SB Nation - John Gill

Cats Gettin Paid

Rodger Sherman — Tue, 08 Dec 2009 22:04:02 -0000

More photos » by Patrick Semansky - AP

Five Saints, one Tyrell Sutton.

So, the way this works is that this week, I'm just continuing my really random posting schedule, but next week is Auburn week. It'll be good.

As for today, t's time for a roundup of professional football playing ex-NU students, and how they're faring so far this fall. All 15 or less of them. And only 13 weeks into the regular season!

And no, I couldn't come up with a better title. Plus, a google search reveals the phrase "Cats gettin paid" was said by Akrobatik in this song featuring Little Brother, and if you don't know about Little Brother, well, hear about them. I'm not sure how combining two great lyricists with one of the best producers in the game doesn't create mainstream waves, but The Listening and The Minstrel Show are top ten albums of the decade in my opinion, just sayin'.

So yeah, Cats gettin paid.

Let's start out with the people in the NFL: 14 ex-Cats are being payed by NFL teams to play football. Of these, two are on their respective teams' active rosters but have not yet played, and two are on practice squads, leaving ten players who have played downs in the NFL this year.

I'ma make you hit the jump for it, though:

Luis Castillo is probably the most prominent NU grad in the NFL, having signed a $43 million dollar contract in the offseason. As you probably know, Luis is San Diego's starting right defensive end, but he's had a pretty off year - in the first 10 games of the year, he had 20 tackles and only two sacks, which seems kinda low, don't it? - and then a calf injury in week 11 has had him out since and he's doubtful right about now. Also, he still has the same name as a baseball player.
Barry Cofield as he has been for the past few years, is the Giants left defensive tackle, and one of NU's vastly important Super Bowl champs. The Giant's defense has fallen off a cliff this year and the team has lost five of seven, but it's not Barry's fault. (And if it is Barry's fault... well, wow, he's pretty bad. But it probably isn't.) In fact, reading briefly about what the Giants blog on this here SBN has said about him, he's been doing pretty decent.
Nick Roach has had a pretty decent sized role for the Bears this year, since Brian Urlacher had a season-ending injury way back in week one. Roach has been starting all over, including a few games at middle linebacker, which is a pretty hard position to randomly move into, and has since swapped out to strong-side linebacker, where he's been great from what I read. He's 3rd on the team with 61 tackles and in a 30-6 win against Cleveland, forced to fumbles. So that's aight.
Trai Essex, NU's other active Super Bowl Champ, has started every gosh-darned game of the season at right guard for the Steelers. Yeah. Oh yeah.
Kevin Bentley, everybody's favorite linebacker for the Houston Texans (depending on your feelings on DeMeco Ryans), is a linebacker for the Houston Texans. He don't start, but he ain't doing too bad. In other "me potentially making things up" news, I thought I remembered seeing him recover a fumble and being like "hey, he went to NU!" but a quick check of the actual stats shows that this never happened. Sippinonpurple.com: where my journalism professors' fears of blogs killing real journalism come true!
Ike Ndukwe got traded from the Miami Dolphins to Kansas City right before the season started. Although initially super excited to go from a potentially decent team in a crappy city like Miami to a terrible one in a gorgeous metropolis like Kansas City, Ike saw he might not get any playing time. Then KC's starting right tackle got injured, and Ike started the first three games of the year, earning the love and friendship of many Kansas City natives. He's back on the bench now, though. You might think this is all totally boring, but it somehow started a 44-comment thread over at the Chief's SBN site.
Zach Streif totally started a game at left tackle for the Saints. I remember this, because they were playing the Jets, and I was watching because I'm a Jets fan, and I got really happy when I saw his name and "Northwestern" on the starting lineups, and then got really sad when I saw him celebrating in the end zone against my team. I may or may not hold a grudge. Anyway, he's played in every game this year, but is still generally a backup behind ex-Towson Tiger Jermon Bushrod, whose apparent only goal in life is proving that the Tigers' 47-14 loss to Northwestern earlier this year was a fluke, considering which school produced the more prodigious New Orleans Saint left tackle.
Tyrell Sutton is a player I pay special attention to, because he's the only person to fall into the middle of the Venn diagram for "Players in the National Football League" and "People Rodger Sherman has had a class with." He was signed by the Packers out of training camp, but they cut him, which turned out to be a smart decision, because injuries and a terrible-to-begin-with running back corps has forced the Pack to give heavy reps to the exhumed corpse of Ahman Green, and if he gets hurt, I hear their GM has Samkon Gado on speed dial. (The Ahman Green part wasn't a joke. He's playing for them. It's 2009.) Anyways, Tyrell caught on with the Carolina Panthers, where he was a fourth-string running back for a long time, but when fullbacks Brad Hoover and Tony Fiametta both got simultaneously injured, that guy who was supposedly undersized to be a Big Ten running back had to see playing time as an NFL fullback, getting three rushes for 15 yards and a catch for 11. And this past weekend against Tampa Bay, with DeAngelo Williams out, we was second-string, earning 6 carries for 38 yards, including a 20 yarder. He's generally been a kick returner - a pretty good one at that - and an occasional third-string back. I saw him get some late-game tick against the Jets a few weekends ago. Him blocking people isn't pretty, because he's like, 5'8, but I think he can stick in the league. He's clearly got the skills to elude people like he did in college, be it returning kicks or running, someone's just gotta give him a chance. For those of you intrigued, here's what he looks like in an NFL uniform - weird that they let him use the LaDanian visor, he never got one of those in college.
Jason Wright has barely played as a third-string running back for the Cardinals behind Beanie Wells and Tim Hightower- two rushes for eight yards, six catches for 38 - but two of those receptions were for touchdowns. This leads me to believe they're probably bringing him in as another blocker or random backfield body on goal line sets and every once in a while he swings out and happens to get open in the end zone. We at NU call this "The Brendan Mitchell".
Marquice Cole has caught on with my Jets. I noticed this when he had a pick in the preseason, and the announcer was like "he went to Northwestern" and I was like "word?" and then the announcer didn't say anything because he couldn't hear me. Anyway, after being cut by three teams in the offseason in the two seasons since he left NU, Cole finally caught on with the Jets after a preseason perfomance that included that pick I mentioned, as you can see here. But as you can see here, he got cut like three days later. But as you can see here, he got signed again like a week later, and has recorded six tackles on special teams. (at least I think they're on special teams. Haven't seen him on the field in actual play yet, then again, I don't get to watch every Jets game out here in Illinois.)

Now, the practice squadders, because being a technicality on an NFL roster is better than being nothing at all:

Brett Basanez, Northwestern's practice squad hero and the one person you can point to if someone ever says there are no NU QB's in the NFL, is spending his third year primarily on the practice squad of an NFL team. His first two were with the Panthers, but you can't spend three years on the same team's practice squad apparently, so he had to move on, and he did, to Chi-town. It doesn't look like he'll break the iron grip Jay Cutler has on throwing passes to Chicago's opponents anytime soon, and second-string Caleb Hanie has only thrown two passes on the season, so Basanez is deep bench.
John Gill has been rocking the Indianapolis Colts' practice squad all season long, making me wonder whether practice squads get rings.

The NFL may have a virtual monopoly on the football world, but that doesn't mean that there aren't other football leagues out there. Northwestern basically runs the UFL, after all.

Prince Kwateng was basically a star for the California Redwoods (jesus these team names are awful). The Prince picked up 20 tackles on a team coached by ex-Northwestern coach Dennis Green. The Daily covered it and stuff.
Tim McGarigle, the guy who somehow holds the NCAA record for tackles, purportedly had a great season for the Florida Tuskers (again with the names!) who went on to the UFL Championship. (then again, there were only four teams, so he had a one in two shot.) There were articles written about him and stuff.
A lot of people heard CJ Bachér was in the UFL and talked about it because the concept of your recent starting quarterback being in the UFL is inherently disappointing. What they didn't know is that Bachér didn't hang on in the UFL - after what was apparently a pick-filled preseason, Bachér got cut by the New York Sentinels, who opted to go with NFL has-beens Quinn Gray and Ingle Martin at the quarterback slot. However, this Sentinels blog (a concept even more depressing than the UFL itself) reports that Bacher got resigned towards the end of the season. Although lord knows whether or not they put the accent aigu on his jersey.
After being cut by the Browns, Noah Herron decided to play for the Sentinels about halfway through the season, and although he suffered a pretty gross injury apparently, he's doing fine. No word on whether or not he stuck out the season. The biggest thing I found searching for news on Noah on google is that he really got screwed over by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in terms of salaries last season.

And now, for my final act, I'll discuss what was in my opinion my weirdest post of the summer: this one, originally written back on my blogspot account about how three ex-NU players - David Oredugba, Demetrius Eaton, and Deante Battle were playing professional football in Finland, of all places. No updates on Oredugba - for all I know, he's still balling in Finland - but I did receive a very cryptic message from Eaton a few weeks after that post.

No hit me up, I have all the answers you need. This is Demetrius. I've been back for the last month and Deante is actually still out there and wont return until the 14th. Some bs happened out there which sent me packing. Hit me for the exclusive!

I hit Demetrius up for the exclusive, but didn't get any further information. According to this post, Battle was back in Evanston tearing up IM football, but I wasn't there to witness it.

So that's that. If you made it through this whole thing, you're a champ. I stay grinding, so, keep coming back for more.

Tuesday Notes: Rookies, Veterans Ready for Full-Team OTAs

Sean Yuille — Tue, 19 May 2009 15:43:23 -0000

The first OTA with both veterans and rookies is today. (You guys will have to keep yourselves updated until tomorrow, as I will be at the Red Wings game tonight.)
Zack Follett won't be able to re-join the Lions until Thursday due to a conflict with college. John Gill, an undrafted defensive tackle from Northwestern, won't be able to practice until June 20
The Lions held a conference call with season ticket holders on Monday.
NFL owners meetings start today in Florida. Aside from deciding where Super Bowl XLVII will be played (probably New Orleans), owners will also discuss the need for a rookie wage scale.
The NFL and Comcast are reportedly close to agreeing to a deal that would move NFL Network from the sports tier to regular cable. If that happens, it probably means that the Red Zone Channel would be on Comcast as well, as the NFL is also close to extending its contracts with FOX and CBS for two years. If that happens, the Red Zone Channel would likely debut on cable for the first time this season, as it has only been on satellite in the past.
Brett Favre is probably going to get surgery on his right shoulder this week, hinting that another comeback is likely.

Lions Announce Undrafted Rookie Free Agent Signings

Sean Yuille — Fri, 01 May 2009 17:31:01 -0000

The Lions announced that they have signed five undrafted rookie free agents:

WR Demir Boldin
C Dan Gerberry
DT John Gill
LB Andrew Downey
K Swayze Waters

Neither Otis Wiley nor Daniel Holtzclaw is on this list, so I'm not exactly sure what happened to them. There was never any official confirmation about either player, but multiple outlets reported the Wiley signing, so I'm not exactly sure what's up.

UPDATE: The players signed aren't the only ones attending the camp. There are other rookies attending on a tryout basis, so that is probably what happened to Wiley and Holtzclaw.

UPDATE II: You can now find a list of "rookie orientation tryout players" by clicking the link at the top of the story. Daniel Holtzclaw is on the list, but Otis Wiley is not.

Undrafted Free Agents Signed by the Lions

Sean Yuille — Mon, 27 Apr 2009 09:25:40 -0000

I'll keep this updated throughout the day, as I expect the Lions, like every other NFL team, to be busy signing undrafted free agents today. Here is who the Lions have signed so far:

LB Andrew Downey, Maine (Bangor Daily News)
DT John Gill, Northwestern (Daily Northwestern)
WR D.J. Boldin, Wake Forest (Detroit News)
C Dan Gerberry, Ball State (Detroit News)
K/P Swayze Waters, UAB (Birk's Eye View)
LB Daniel Holtzclaw, Eastern Michigan (Arrowhead Pride)
S Otis Wiley, Michigan State (Tom Kowalski)

NFL Draft Day Two: Diamonds In The Rough

Jake — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 13:28:11 -0000

The Draft has been the spark for the rebuilding process of the Houston Texans. Since Gary Kubiak took the reigns in 2006, the Texans have shown adeptness at finding talent to fit their needs that few other teams have matched in that time period. Some credit the fact that Kubiak was heavily involved in scouting while an assistant coach in Denver, while others feel that it is because Rick Smith values the opinions of the assistants that have a multitude of experience at their specialties, like Alex Gibbs and Frank Bush. Whatever the cause, it is encouraging to see results in the draft after several years of disappointments prior to the current regime.

It isn’t just the Texans’ ability to identify talent in the first two rounds that has led to success though; it’s also their keen eye for talent in rounds three through seven. Every year since 2006, there have been key players that had their names called on Day Two of the proceedings, such as Owen Daniels, Eric Winston, Fred Bennett, Xavier Adibi, and Zac Diles, all of whom have been productive starters for Houston at one point or another.

The Texans have held their cards pretty close to their vest this year, so we have little to no word on what players they are interested in, even in the first two rounds. All we know is the Texans’ overall needs. Based off these needs, I’ve tried to peruse the second day draft talent to find players that I think would look great in Steel Blue. I included the round in which I feel they may be available, but that round is also the earliest I would want the Texans to select them.

Offense

Andre Brown/RB/NC State – 3rd Round – Brown would likely be a first round pick if it wasn’t for the multiple injuries he suffered in college. Brown wowed coaches and scouts at the Senior Bowl, and then absolutely astonished them at the Combine with his 4.37 40 despite weighing 224 pounds. His rare blend of size and speed would be a perfect match for Slaton’s speed and quickness. Unfortunately, wishing for Brown in the 3rd might be a pipe dream, yet I wouldn’t want to take him before then.

Rashad Jennings/RB/Liberty – 3rd Round – Jennings is a beast. He doesn’t possess Brown’s top-end speed, but he has more power. Jennings also has considerable character. Often times transfers such as the one he conducted (Pitt to Liberty) are done for selfish reasons, but Jennings did it because his father was sick. He’s definitely not blazing, but we don’t need a track star; we only need a goal line back.

Antoine Caldwell/C/Alabama – 4th Round – Caldwell fared well against SEC DTs throughout his career. If he is able to put his hands on opposing lineman he fares well, but speed can sometimes beat him, keeping him from being dominant. Caldwell is also known as a smart player, which will help him adapt to Alex Gibbs’ zone blocking scheme.

Patrick Turner/WR/USC – 4th Round – The Texans had the 3rd best yardage offense in the league, but only the 17th ranked scoring offense. The offensive players that Houston needs are ones that will help in the red zone, and Turner can do just that. How high is someone that is 6’5” that can jump 34.5”? High enough. Also, Turner isn’t just a big oaf. He could be a decent possession receiver in the NFL, especially under the tutelage of our offensive staff.

Lydon Murtha/OT-G/Nebraska – 5th Round – Murtha was by far the most athletic OT at the Combine, as evidenced by his 4.82 40 and his 35” vertical jump. Murtha is on the lighter side at 306 pounds, but at 6’7” he can stand to add some weight, even at the risk of losing some speed, and still be impressive.

Quan Cosby/WR/Texas – 5th Round – This may garner me an accusation of being a homer, but I assure you that I try my best to disassociate myself with Texas players as soon as they are done playing in Austin. I think that Cosby is going to be a great NFL player cut from the same cloth as Wes Welker. Nothing on paper about Cosby is that astonishing; he ran a 4.5 40, and he is already 26 because of a stint playing professional baseball. If you watch Cosby play though, there is no doubt that he can play football.

Gartrell Johnson/RB-FB/Colorado State – 6th Round – Johnson attends the same school that Gary Kubiak’s sons attend, which happens to employ a zone blocking scheme. Even though Johnson is only 220 pounds, at 5’10” he’s built more like a FB than a RB, which is probably a good thing. Kubiak has stated before that he prefers having two FBs on the roster, and right now we only have the Human Coke Machine. Johnson will likely last until the 6th though, because he probably won’t be good for more than 10 carries a game in the NFL.

Louis Vasquez/G/Texas Tech – 6th Round – If you have a soft spot for big, bruising offensive lineman, look no further than Vasquez. Vasquez is 6’5” and weighs 333 pounds. As you can imagine, he’s not the quickest man in the world, but his 39 reps in the bench press were best in that category at the Combine this year. You can always find a use for a bruiser of his ilk.

Defense

Kaluka Maiava/OLB/USC – 3rd Round – Who is the loser in the Clay Matthews Cinderella story? A big bruising SLB Maiava is not, but he is a football player. Despite irregular playing time in his senior year, Maiava recorded the third most tackles for the Trojans and was the MVP of the Rose Bowl. Maiava is better suited to play WLB, but would be a great addition for depth and could play in the rotation immediately.

Chip Vaughn/SS/Wake Forrest – 3rd Round – Vaughn is the last of a dying breed--a true SS. At 6’2” 221 pounds, Vaughn has the size to play in the box but is quick enough (4.42 40) to cover some as well. Vaughn loves contact, and is responsible for 192 of Wake Forrest’s tackles in the last two years. If Vaughn didn’t start immediately, he would receive significant playing time.

Sherrod Martin/CB-FS/Troy – 3rd Round – Martin is my dark horse at FS this year. Martin is incredibly athletic, so much so that coaches played him as a CB in the Senior Bowl, something that he rarely did the majority of his collegiate career. So what you have is a guy that played almost exclusively at FS, but has the athleticism to play CB (4.43 40). At 6’1” 200 pounds, he’s more suited to play FS anyway, which happens to be one of our needs.

Michael Hamlin/SS/Clemson – 3rd Round – Hamlin isn’t the fastest guy in the world (4.57 40) and he’s not the strongest either (17 reps), but he performs on the field. He’s been productive since his redshirt freshman year, and in the last two years he has 177 tackles and 10 INT. That’s about 8 tackles a game and an INT almost every two games. I don’t like him as much as Vaughn or Martin, but if both of them are gone and we haven’t drafted a safety yet, I definitely wouldn’t mind Hamlin.

Darcel McBath/FS/Texas Tech – 4th Round – McBath has shown adeptness in coverage with his 12 career INT, 7 of those coming last year, but is lacking in run support. That deficiency means that he will probably only be suited to play FS in the NFL, a league in which teams prefer safeties to be interchangeable. That fact coupled with mediocre measurables (6’0”, 198 pounds, 4.58 40) has him slated to go in the middle of the draft. McBath does have an impressive 38” vertical, and a name that makes him sound like he was a Duck Tales character.

Dorell Scott/DT/Clemson – 4th Round – Scott isn’t the prototypical space eater yet, but he could be. Scott measured 6’3” 312 pounds at the Combine, so his frame appears to have some room left for a little more weight. Several 3-4 teams are looking at Scott to anchor their defensive line at NT, which means he’s big enough to play alongside Amobi.

Greg Toler/CB/St. Pauls – 4th Round – Kubiak and Smith love to take flyers on small school guys every once in a while. Well, is St. Paul’s College small enough for you? Toler at 5’11” 191 pounds is being compared to Domanique Rodgers-Cromartie. Toler ran the 40 in 4.45, and could be a steal in the 4th round.

John Gill/DT/Northwestern – 5th Round – Gill is the same type of DT that Amobi Okoye is--a smaller penetrating DT. I don’t think we should replace Amobi, but that doesn’t mean we can’t get more depth behind him. Despite being 6’3”/301 pounds, Gill ran the 40 in 4.92 and the all important 10-time used to determine a D lineman’s burst off the ball was 1.7, which is pretty good for a guy his size.

Zack Follet/OLB/California – 5th Round – Follet was originially brought to my attention by DieHard Chris, who is rather fond of him, and after reading up on Follet and watching videos, I jumped on the bandwagon as well. Follet had an amazing 51 tackles for loss in his career at Cal, which shows that he can get into the backfield and wreak havoc. Follet is undersized to play SLB at 6’3” 236 pounds, but could be a candidate to give depth at WLB.

Brandon Underwood/FS/Cincinnati – 5th Round – Underwood is slated to go late in the draft because he only started one year, but what a year it was. While playing both FS and CB in 2008, Underwood tallied 66 tackles, 4 INT, 2 forced two fumbles and recovered 3, all of which earned him all-conference honors. Underwood has good measureables as well at 6’1” 200 pounds, and ran 4.50 40 with a 36.5” vertical. Underwood would probably be a 3rd round prospect or better if he had more experience.

Russell Allen/OLB/San Diego State – 6th Round – Allen would definitely be a project, but what else would you expect in the 6th round? Allen is 6’3”/230 pounds, which shows that he has the frame to be bigger, and he ran a 4.65 50, which included a 1.58 10-yard time, which was equal to Clay Matthews III. Allen started all 48 games since his time started at SD St., and was a Dick Butkus award nominee twice.

Lardarius Webb/CB/Nicholls State – 6th Round – Webb is another small school prospect, but the difference with him is that he started at a bigger university (Southern Miss.) and transferred to the smaller institution. Webb is smaller at 5’10”/180 pounds, and would be a huge project as a CB, but what I love about him is his return ability. Webb ran a 4.35 40, and returned 16 kicks for 472 total yards (29.5 average) before teams simply quit kicking to him. For that kind of ability, I wouldn’t mind expending a 6th round pick.

There are other players that I feel will make good or even great players in the NFL that can be had in rounds three through seven, but I didn’t include them because I either felt they didn’t fulfill a need for the Texans or they would have to be taken too early for my liking. If you feel that I have any glaring omissions, you disagree with any of my picks or simply have a dark horse of your own, feel free to let me know. Who knows--maybe a couple of these players will be the newest members of the Houston Texans come Sunday.

Chicago Bears Draft Update

Adam T — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:00:45 -0000

With the Cutler deal over most it is a bit harder to project what and where the Bears will go with their 2nd round pick (#49 overall). Most think that wide reciever is a must, but what if all the guys worth this pick are off the board? Do they go safety, defensive line?

Here is a look at known or expected visits and workouts .

Friday - Juaquin Iglesias, WR, Oklahoma

Pre-draft visits

Al Afalava, Safety, Oregon State
ADDED APRIL 4 Aaron Brown, Running back, TCU
Jason Chery, Wide receiver, Louisiana-Lafayette
Maurice Crum Jr., Linebacker, Notre Dame
Derek Kinder, Wide receiver, Pitt
T.J. Lang, Offensive lineman, Eastern Michigan
ADDED APRIL 4 Ellis Lankster, Cornerback, West Virginia
Henry Melton, Defensive end, Texas
Brandon Myers, Tight end, Iowa
Rich Ohrnberger, Guard, Penn State
Anthony Scirrotto, Safety, Penn State
Jamaal Westerman, Defensive end, Rutgers
Nathan Williams, Linebacker, Murray State

Private workouts

Russell Allen, Linebacker, San Diego State
Eben Britton, Offensive tackle, Arizona
Kenny Britt, Wide receiver, Rutgers
John Gill, Defensive tackle, Northwestern
~~Darrius Heyward-Bey, Wide receiver, Maryland~~ canceled
ADDED APRIL 4 Juaquin Iglesias, Wide receiver, Oklahoma
Phil Loadholt, Offensive tackle, Oklahoma
Lance Louis, Guard, San Diego State
Sherrod Martin, Safety, Troy
Mohamed Massaquoi, Wide receiver, Georgia
Michael Mitchell, Safety, Ohio
Hakeem Nicks, Wide receiver, North Carolina
Richard Quinn, Tight end, North Carolina
Mike Wallace, Wide receiver, Ole Miss*

Get together (we're not sure if these will be visits or private workouts)

Todd Boeckman, Quarterback, Ohio State*
Brian Robiskie, Wide receiver, Ohio State

Mizzou Links, 12-26-08

The Beef — Fri, 26 Dec 2008 13:43:45 -0000

Pretty sure The Boy is still sleeping off his Christmas Feast down in OKC, and lord only knows where RPT might be, so yours truly will try to find you SOME Mizzou news on this day after Christmas...hope yours was full of Crown Royal like mine was.

MUTigers.com checks in from San Antonio and wishes everyone a happy holidays. This piece also lays out exactly how much Bowl Swag the team will receive from both the Alamo Bowl and the school. Also interesting to know what the limits are and what the BCS games get.

PowerMizzou.com gets down and dirty with a "Tiger Six Pack" as well as a defensive breakdown of Northwestern

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch brings you down the day after the holiday with their version of "What Went Wrong" with the football team this past season.

The KC Star puts you back in a good mood however with their Tiger Wishlist for 2009, as well as a great piece on MU kicker Jeff Wolfert

Over to the Chicago Tribune for a nice feature on John Gill, who evidently is part Indian and also was born rather large.

And seeing as the Illinois basketball game never happened...that is about all I got. Happy Holidays!

Crossfire: Northwestern Q&A

RPT — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 15:30:05 -0000

This postseason edition of Crossfire allows us the chance to welcome our new friends from Lake the Posts, a veritable one-stop shop for all things Northwestern athletics.

RMN: First of all, what's the reaction been like to Northwestern's 9-win regular season? Did Northwestern fans expect this kind of output this year?

LTP: Extremely positive as you can imagine. I was banging the 8-4 drum all summer long and fellow Big Ten bloggers thought I was delusional. When you consider the injuries we suffered - star RB Tyrell Sutton out, his back-up Omar Conteh out, CJ Bacher out for 2 games - it truly is a remarkable season. The amazing part is most felt we would do it Mizzou style by simply outscoring opponents. We have a new OC with Mick McCall (Bowling Green) and a new DC/Savior with Mike Hankwitz. The offense underdelivered and the "D" overdelivered and essentially made the season. We're just getting used to this whole pass rush concept which was a joke in previous years.

RMN: How have fans reacted to the pairing with Missouri? What's the public perception of Missouri's program right now among Northwestern circles?

LTP: A collective gulp. I'm not going to lie to you, we'd much rather be playing South Carolina in the Outback or even Florida State in the Champs than a pissed off Big 12 team that won it's division in arguably the most dominating year a conference has had in memory. Missouri is very well respected and the speed of Jeremy Maclin combined with the experience of Chase Daniel presents a major challenge. Cats fans are on a mission to erase the "1st time since..." syndrome and the last of those (aside from winning at the Shoe) is winning a bowl game. This is our 6th bowl since 1995, but our last bowl win was in 1949.

Remaining questions after the jump...

RMN: It seems like most Missouri fans know the names Bacher, Kafka, and Sutton and not much else. Who in particular do Missouri fans need to become familiar with before Dec. 29?

LTP: The headliner is DE Corey Wootton. He is a sack machine and menace to all QBs. John Gill at DT is also a stalwart while S Brad Phillips is a ferocious hitter (he's knocked two players, including Big Ten MVP Shonn Greene out of games already this year). CB Sherrick McManis gets all the hype in the secondary, while freshman CB Jordan Mabin is underrated. The LB corps is a little thin thanks to injuries and our offensive line, the big question mark of the year has been a pleasant surprise in the pass rush protection department, but below average in run blocking.

RMN: How exactly is the Bacher-Kafka used? Is it a platoon system, or is Kafka's playing time a result of injuries? How much faith do you have in both guys?

LTP: It has been 100% injury related. Bacher went down with a hammy in the final drive against Indiana. Kafka started and played the next two games, and CJ returned for the final two against Michigan and Illinois. Bacher has been plagued with inconsistency as he is prone to throw picks, but has a new attitude of "I'm putting the team on my back." You can plan on seeing a healthy mix of both - a true platoon in the Alamo - as they are such different looks it will make you prepare essentially for two separate teams. The coaches completely wrap Kafka's throwing, but he showed great promise in the Minnesota game (sans one very bad pick 6). Faith in CJ was at new lows earlier this year, but his recent moxie has lifted many to believe again. Kafka is very well liked, but the lack of passing has caused fans to become irritable on 3rd and long situations.

RMN: What are the strengths of the Northwestern defense? How do you expect them to matchup with the Missouri offense?

LTP: The strength is chemistry. We may not have the most explosive athletes, but they are playing together in a way that we haven't seen since 95 & 96. We are weak against the deep ball to the non McManis side, but are very good at coming up with the big sack and pass rush. All you need to do is watch the game tape against our one common opponent, Illinois, to see what we've become. We do give up the big play a couple of times a game, but our "D" somehow manages to always stiffen and keep teams out of the end zone.

RMN: The blueprint for beating Missouri begins by manhandling Mizzou in the trenches. What kind of success do you expect out of Northwestern's offensive and defensive lines?

LTP: I like our D-line matchup against you, but our O-line, as mentioned is not so good with the run. Perhaps it is wishful Big Ten thinking but I believe the Illini are similar in the challenges you present. A dangerous deep ball threat (from a MUCH better QB than Juice) to stellar, speedy WRs and good hands, good sized TEs. I expect us to really be aggressive and create havoc for Chase, but I'm fearful of the deep ball to Jeremy Maclin. You know it's coming, but can we stop it. Yikes.

Thanks to LTP for the info. Our response to LTP's line of questioning can be found here. Make sure to head over to LTP to interact if you have any questions about NU football, and welcome those NU fans who find their way here to Rock M Nation.