came off the 2011 season quickly after a loss to Army turned into a five game losing streak. Was there some fatal flaw coming into the season that most of us overlooked, or was it just the unfortunate circumstance of having to deal with the nagging injury to Dan Persa?

Part of it was Persa: you mention the Army game, which he didn't play in, which NU would've had a much better chance of winning. But the real flaw was Northwestern's giggle-inducingly poor defense. NU put up POINTS in most every game last year. But after that Army game, NU gave up 34 or more points in four straight games. NU led some of those games -- including double-digit leads against ranked Illinois and Michigan teams -- before massive defensive collapses led to L's. When Persa finally got around to playing, he was actually pretty damn good, though not as good as he was in 2010.

Speaking of Persa, I am torn when I think about Northwestern's quarterback situation next year. On the one hand, Persa was a great player who brought the best out of the NU offense and was oftentimes the linchpin of success. On the other, Northwestern has been producing hyper-accurate, effective spread quarterbacks at such an alarming rate that it almost seems like they are grown in a lab on campus rather than recruited. Who takes over under center? The gloriously WASPy named Kain Colter? The young Trevor Siemian? Does the offense even miss a beat?

It's Colter's job. I think he'll be pretty effective -- the guy completed two thirds of his passes last year and threw six TD's to one pick. The spread doesn't ask guys to make really difficult throws often. It asks them to be disturbingly efficient at throwing easy throws. The difference between Colter and Persa is I'm not sure Colter can make those rare very difficult throws with the same effectiveness as Persa. As for the lab, it's in a basement at the engineering school, and the really scary part is all the hundreds and hundreds of deformed freak failed QB experiments lying around, whispering "KILL ME" as you walk by. Gotta be an NCAA violation. (P.S. Colter is either not a WASP or really, really, REALLY tan.)

Speaking of Colter, after holding down the starting job in Persa's absence, Colter got shoved into duty all over the field on offense because of a combination of his eclectic skill set and a need for capable skill position players. Michigan is currently enamored with its backup quarterback's chances to compete for time elsewhere, so talk to us about how Colter ended up playing so many different parts for the NU offense, and what his role will be in the future outside of the quarterback position.

Kain's a crazy athlete. If he's not playing QB, you're silly not to play him at wide out or running back. Some of the catches he made last season were spectacular. But at the end of the day, he's a quarterback: he chose NU over Stanford because Stanford wanted to move him to other positions, and we're going to play him there next season. But with Persa manning the fort last year, it was nice - and effective - to utilize Colter in other roles and make other teams prepare for that. I wouldn't be surprised if he's used in a trick play or two -- Northwestern has a hobby of converting QB's to wide-out -- Andrew Brewer, Jeremy Ebert in years past -- and now we have former savior of Northwestern football and slayer of small cats (Ed note: that screen grab is fantastic) Evan Watkins switched out to tight end, so who knows what weird stuff will happen.

The running back position seems like kind of a mess. On top of the injury to Jacob Schmidt last year and the move to get Colter more carries in a wildcat-ish (Hah!) role, nobody seemed to stick out among the fray. Is Northwestern going to have a feature back this fall, or will it just be a whole bunch of guys splitting the workload?

The RB is Mike Trumpy, who tore his ACL last season. But, yeah, running back ain't exactly NU's strong suit and hasn't been since Tyrell Sutton graduated. We've had two guys transfer out and the guys who have played themselves haven't been too great. Hopefully, Trumpy can be as good as he was before the injury.

Talk to me about the Northwestern defense, specifically, what is holding the team back from putting together a strong defense that is necessary to make the next move up the conference ladder. From an outsider's perspective it would seem that Pat Fitzgerald should have a leg up on developing a solid defense, but recent struggles don't support that. The defense was bad down the stretch in numerous games last year and was ranked in the bottom three in the conference in everything. Does it get better this year?

Northwestern just hasn't had the players to compete on defense in recent years. Simple as that. And no, it probably won't get better this year.

Northwestern isn't a recruiting powerhouse, but the Wildcats do an impressive job of picking up highly regarded kids that are passionate about both football and academics. Pat Fitzgerald and his staff got two four-star defensive linemen last year, and already have a four-star quarterback in the fold for 2013. Long term do you think Northwestern is trending upward in recruiting, and will sustained success on the field help make Northwestern the Stanford of the East? Furthermore, can Northwestern win big and often with two- and three-star recruits?

Northwestern is trending upwards in recruiting, and the weird thing is that it's actually seen the on-field product get slightly worse year after year. NU's Big Ten Championships of the the 90's and early 2000's weren't spurred by spectacular recruiting classes, just teams that turned out to be amazing, an incredible shot of luck, but not a consistent method for victory. Now NU is bringing in lots of talent that turned down other Big Ten teams, and if they play like they should according to the ratings, they should play well enough to attract better recruits, and hopefully that keeps spiralling upwards.

Pat Fitzgerald has been a hot name in coaching for a few years now. While I don't see him going anywhere of his own accord, what kind of a leash do NU fans give him? Is Northwestern just happy to sneak into bowl games and pull a random nine-win season, or is there a longing for something more that could eventually develop into a hotseat if the Wildcats continue to stagnate in the 7-8 win region.

Northwestern's almost creepy love affair with Pat Fitzgerald is strong, mutual, and isn't going to end anytime soon. If NU won three games this year, I think most Cats fans would be a little bit mad, but would probably agree the program is healthiest with Fitz rather than doing whatever it is you Michiganders do when things go wrong (Ed note: PANIC). That said, we're definitely happy with continuing to make bowls - I think this and Fitz is what we have going for us in terms of recruiting.

Northwestern is the smallest school in the Big Ten, the only private institution, is situated in a major city full of Big Ten expatriates and pro sports fanatics, and is the only school with higher academic standards for its athletes (somewhere a Michigan fan just spit out his coffee and started writing me an angry email). Given all of this, what does success for Northwestern football look like? Unlike Indiana and Minnesota, the Wildcats have been competitive in the Big Ten over the last couple decades, but ultimately unable to sustain that success. Does Northwestern have dreams of conference domination? Are these dreams tenable?

Success looks, well, kind of like this. The Wildcat fan wet dream features this going on for a while, and NU recruiting well enough due to that success to put together a squad capable of winning a conference championship. I don't think NU will ever do that year after year after year, nor do I think we'll ever be competing for a Natty, but you take what you can get.