SB Nation - Corey Wootton

You Disappoint Me: A Discussion

grahamfiller10 — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 22:32:18 -0000

On the BHGP podcast last night (coming soon!), featuring an All Star lineup of Bama, Me, Hawkeye State, and OPS, we got especially animated when discussing Big Ten "disappointments" of 2009. What is it that makes us giggle like schoolgirls about the failings of others? It could be our overwhelming immaturity...or it could be the cognitive dissonance that goes with watching something happen that surprises you.

I THINK, and Phil Steele THOUGHT, Illinois was a 9-3 team, so when I see them falling apart., I get disoriented.

Connie - if you don't listen to me...and marry this man...you'll disappoint me

My #1 disappointing unit is the Illinois offense. This is like beating a dead horse, but my god. OC Mike Schultz ran the same Spread formation that was run in '07 (successful, run focused) and '08 (successful, deep throw focused), but drove his unit straight into the turf via unimaginative run plays and throwing formations ill-fitted for Juice Williams. The last thing you want to do is drop Juice Williams straight back, but that's the first thing that Schultz ordered when the run game was slowed. Here are the Big Ten stats for this unit:

9 games with +300 yards, but STILL 10th in scoring offense
10th in pass offense
7th in total offense
7 games of less than 20 points scored

Realizing this team was playing below its potential, Zook made QB changes to shake things up midseason and the Illini beat Michigan and Mini with a revitalized Juice and Jacob Charest sharing duties. This ability to make changes was something that my #1 disappointing coaching staff couldn't do. Ladies and gentlemen, your Minnesota Golden Gophers coaching staff. Was there a worse idea than throwing the ball 40 times against Iowa? Who decided to ingrain a pass-heavy philosophy into a team with good run blockers and a "power run" loving OC? Why were easy-to-complete sit down routes tossed aside in favor of low percentage sideline timing routes? I was laughed at on the podcast because I complained that with all its talent, Minnesota seemed to have no idea what to do with it. Come on they said, everyone knows Brewster is an ass clown who has naked pictures of the school president keeping his job secure.

At least Brewster kept his program at a nice simmering level of mediocrity, never getting the chance to fail in a nationally relevant game. This wasn't the case for my #1 disappointing big game player, Daryll Clark. PSU fans have heard enough shit-talk and felt enough pain to really care anymore, but his deer in the headlights performances against OSU and Iowa probably shouldn't be blamed on anyone else. The normally decisive Clark, who leveled every other Big Ten opponent with crisp short throws and well thrown wheel routes, got happy feet under the bright lights. His veteran status and "#1 QB in the Big Ten" label certainly didn't show when he was confusedly throwing into triple coverage.

If you feel the need to hate on anyone else, feel free. We could have talked about Terrelle Pryor, who was on the tail end of preseason Heisman lists. We could have talked about Michigan State's pass defense or the early season performance by Corey Wootton. And tongues could have been clicked derisively towards any player/unit residing in Ann Arbor. But that's enough negativity for now.

Eight Crazy Wins

Rodger Sherman — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 04:55:08 -0000

More photos » by Nam Y. Huh - AP

We fly high. No lie.

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Yeah, maybe I do got three papers to write in the next two days. But here's why I haven't started any of them, because, well, as of seven minutes ago, I've done all the reading for all of them, and most importantly, this was a victorious weekend, people. You better act like it.

First off: someone needs to do some calculating: find out the monetary difference for Northwestern, the Big Ten Conference, and the Big Ten Network of how much they make for a Northwestern vs. Whoever 11:00 AM start time and a 2:30 PM start time. Then they need to calculate the difference for your average spectator of how much more enjoyable a 2:30 PM start time is than the 11:00 AM. I guarantee you no human being enjoys the 11 nonsense, and that the world wouldn't collapse if we started our games at like 12:30 or something. Go ahead, try it next year. If the world collapses, I'll take the hit on this one.

Last year against Illinois, I was just a naive college football spectator, and, to be honest, when people rushed the field, I was thrilled. At first, I thought rushing the field was a practical impossiblity. Did you see all those cops? We might get arrested or something! Then, it happened. We just won our ninth game, and it all seemed so spontaneous and I just got caught up in it and sprinted over that barricade. Then, later, when I got to thinking about it, it all didn't seem that cool. I mean, yeah, it was awesome to be on that field, sing the fight song, and watch people hang from goalposts. But why in the name of Dermarr Johnson are we rushing the field after beating a middling Illinois team in a game that was pretty much over from kickoff, and one we were probably supposed to win anyway? In retrospect, it just didn't seem like field rushing material. It was forced.

Yesterday, I felt none of that. A team that looked like it might trickle out five or six wins just knocked off a top-25 team for their third straight win, eighth of the year, and second W against a ranked squad. You're going over that fence, non-negotiable.

As an NU student, you're bound to meet a lot of football players in your college career. There's a bit over a hundred of them on a campus of 8,000 people, do the math. You recognize them on Sheridan, you see them in classes, you talk with them at parties. They're there, they're people. However, as I learned for the second time in two years, one of the world's worst situations for discourse between humans is "when one of them is really tired and still wearing a football helmet and uniform from the football game they just played and you're on their field and possibly wearing a shirt." I probably could've learned this last year after my conversation with Brendan Smith:

Me: Hey, man, nice return!

Brendan: Oh, thanks.

Me: (puts out hand for high five, which is grudgingly returned.)

But if there's one thing I enjoy, it's awkward shirtless conversations. When jammed with a few thousand other students in the middle of a football field, and I noticed the guy next to me was Dan Persa. So this happened.

Me: Hey, Dan Persa! (nothingness.) Thanks for the Iowa win, man!

Dan: Yeah.

l think I gave him a pat on the back, but I'm not sure. I also told some offensive lineman I was jammed up against "I'm sorry I'm not wearing a shirt." He told me not to worry about it.

I should mention: the reason I wasn't wearing a shirt is the same reason I wasn't wearing one for the Minnesota game. The people whose house I was at were doing the chest-painting thing, and told me they needed an extra letter. By the time I got the purple base layer on, we realized they counted wrong, and that they already had enough letters. I tell you, life as an exclamation point is not a fun one. Especially because the paint from the top dripped down and just made me look like a giant lowercase l, and a splotch of paint got on my jeans zipper, making me look like I went all Lonely Island all over my Levi's. However, the lowercase l is very flattering to your form.
By the way, it's way colder than it was back in September. You might have heard rumors that Evanston gets cold in winter, and as someone who was not wearing a shirt yesterday, I'm prepared to confirm that rumor.
We were spelling "Kafka!" or, rather, "Kafkal". Sure enough, Kafka had a phenomenal game to end a pretty damn phenomenal stretch of football. Iron Mike hasn't thrown a pick since the Indiana game, and after spending like, eight games dinking-and-dunking with pinpoint accuracy that led to painstaking seven minute touchdown drives and moderately successful offense while overthrowing every receiver more than ten yards downfield he could (or just lofting picks), Mike has actually developed a deep passing game. A great one. In the past two games, it seems like the majority of his completions are to receivers 15-25 yards downfield. Kafka's early-season short-yardage play seems to have opened up a whole new world of downfield receivers as defenses realizes they can't let him just go to town on short routes, but also, he seems to be a more capable thrower now than he was two months ago. Kudos to Mike.
And while we're kudosing, Andrew Brewer. Perennially open downfield, as is Sidney Stewart, but that second touchdown grab is second only to Ross Lane's good-on-Sunday's Alamo Bowl snag in catches I've seen at NU.
And Zeke Markshausen! Everybody who saw that play went through the same thought process: "okay, screen, three yards, I'll take it." "wide receiver throw! Andrew Brewer comes through again!" "Wait, does Andrew Brewer wear #85?" "Uhhh, Zeke Markshausen can't throw. He's a wide receiver." "Wait, that guy's wide open!" And then several minutes of celebration. Great play for The Syndrome (thus called because Illinois' PA announcer last week pronounced his name "Munchausen" a bunch of times. Roll with it, even if you're not familiar with the sort of funny illness, which is made decidedly not funny by its serious Wikipedia page.)
It's really crazy: this run defense looked incomprehensibly horrible for about five or six weeks. But after holding Wisconsin to 99 yards rushing, well, I wouldn't say it's a strong suit, or even a medium suit. But we're so, so much better at it than we once were.
And we held the passing game to a relative halt, and three sacks is nothing to scoff at. NU's defense wasn't spectacular, not by a long shot. But with an offense as dynamic as the one NU has, you've got to like their chances, especially if they learn how to keep opponents from running back punts or kickoffs every other game. Without that return, it's not a game. So don't get too down on our defensive unit.
In fact, you should be... uh, up, on Brad Phillips, who was EVERYWHERE - tackle numbers are generally difficult to interpret because they're so subjective, but 11 solo tackles, a pass breakup, a sack and a QB hurry are, like, great stats from a defender and Corey Wootton, who is really bringing the pressure from the defensive end spot in a way he just wasn't earlier in this season.
Like I said back in October, we'd be better off just never running. Our ground game showed signs of life at points throughout the year - the past two weeks included - but it looked alive in the same way Tupac looks alive now, in that there was vague, but extraordinarily questionable, evidence that it theoretically, possibly potentially, could be not dead, but nobody would legit say "oh, well Tupac/the Northwestern running game is alive." (follow? didn't think so.) (also, allow that to be the first and last time Scott Concannon is compared to Tupac Amaru Shakur.) But we really shouldn't worry about whether or not it is alive. Outside of QB sneaks, broken plays, Dan Persa, and an occasional draw up the middle or option, we should never, ever run. And those are just to keep the defense honest, not to gain yards, although 3rd and 6 is more appealing than 3rd and 10, our offense looks just as successful on 3rd and 6 as it does on 3rd and 1.
By the way, offensive line, stop that whole false starting thing before the bowl game. Please? You're great, we love you, but, like, stop it.
I had a major problem with the game earlier this season where I got to the game late and saw from the stadium shuttle that the other team had already scored a touchdown. I have less of a problem with it happening to NU. Although I kind of did want to see that touchdown. But that's what highlight reels are for.

That's all I got for now. Should be some good posts this week, so stick around, fellas.

The Best of Times, the Worst of Times: Northwestern Ends on a High Note Over Wisconsin, 33-31

hmlee — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 02:05:41 -0000

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Well, that turned out to be quite the exciting game. I was rather shocked by the final score, though not by who won. Those of you who've been around since the beginning of the season know that this was a tough one for me, as I write about both Wisconsin and Northwestern for The Rivalry, Esq. I grew up a Badger fan and as a current Northwestern Law student also cheer quite hard for the Wildcats. While the Northwestern-Wisconsin rivalry isn't a blood feud like some others in this conference, it was still a difficult game for me. Every play was essentially both good and bad. I cheered and then felt despondent for the entirety of this game. That's not really a fun way to spend a Saturday afternoon.

I had hoped earlier this season that things would shake out in such a way that this game would only be important to one team and thus I would be able to pick a side for the game and stick with it. Unfortunately (or perhaps fortunately) this game held implications for both teams. Both teams gained bowl eligibility weeks ago, but the the narrative of their seasons was on the line. While the cheesehead in me is sad that the Badgers lost, I think, in the end I am happy that the game turned out the way it did. Frankly, Northwestern needed this game more.

That might seem to be an odd statement, but, looking at the reality of this conference it makes sense from both a bowl perspective and a recruiting perspective. The current Big 10 standings have three teams at 10-2 on the season, with Ohio State taking the championship based on their better in conference record. OSU will thus claim the Big 10's automatic BCS berth and head to Pasadena to take on the Pac-10 champ. As far as at large berths go, Iowa will probably claim another for the Big 10, and Penn State has an outside chance of grabbing one also. If they didn't get an at large, PSU would be slotted into the Capital One bowl vs. a SEC team.

Wisconsin, then, was priced out of the BCS a long time ago. Even at 10-2, it would have been unlikely for them to move from their slot in the Outback bowl, and at 9-3 (assuming a win in two weeks over Hawaii) they won't drop from that perch either. Further, Wisconsin's team is a young one. They have performed remarkably well for such a freshman-sophomore loaded squad, and I see only bright things ahead of them.

Northwestern was in a similar bowl game spot. With the upset of Iowa and the expected victory over Illinois, Northwestern had vaulted themselves to 7 wins and past the rest of the mushy middle of the Big 10 to claim a ticket to the Champs Sports bowl. The victory today gives them eight wins, but they still sit behind Wisconsin and unless the Badgers falter in Hawaii they will still have a worse record by a game. Because Michigan State lost to Penn State today, there is no team capable of leapfrogging the 'Cats. Northwestern is as stuck as Wisconsin.

So, then, we must look at this game from a recruiting perspective. Wisconsin will always do well in recruiting among Big 10 teams. They are a flagship state school known both for academics as well as athletics. They have the loyalty of an entire state, as well as a history of a great football team and will always be competitive with the upper tier Big 10 teams for recruits. A victory tonight wouldn't have altered that in any meaningful way.

Northwestern, by contrast, could gain a significant boost from this victory. With today's win they have sealed an eight win season after coming from virtually nowhere to reach nine wins last year. They will not only be going to a bowl two years in a row, but a warm weather bowl at that (no Pizza! Pizza! here). Despite the dismal beginning to this season, they defeated two of the three ranked teams they played against, and came one quarter away from upsetting the third when Penn State came to town. These upsets, if they can be combined with the 'Cats first bowl victory in 60 years, would seal the impression in recruits minds that Fitz is determined to build a consistently winning program in Evanston that will compete with the conference's upper tier.

Thus, the team that needed the victory most managed to pull it out, and I am at least moderately happy for that.

After the jump, I do a multiple personality recap of the action on the field...

Bama Hawkeye takes a look at the sweet goods on the line this weekend in the Big 10...

Graham and Law Buck engage in dueling coverage of the OSU and Michigan rivalry game...

The only way to really address the in game action today is for me to look at it both as a Northwestern fan and a Wisconsin fan. Because Northwestern comes first alphabetically, I'll start with them.

Northwestern:

It was good to see the 'Cats start this game off on all cylinders. I like this style of play much better than their "wait until we're down by an absurd margin and then mount a nail-biting comeback" gameplan.

Kafka lead the 'Cats on their opening drive from the Northwestern 25 yard line for a score. The defense then answered that by coming out of the gate and largely containing the John Clay led Badger offense and forcing them to punt away their first possession. Both teams then three and outed before Northwestern managed to end the quarter with a field goal to take a 10 point lead on Wisconsin.

Offense:

I was heartened by the fact that all of Northwestern's running backs - Scott Concannon, Stephen Simmons, and Arby Fields - managed to make contributions to Northwestern's game today. At least Concannon and Fields will be back next year, and I am unsure if Simmons, a senior with another year of eligibility, will stay as well. Even if Simmons is gone, the competition between Concannon and Fields during camp next year will only be a positive for Northwestern. It is true that Northwestern runs a spread offense from the shotgun, but having versatile running backs to compliment the mobile QBs will always make the receivers more dangerous.

The second quarter was not quite as kind to the 'Cats. Wisconsin carried over their drive from the 1st and converted it into a John Clay touchdown. Northwestern managed to get the ball back for all of one play before it was fumbled away by Scott Concannon and recovered by Wisconsin. While I never like to see turnovers, I can't put too much heat on Concannon as he has been quite sure handed for most of the games this year. Wisconsin went to their tight end for a TD to give Bucky a four point lead.

Stephen Simmons then broke off a great 64 yard kick return to put the 'Cats within smelling distance of the Badger redzone. Mike Kafka rattled off several passes to Drake Dunsmore, Zeke Markshausen, Arby Fields, and Andrew Brewer to once again take the lead at 17-14. I was happy to see Kafka playing in a much more mobile and healthy way than in the last few games, and it was great for him to end his last regular season on a winning note. Hopefully he can cap off his time at Northwestern with a bowl victory in a few weeks.

Northwestern's defense three and outed the Badgers and then on their next drive Kafka executed a great end-around pass to Markshausen who pitched it downfield to a wiiide open Sidney Stewart. The ball was perfectly thrown and took advantage of the Wisconsin secondary, which isn't exactly the most dominant in the Big 10.

Northwestern regained their 10 point lead 24-14 and never really looked back. Stefan Demos once again looked his automatic self and tacked on three more field goals for the remainder of the 'Cats 33 points.

Defense:

The final score of today's game really doesn't do the defense justice. Yes, the 'Cats let Bucky come unacceptably close to a comeback win, but the defense played a good game for all 60 minutes. Three different Wildcats had sacks - Brad Phillips, Corey Wootton, and Vince Browne. The 'Cats managed to hold John Clay to only 102 yards rushing and 1 TD, which is pretty good considering he's the best RB in the conference. They also managed to step up in the crucial moments, forcing two turnovers during the forth quarter. Brian Peters recovered a clay fumble, and Jordan Mabin ended the late Badger threat with a great interception of Tolzien in the final seconds.

All in all, a good way to end the season. I think with a healthy Kafka the Wildcats will be very competitive come bowl time, and I'm looking forward to a great Champs Sports Bowl match up.

Go U! NU!

Wisconsin:

Now, I'll let my slightly more depressed dairy state side take over. This really was a trap game for my Badgers. While they were coming off three wins, Purdue, Indiana, and Michigan aren't exactly formidable competition this year. Northwestern is a deceptive team who had only been getting better as the season has gone on. It seemed that the Badgers were in danger of looking past both Northwestern and Hawaii towards the bowl season, and I think that's just what they did.

The Badgers simply played sloppy football, and it cost them the game.

Offense:

The one bright spot on the white and red side of the ball was the offense. The Badgers executed a balanced gameplan that got more dangerous as the game went on. Yes, they started off slowly, but Clay managed another triple digit ground game with a score, and Scott Tolzien threw for 235 yards and 2 TDs - both to the newly full strength Garrett Graham. Nick Toon also showed why he's going to be a big threat for years to come, as he had 7 catches for 70 yards, a nice follow up to his 98 yard game at Michigan. I don't know that he will ever live up to his father's stats, but he is definitely a solid part of the Badger offense and has a good chance to be their top receiver for the next year or two.

For all his inconsistency this year, Tolzien had a solid game, throwing only one interception in the closing seconds on a last ditch effort to move the Badgers downfield. For someone who was presumed to be a career backup at best, this season has been a good one and I'm looking forward to next year. Wisconsin finally has a quarterback who can make both the short quick throws and the deep passes. I'd like to see a win against Hawaii and a bowl victory to cap off his first starting season... regardless of what happens in the next few weeks, the competition between him and Curt Phillips will make for an interesting camp next year.

Defense:

Unfortunately, this was not one of the defense's better efforts. They allowed the most points they have all season, even more than they did to Ohio State, and even my other half would agree that the 'Cats are most certainly not the Buckeyes. Frankly, the Wisconsin defense was just not equipped to handle the Northwestern spread. The secondary is the weakest part of the defense and it showed. Kafka burned the Wisconsin defense for 326 yards passing and 2 TDs. The defense also looked completely fooled by the end around to Zeke Markshausen... he's a receiver for goodness sakes! He shouldn't be able to throw a TD! Gah.

This was also only the third game of the entire season in which the Badgers had no interceptions (the other two were against Northern Illinois and Iowa). They did have one fumble recovery, but lost the turnover battle overall. Still.... this is a young unit and can only really get better next year. I just hope we don't draw a spread based team in a bowl game, or it could get ugly.

Special Teams:

Once again, the special teams was a Jekyll and Hyde unit. Two separate returns best show this.

In the second quarter, Isaac Anderson inexplicably picked up a kickoff in the end zone and ran the ball out... to the 5. Ugh. Wisconsin managed to get the ball out to their 18, but the resulting punt gave Northwestern great field position near midfield, and the Wildcats would convert that into a field goal. Sigh.

In the third quarter, though, the special teams partially managed to redeem themselves when David Gilreath returned a a punt 68 yards for a TD which pulled Wisconsin within 3 of Northwestern.

The kick coverage today was similarly mediocre. Northwestern managed one 60+ yard return and several 30 yard returns. Their shortest return was for 12 yards after a Welch field goal. That's not really a dominating performance.

The interesting thing about this game is that both Northwestern and Wisconsin have ST units coached by the head coaches. Northwestern, for the most part, manages to do it right. They constantly execute good returns and usually do not make stupid mistakes. Wisconsin, by contrast, is prone to such mistakes and to sloppily executed tackling on their return coverage. Simply put, as long as Bielema is still coaching that unit, you never know what you're going to get. Until he finally gets a full time coach, it will always be the Achilles heel of this squad. It is long past time for that change to happen.

Disappointing as all that was, I must give credit to the Badgers for not giving up. They fought hard and pulled within two points, taking the game down to the final seconds. They can still end the season strong in Hawaii, and a bowl victory would prove that an excess of youth does not necessarily spell doom in the NCAA. In truth, they can only get better from here.

So...

On to Hawaii, On to the regular season finale, and ON WISCONSIN!!!!

The Last Gopher Friday Preview Until Pizza Pizza? Minnesota at Iowa, November 21, 2009

JG2112 — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 16:15:14 -0000

by Charlie Neibergall - AP

I knew life wouldn't be good once I got kicked out of the Institute of Technology.

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Give me or Tressel the Patriots. We would have punted on third down. 10:06 AM Nov 17th from TweetDeck
- from the "Not Kirk Ferentz" Twitter stream - http://twitter.com/NotKirkFerentz

Saturday is the end of the college football year, for all intents and purposes. outside of some rivalry games and conference title games. Then onto the bowls. Really, other than Florida/Alabama and Texas (or maybe TCU?) , the 66 or so bowl participants will be taking part in exhibition games in late December and early January in mostly warm climates, of which the most impressive part of the experience is usually the gifts given to the student-athletes that somehow are allowed under NCAA rules (example: last year each Gopher got a Vizio 26-inch LCD HDTV, a Bulova watch, and a Hat at the Insight Bowl.) Besides the gifts, ask Corey Wootton, Willis McGahee or Glen Mason: only bad things really happen in bowl games for the participants.

But back to tomorrow, when Tim Brewster will try for a significant milestone - his first rivalry game win. Last week Brew got his first win in November as a college coach. This week, a Big Ten win in November will increase his record in rivalry games to a robust 1-7. This comes on the heels of Maturi's weird comments to Sid in Thursday's Star Tribune, which indicated an endorsement of the program's direction but a peculiar non-endorsement of the coach. And while we can be literal and say that the only way that Brewster's job comes under fire is if they lose the next two games by 100 in the aggregate, the fact it's even being suggested is foolish in my opinion, but could be suggestive of things going on at Fort Bierman.

Iowa enters this game having endured a rough November thus far. First off, Northwestern put paid to Iowa's national championship hopes in Kinnick, and then Kirk Ferentz's lack of backbone gave away the outright Big Ten Title to Ohio State (pending their beatdown of Michigan). Oh yeah, Minnesota won't be the beneficiary of any Stanzi-balls on Saturday, either.

That really is unfortunate, because the backup QB, freshman James Vandenberg, played rather well in the Horseshoe, completing 20/33 for 233 yards, 2 TDs and 3 INTs (one at the end of the 1st half, one in OT). Playing in front of friendly fans may make him more relaxed. Then again, the pressure of Senior Day and the Pig may make him channel his inner Stanzi and get acquainted with BIG PLAYE TRAYE.

Looking at the rest of the offense, you know what you're getting with Iowa. The big hogs up front are interchangeable and generally awesome. LT Brian Bulaga is the standout. The Hawkeyes like running stretch plays where a TE (normally Tony Moeaki) will go in motion to Bulaga's side, and whichever RB is in the game (Adam Robinson, Brandon Wegher, Paki O'Meara) will plow behind those two for big chunks of yardage. As has been the case this year, Minnesota's DTs need to keep Iowa's line occupied so Campbell, Triplett, Lawrence and/or Cooper can flow to the ball, attack the lead blocker, and cut the play back for the help to arrive. If the D-line is pushed around and Iowa's line can get to the second level, this game will get ugly.

That's without mentioning Iowa's passing game, which as mentioned above, went for over 230 yards on Ohio State last week. Marvin McNutt is a former QB with significant height (please grow six inches Carter kthx) and superb speed, and I think every Minnesota fan knows about Derrell Johnson-Koulianos. Simmons (who returned to practice Wednesday after recovering from a leg ailment) and Marcus Sherels are carrying injuries which may make them vulnerable in pass coverage.

As for Iowa's defense, yikes. On the line, meet 2007 Cretin Derham Hall grad Broderick Binns (7 tackles for loss and 4.5 sacks), along with Adrian Clayborn (8.5 sacks, 16.5 tackles for loss and THAT punt block against Penn State) and Karl Klug. The linebackers include A.J. Edds (65 tackles), Pat Angerer (119 tackles) and Jeremiah Hunter (83 tackles), and if you look to the secondary, meet Tyler Sash (6 INTs, 76 tackles), Amari Spievey, and Brett Greenwood.

This is the kind of defense that will give the Gopher offense fits (namely, competent and well-drilled). Iowa rarely sends its linebackers on blitzes because the front four can get pressure by itself. In almost every Gopher game this year we've watched this happen, so I'm even more concerned about tomorrow's game. Other than against Sparty, the Gophers, since the Penn State game, have had horrific pass protection which has led to Adam Weber looking like a true freshman in the pocket.

And sorry everyone, but this isn't the game to fully let MarQueis Gray loose on the football world. Brewster had his chance last week and decided not to, which suggests either coaching stubbornness or player incapabilities at this point. Gray, at this point in his development, would have been most effective against a team with slower defensive players who were frequently blitzing him and leaving him wide open running lanes, such as on November 14th at TCF. The last place you want Gray deciphering coverages is against a Norm Parker-drilled defense of veteran players, whose LBs don't even need to blitz you to get pressure.

So tomorrow you can expect Weber to be in the pocket, with lots of max protect (TEs and RBs) to provide support for Alford, Wills and Carufel in the hopes that Weber is given more than 3 seconds to wait for his WRs to break free from what are excellent Herkeye defensive backs. Once again, Hoese and Tow-Arnett will likely be utilized extensively in the passing game, trying to break the tackles of those excellent LBs. Blergh.

Oh, and have I mentioned that Brandon Green missed practice Wednesday with a knee injury and is questionable for Saturday? Calling Messrs. McKnight, Stoudermire, and yes, Carpenter, please be ready for action.

Anything else? Yeah. The forecast Saturday: around 55 and sunny.

Also, an aside: yeah, I recognize this is a conspiracy theory, BUT. The slate of games on Saturday is one of the least attractive collection of games I can ever remember this late in the season (thanks Florida and Alabama, among others, for scheduling soup cans this weekend). One of ESPN/ABC's featured games is Kansas at Texas.

Anyone else find it uniquely coincidental that ESPN is releasing an amazing slow drip of information from multiple sources (where have these former players been since August?) about Kansas HC Mark Mangino's bad temper and abuse at practice the same week it needs to drum up interest in a rather lackluster prime time game? At all?

Okay.

So what about Saturday? Minnesota has a chance here. It needs to attack Iowa's defense straight-on, because it can be run on. Weber cannot expect to spend much time, if any, looking in the pocket, and Fisch should not abandon the running game and put Weber into obvious passing situations.

As for Minnesota on defense, they need to roll support over to whoever is guarding the tall McNutt. Of course, this leaves the Gophers susceptible to either Johnson-Koulianos or Moeaki, but, you've got to try something.

Bottom line: games this year in Iowa City have been close. Northern Iowa, Arkansas State, Michigan, Indiana and NW were really all very tense, close games. Saturday SHOULD be no different. If the Gophers are not competitive, however, I guess Maturi will be having a discussion with Mr. Brewster about what is expected when the Gophers get their new TVs in Arizona. I don't see it happening.

Iowa 27 - Minnesota 20.

Monopoly Piece! Monopoly Piece!

Rodger Sherman — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 17:24:22 -0000

More photos » by STEPHEN HAAS - AP

Because our overenthusiastic coach gets all overenthusiastic for winning.

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So, I went to Champaign yesterday. What follows is a recap of a football game, but also a recap of a metropolitan area.

First off: the title. We won ourselves a monopoly piece. In a somewhat disappointing turn, I never actually saw any NU players with the trophy, so I'm not 100% sure the hat on wood exists. But we won it. Pat Fitzgerald's next trick will be to pull a rabbit/endless strand of cloth out of the Land of Lincoln trophy.
Second off, football: It took around 3/4 of the year for it to happen, but some players I expected to play well and some I never, ever did have turned into a cohesive football team.
Mike Kafka Not sure how it happened, but the guy turned into a complete college quarterback, even though the running skill he once showed has sort of evaporated with his hammy injury. Iron Mike hasn't thrown a pick since the Indiana game, but busted out a whole arsenal of passing skill we just haven't seen. In the beginning of the year, he was a deadeye passer on those short dinky-dunky routes. Then, yesterday, Illinois did something very difficult. They spent a whole week training, and essentially shut down Kafka's ability to nail these passes: Guarding the middle to protect against those short in routes, putting on a decent pass rush, and limiting receivers' yards after catches. Where week 3 MIke Kafka/Fitz might've tried to have him throw deep, with the operative word being "tried", and then, after realizing that wasn't going to work, would've stuck with the inefficient short passing attack with diminished results.
But now? The dude can complete long passes. He nailed - nailed! - Zeke Markshausen twice on those corner routes, hit Ebert on the same route too. He had Sid Stewart twice, got him the ball both times! Stewart failed to bring in a catch on one of them, but, it was admittedly a tough one. And of course, the 50 yarder to Brewer. Old school Mike Kafka overthrows him or throws a wobbly end-over-end joint that gets picked off. But old Mike is old MIke.
Where did our running game come from? Did last years' just get off the bus from San Antonio? Scott Concannon spend those weeks where he was supposedly out with a concussion in China training with a running back sensei? Did Arby Fields somehow get three miles per hour faster since week one? I don't know. But whatever happened, NU had an effective running game today. Concannon isn't fast, but he's just fast enough to get to the outside corner, and wiley enough to find holes that aren't there and spin out of tackles and he stays on his feet long enough to get five or six yards when he finds that hole. Arby Fields is straight up fast, and actually looked like a running back after being nonexistent for so long. We used four running backs,f five when you consider Persa was effectively being used as a Wildcat player with no option to throw, and all five of them were effective to some extent. We gained 139 yards on the ground. Tell me you thought that would ever happen four weeks ago.
Corey Wootton is absolutely catching wreck right now. This is Corey. We have him for two (two!) more games, so let's enjoy the everloving nonsense out of it. I hope NFL scouts didn't close their file sometime around the Minnesota game, because this is a completely different human being.
I can't say I was pleased with our defense. You're up 18. Cover the guy going deep. Put a safety on him, let him catch the ball and bring him down right after that. But cover him. If Illinois had a quarterback who... well, looked like Kafka did today, they win this game. Easily. Guys were open downfield, and if you can't hit em, they can't do anything for ya. I'd go so far as to say that our defensive unit played well. Wootton, as noted, is back. Q, Brian Peters, and Nate Williams were everywhere. Our defensive line held their own despite only getting one sack and giving up unfortunate amounts of rushing yardage to something called a Michael Leshoure. By all means, the reason Illinois only had 3 points after 3 quarters is because Illinois is Illinois. Dropped passes, missed targets, missed field goals, general malaise and lamentation of the women. But the defense played well enough to give us the W yesterday.
Stefan Demos is no longer the G.O.A.T. But you can't blame the guy for not pulling off a perfect season. That's asking a bit too much of any kicker, much less one also pulling punting duties.
Hunter Bates: true American hero. Now, look, folks, catching a football is hard. Arrelious Benn, as well as our kick returners, should have showed you this today. You know what else his hard? Jumping three feet into the air, getting undercut by the type of human being strong enough to play for a Big Ten football team, flipping over, landing on your back, and not dying. Bates managed to do both, with an end-over-end onside kick. Applause. Hunter, you're good in my book. I'm no longer a little bit annoyed at you for confusing me whenever I see a short white dude with black hair wearing #7 doing things and then wondering which one of y'all it is.
I'm not sure if that last play was a pick. What I'm sure of is that it was awesome.
Words of advice to the U of I PA announcer: Marks-hausen. Not Marchausen. I wouldn't be mad, but he caught the ball like 43 times, including a touchdown. His job is to catch a football while running as fast as he can and then avoiding getting tackled by strong and fast people. Your is to pronounce his name correctly. He did his, but guess which of your jobs is easier? Also, chill out with the descriptors, homie. Jacob Charest did not just "scamper" for a first down, he ran for one. Stephen Simmons wasn't tackled by "a host of Illini", it was, like, two dudes. Say their names, get it over with. Also, the enthusiastic way you yell "FIRST DOWN!" is cool, but, uh, not when your team just was the beneficiary of a penalty or they just recovered their own fumble past the first-down marker. Then you can just say "First down." Chill on the pants-crapping.
With regards to the stadium: it's weird, I go to a college, and I go to games where football is played, but after almost two seasons of being a student, I went to my first college football game. It would be cool if we could have a full stadium with loud, interested fans, all wearing the same color, all cheering, with a band I could hear 150 yards away from the other side of the field, with a student section the size of my school locking arms and bouncing around (which looks awesome, btdubs) Obviously, the fact that our school is 1/6 the size of theirs will prevent any of this from ever happening. But, uh, I'ma take some football roadtrips more often. Illinois isn't really talked about as having a spectacular football atmosphere, but it's a completely different universe from anything you can get at Ryan Field. If you don't accept this, you're wrong.
Not that I have qualms with NU's fanbase. We were audible yesterday. I wasn't sitting in the NU section, but I heard em. And if you're going to play "Hey Baby", as dozens of schools do, don't let it be against NU, because having a few hundred people yell "HEY WHAT? GO WILDCATS" is audible even in a stadium of 60,000.
About which, do any Illinois fight songs contain words? I'm pretty sure it's all just clapping. And then they spell their team name, which always sounds cool, but like every other place that resorts to mass spelling, isn't that impressive when you think about it.
While we're talking about attendance and whatnot, uh, Champaign is, well, awesome, and to some extent, this helps a lot with football games. I don't mean awesome in that Champaign is an innately enjoyable place: it's like 50,000 college students surrounded by a few hours of cornfields. (Sorry. It's true. Big ups to all my farmers out there!) But as Northwestern students, it's tough not to walk through Champaign and get jealous. Public drinking is not so much permitted as expected. You're allowed to sell and take Jagerbombs in the street. And I'm not saying that this is a good strategy because I'm a college student and therefore, yeah, bro, drinking! Sweet! I'm saying this because Evanston/Northwestern's insistence on enforcing laws most college towns turn the other way on don't seem to have any positives: I don't see how our university thinks that making getting caught drinking have major negative implications is a good thing, because I'd think the school has a vested interest in preventing students from drinking themselves to death in their dorm rooms. At U of I, if you get dangerously drunk, they take care of you first and then slap you with a $300 ticket later. And just sayin, students go to football games there. Part of this is just a size thing: with 50,000 students, there's a lot more to deal with there, and they get less nitpicky, and none of this will change until, like Illinois, NU has a quad the size of what is now south campus. (that is to say, not happening.) But having hung out with guys in the Illinois chapter of my fraternity for a few hours yesterday, and when we described the way we do things in terms of doing fun things at NU, the way I would describe their reaction is "sympathetic to our plight". I can say confidently that although I love NU, there's a lot of aspects of life here that I wish were different and shouldn't require much thought or debate to change.
Point being, I probably should just transfer to a state school. That's the life.
I mean, we had N.E.R.D for our Dillo Day concert, remember? They had Jay-Z, with Wale and N.E.R.D. opening. Wale! Damn.
Then again, apparently you have to do various forms of community service and apply to get student basketball tickets there. I show up five minutes before the game and sit front row. Some things are good.
Something that isn't good? Amtrak. The last thing that the people at the U of I chapter of the fraternity said to us was, "hey, hope your trains aren't delayed" and we thought they were joking or something. My friends and I paid for a train, but what we got was a bus that showed up a half hour after we were supposed to board the train. As a New Yorker I'm used to efficient public transportation. When I showed up in this part of the world and found friendly people, delicious pizza, and the El, uh, I was displeased. So imagine me being violently angry after having been awake for about 16 hours yesterday.
Oh, and, Illinois, people, let's get something straight. We don't have a big enough rivalry that there needs to be that much glaring when two guys in Northwestern gear walk into a bar after a game, regardless of the final outcome. We went into this really cool place on Green Street called Legends, the problem is, on the unwelcome sports fans glare-o-meter, with a 1 being "unprovoked loving embraces" and a 10 being "immediate murder upon sight", we were probably getting a 6.5-7 from the middle-aged Illinois fans we saw, which is a step below actually stepping to us and starting something. Chill out, Illinois fans. Coming from somebody who has never been in the city of Boston without wearing a Yankees hat and sweatshirt at all times, the Land of Lincoln trophy shouldn't make me feel like I'm wearing red in Crips territory.

That's pretty much all I got. I'll have more football-y posts as the week goes on and I start thinking more about sports and less about how badly I wish we could throw actual tailgates as the week goes on.

For now, let's just rejoice: I mean, back-to-back winning seasons? This is only the second time since we started playing a 12 game slate that's happened. Think about that. We're bowl eligible for the third time in three years. Uh, same ish there. This doesn't happen very often.

So as I always say, sip with me. Let's enjoy this, and I'll see y'all in a nice, warm place in a month and a half.

Just an Upset: Northwestern Knocks Off Stanzi and Iowa Too, 17-10

hmlee — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 21:45:41 -0000

More photos » by Charlie Neibergall - AP

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Wow. What a finish. I think I finally know how Iowa fans have been feeling most of this season. Northwestern has had some memorable games this season - scares against Eastern Michigan and Miami(OH), come backs against Purdue and Indiana - but even through all of those, I think today's win against formerly undefeated Iowa qualifies as the most memorable of the year.

I was asked during the live game thread if Northwestern winning out (including the Iowa victory) would make this season a success. My reply was that unless it was combined with a bowl win against a decent or good team, the answer is no. As thrilling as this victory is, it's merely one great moment in a season full of disappointments.

But we can talk about that later. For now, let's just bask in the upset glow...

Once again during a Northwestern game I saw a starting quarterback taken down by injury and replaced by an ineffective backup. Except, this time, that injury came on the other side of the ball. The biggest news from this game, aside from the final score, was the injury to Ricky Stanzi.

The injury happened in the beginning of the second quarter. Pinned down on their own 6 yard line, Stanzi took the snap in the end zone to attempt a pass. The Iowa defense, for some inexplicable reason, failed to cover Corey Wootton who rushed in from Stanzi's right side and took him down. Stanzi fumbled the ball and Marshall Thomas fell on it for Northwestern's first TD of the game.

Stanzi didn't get up.

He managed to walk off the field, which probably saved a few emergency rooms in Iowa City from having a new crop of admits. The update during the middle of the game suggested that Stanzi, who did not return, suffered some sort of ankle sprain. There was no information on how soon he would return to play, but it's not likely to be a season ending injury.

That's pretty much the only good news Iowa fans can take away from this game, as their Big 10 title hopes are now threatened and their chance at the BCS title almost certainly eliminated, barring a few losses on the parts of Florida, Texas, Alabama, and Cincinnati.

Stanzi was replaced in the game by redshirt freshman James Vandenberg, a substitution that changed the script of the game. Vandenberg showed his inexperience in a big way and the upset was on.

Read how it happened, after the jump...

Graham takes a look at the Big 10 defenses going into Week 10...

I recap the disappointing collapse against Penn State in Week 9...

We knew going into this game that Northwestern had historically performed well against Iowa, winning three of their last four contests. Even so, Iowa was a special team this year and Northwestern was, well, not. Iowa's defense was legendary and despite major injuries to their running game and inconsistency under center, they always seemed to find some fourth quarter magic to overcome deficits and get to a 9-0 record on the season. The collision of these two sets of facts led me to be completely unsure of what to expect from this game. Fortunately, it all turned out better than I ever could have hoped for.

Oh, did I mention, Northwestern is also bowl eligible now? It might only be a trip to Detroit, but at least we'll be playing football in late December / early January.

This game, like so many others, started out on a down note for the 'Cats. Northwestern came out of the gate sluggish, giving up a touchdown on a Stanzi-McNutt connection only a minute into the game. After a three and out, Iowa followed up their TD with a 39 yard field goal by Daniel Murray to take a 10-0 lead. It seemed as though the 1st quarter score would be predictive of Iowa's record at the end of the game, and I would be forced to watch a rout.

Most of Northwestern's early offensive struggles were due to the limitations of Mike Kafka. Kafka, who returned himself form an injury suffered during the Penn State game, was almost completely immobile. He was still able to complete passes at his effective clip, but the story of Northwestern's offensive line is one of inability to hold the pocket for any length of time. Without Kafka's scrambling ability, Northwestern didn't seem to be able to get much going.

After the first series of the game, Kafka was replaced by Dan Persa, he of the complete ineffectiveness against the Nittany Lions. Persa performed much better today than he did last week... Despite completing only 5 passes for 37 yards during the entirety of the game, he managed to use his legs and speed to gain several first downs for the Wildcats.

It's almost funny, in a way. Northwestern had two limited quarterbacks in this game - one who could throw but not scramble, and the other who could scramble but not throw. If only we could have fused them into one super quarterback.

Persa's legs combined with those of Scott Concannon, who had another excellent game, to generate 126 rushing yards, more between the two of them than both quarterbacks threw for combined.

The running game is one of the stories of the day. Iowa, in a change from most of the season, just could not seem to prevent Concannon from breaking off large runs. They also had trouble with the quarterback sneak, with the Northwestern offensive line pushing for yardage in several 3rd-and-short situations.

During the first half, Northwestern was helped by Iowa committing four turnovers. Two of these were interceptions (one from each QB) and two were lost fumbles. Despite these chances, Northwestern's hamstrung offense largely failed to capitalize, gaining only 14 points off all of the turnovers combined.

Northwestern's second touchdown was a nifty throw by Dan Persa to Drake Dunsmore, one of his few quality throws. That, along with a 47 yard field goal by Stefan Demos would comprise all of Northwestern's offense on the day.

But, it was enough.

Northwestern, in an almost mirror image of last week, entered the half leading 14-10. The third quarter was uneventful, a slug fast back and forth with the only play of note being a missed 46 yard field goal on a tough angle by Iowa's kicker Daniel Murray.

The fourth quarter was really where all the excitement happened - as it does in most Iowa games. The 'Cats started the quarter with Demos' aforementioned field goal to take a 17-10 lead.Iowa got the ball back but, between Brandon Wegher getting stuffed at the line on most run plays and Vandenberg overshooting his receivers, gave it right back to Northwestern after six plays.

This next drive featured perhaps the worst coaching move by Fitz I've seen all season. On 4th and 1 in their own territory, Northwestern simultaneously executed a perfect QB sneak for a first down and a timeout. The timeout wiped out the first down and forced Northwestern to punt. I'm not entirely sure what happened - it seems almost as though Fitzgerald panicked at the last minute and changed his mind, but the screw up was an incredibly bad break for the team.

Iowa managed to drive to midfield on their subsequent possession, but the game was almost ended by a Quentin Davie interception - except he couldn't hang on to the ball. Between that play and the botched fourth down conversion it felt as though the fates were aligning against Northwestern. Could they hold on? Would Iowa pull another rabbit out of their hat?

Fortunately, the answer was no. Kirk Ferentz had no more magic left. Northwestern ran down the clock to just over two minutes and Iowa, with no timeouts remaining, got the ball back for one last try. Vandenberg managed to gain a single first down before turning the ball over on downs as a result of several incomplete passes. After this, Northwestern took a knee and the victory.

Before I get into my complete impressions, a word about the officiating in the fourth quarter. There were several questionable non-calls, most for pass interference, on Iowa's last drive. I find this unfortunate, as I am always a believer in solid officiating - I'd rather not see the NCAA become the NBA, if you know what I mean. Personally, though, I don't think Iowa fans have a right to complain. Last week, Indiana was screwed out of at least two touchdowns and perhaps some pass yardage after questionable officiating. In that game, the breaks went Iowa's way, in this one they didn't. Perhaps it was referee karma.

So, what does this game all mean? Well, for Northwestern, as I mentioned above, it pretty much secures a bowl berth. It's not going to be a good bowl, and I won't really consider it much of an achievement after last year, but at the least we're not staying home in the winter.

Iowa has placed themselves behind the 8 ball for their conference championship and BCS hopes. If they manage to win out, their victory over Penn State guarantees a trip to Pasadena and a likely date with the Ducks. They can also still go to the Rose Bowl with another loss if Penn State comes back against Ohio State this afternoon. If, however, Ohio State wins out (including this afternoon) they will once again be Big 10 champions. Penn State could also secure the championship for themselves if they beat Ohio State this afternoon, AND defeat Michigan State and Indiana, AND Iowa loses to either OSU or Minnesota. Whew. Quite the muddled situation, eh?

As far as the BCS goes, Iowa is almost certainly shut out of the championship game. Their road was always difficult, given the dominance of Florida, Texas, and Alabama. Now it's almost certain that, barring everything in the rest of the season going right, they will be looking at the Rose Bowl as their best bowl option.

That's the way the situation looks right now but... you know what? I really don't care. I'm happy. This was an awesome game. I'm going to go enjoy the beautiful Chicago weather. See you next week for the Northwestern / Illinois rivalry game.

Go U! NU!

There's A Game on Saturday? Just Northwestern

Oops Pow Surprise — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 08:11:09 -0000

More photos » by Nam Y. Huh - AP

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Iowa has one opponent between themselves and a 10-0 season... and that opponent is just Northwestern. Problems? No problems here, nosiree.

What Northwestern will need to win the game

To put it plainly, perfection. Regardless of whether he's on the Cats' injury list, Mike Kafka's hamstring cannot be 100%--not if it kept him out of the PSU game while Daniel Persa ineffectualled his way to a 21-point loss. It's not Persa's fault that the jNWU defense turned into the slighest webs of spider's silk and wishes, ready to be burst through by the weakest of Zugs; it is Persa's fault that the Wildcat offense was totally unable to recover when necessary.

But Kafka's back, his hamstring having healed enough to win Bitchpatrick's trust, and the 7-yard slant is back in play. For Iowa, that requires a schematically different approach, all as Norm Parker continues to recover from more diabetes- and infection-related foot problems. So it goes with all that; just ask Ron Santo.

The more involved the coaching staff is with the Iowa preparation this week, the more we'll probably see wacky plays like Brodercik Binns and/or Adrian Clayborn dropping into flat responsibility, even if it's just to get a mitt on the ball on a 2nd and 10 or so. Keep in mind that a defender can completely alter a game without registering tackles, sacks, forced fumbles and recoveries. The last three are fleeting glory stats, and the first is something that pales in comparison to receiving double-teams the whole game or otherwise forcing a quarterback out of his comfort zone.

jNWU is going to have to be on the high end (or higher) of their probablility scale to have a decent chance at winning this game;

What Iowa needs to do to win the game

Just don't fuck this up. Let Wegher get 20 carries, even if the first 16 carries resulted in 16 total yards; he'll just be overdue at that point. Northwestern does not have an admirable rush defense, but Iowa will struggle to rush for at least two of the game's four quarters; that's just how we do.

On defense, unless Arby Fields has the game of his life awaiting, Iowa is going to put forth one of their better defensive performances on the season. There's too much uncertainty in the jNWU backfield to expect more than 21 points; Iowa offense, then, this is your baseline. You dip below at your season's mortal peril.

But though jNWU's defense has its stout moments, it also has its epic parade of suck, and that has every chance of being on display Saturday afternoon.The depth chart is in tatters, Corey Wootton's at the same percentage of effectiveness as his knee (currently 80% or so), and if any of them tweak a ligament it's avalanche time.

Really, it's just that easy; #4 Iowa should beat a mediocre team by much more than the 17 points they're giving on Saturday. Every game's been close? But of course; you're just right where Iowa (and Vegas) wanted you.

Prediction

34-10, Iowa. This is a secondary that a decent Ricky Stanzi tears to shreds--even with a hobbled Trey Stross--and we are fantastically underwhelmed by this Northwestern offense choosing between an immobile Kafka and an ineffective Dan Persa. A defensive touchdown is totally in play here.

This convincing win, coupled with Vanderbilt's stunning upset in Gainesville (oh, it's coming, and if it doesn't happen then Tim Tebow totally cheated) will put Iowa in the top 3 of the BCS--and that's before Texas forfeits their season on account of Colt McCoy being indicted on dogfighting charges.

Hey, why not, right?

It Was A Slow Turning Engine: Penn State 34, Northwestern 13

Kevin HD — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 19:04:21 -0000

More photos » by Nam Y. Huh - AP

about 1 month ago: Northwestern quarterback Mike Kafka, right, fumbles the ball during the first quarter of an NCAA college football game against Penn State's Jack Crawford in Evanston, Ill., Saturday, Oct. 31, 2009.(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

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It was an easy start for Northwestern against a BBDS defense that came out in its softest form. Poor tackling and bad angles helped with Wildcats score early and easily with six and ten-yard gains all the way down the field. Before being injured, Kafka was taking the easy slant routes and running successfully when the zone defense spread out too thin.

A lot of the game wrap-ups today cite Kafka's injury as the setback Northwestern would never overcome, but I'm not sure he would have maintained his early consistency. The veteran quarterback was also completing 77% of his passes, 10 points higher than the season average he has posted against lesser defenses. I suspect we would have seen some regression to the mean.

Northwestern was winning the game by working long drives that kept the ball away from Daryll Clark. They ended up in 19 third down situations against Penn State's defense, the most any team has totaled all season, and converted early. Combine that with the free downs (we'll get to that in a second), and the best defense was a slow, clock eating offense.

The turnover stat in the second half read Penn State 0, Northwestern 1; as often happens in football, the stats fail us here.

Three times the defense forced a punt, only to see possession slip away through mistakes. A late hit turned a 4th and short into a first down. The punt return team had an illegal substitution that allowed the Wildcats to keep the ball. Finally, and most painfully, was the fumbled snap on a Northwestern punt that they somehow back-yard-balled into a first down that could have ended with Penn State ball inside the red zone.

Northwestern ran the kind of "you'll have to throw to win" defense we saw a lot of earlier in the year, yet Penn State was too stubborn to counter it. Corey Wootton, who played as well as expected, led a blowing-up of the Penn State o-line that never allowed Royster to get any momentum.

It wasn't until almost 25 minutes into the game that the offensive brain trust did the obvious: five passes, two QB runs (one a busted play), zero Royster carries, and the first Penn State touchdown.

In the end Clark finished with 274 yards and a QB rating a couple points above his average. Royster had 118 yards, but just a 3.3 average excluding his 69-yard TD run.

The defense fixed the holes and posted a second half shutout, but they'll have to play a complete game next week if they want to beat Ohio State.

Lions, and tigers, and 'Cats! Oh My: Northwestern Delays the Inevitable But Falls to Penn State, 34-13

hmlee — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:32:54 -0000

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Before this game, Pat Fitzgerald said he wanted the Wildcats to go out and play 60 minutes of quality football. Well, he got about 45. Going into the half, Northwestern led Penn State 13-10. Going into the fourth quarter, Northwestern and Penn State were tied, 13-13. And then the wheels came off, as has happened so many times this year. Except this time there would be no late game magic, no 25 point come back, no last second Stefan Demos field goal for the win. This time, when the game clock ticked down its final seconds on Saturday, there was just the end. The end to a game that started out so promising, to an epic upset in the making.

And yet... beyond the situation with Mike Kafka, which I'll get to below, I'm not that disappointed. Sure, I'm disappointed on a season level - this has not been the year I thought it was going to be. But, disappointed in this game? Not so much. I rated Northwestern's chances of stealing this one coming into this week at 10-15%. We had the momentum coming off the epic Indiana comeback, but Penn State had been rolling lately and their defense had overtaken Iowa in the stats. A win against them would be huge, but it would not come lightly, trap game or no. I knew this, and so seeing the result, I am only somewhat let down. My only sadness comes from what could have been.

Indeed... what could have been. This game started out well enough, with Northwestern holding their own against a #12 ranked Nittany Lions team. This time, the 'Cats didn't find themselves looking at a three score deficit before they got on the board. They held the Nittany Lions to a field goal on their first drive, and then answered with one of their own on a 34 yarder by Demos. The receivers were focused and sure handed while Kafka seemed to mystify the PSU defense with quick screen and slant passes. The game would remain tied at 3 through the end of the first quarter, and the 'Cats kept up the tit-for-tat in the next one. Kafka sprinted into the end zone on a 14 yard scramble for a touchdown to open it, and all of a sudden the Wildcats were up 10-3.

Then the middle of the second quarter came.

And Kafka got hurt.

The defense tried valiantly to keep Northwestern in this game, but in the next two and a half quarters with Dan Persa, the backup QB under center, the 'Cats would only pull out three more points on another Demos field goal. That field goal would have Northwestern up by 3 going into the half, but the offense remained stalled.

Kafka was on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, and the Wildcats just weren't the same...

Graham makes an argument that Minnesota should bench starting QB Adam Weber...

My take on the insanity that was Northwestern's comeback against Indiana in week 8...

Penn State answered the Northwestern field goal shortly into the third quarter, tying the score at 13. The NU defense led by a surprisingly lively Corey Wootton kept things close, but the time of possession difference wore them out. The NU defense was on the field for 11:02 in the third, compared to only 3:58 for the offense. They just got ground down.

Starting in the fourth quarter, the next three PSU possessions would result in touchdowns. Northwestern and Dan Persa simply had no answer. Persa, though he tried, just couldn't complete the type of screens and slants that Kafka and his laser arm had connected on earlier in the game. Northwestern hasn't really had a run game this season, so the loss of the passing game basically sealed things for the 'Cats. I give immense credit to receivers Andrew Brewer and Zeke Markshausen - both made plays and took hits in an effort to keep the offense going, but it was too little, too late.

The question then, of course, is whether having Mike Kafka in the game would have changed the outcome. I can't answer that question with any certainty. Kafka was having success against PSU when he was playing, and I do think he would have connected on some of the throws and perhaps scrambled away from some of the sacks that plagued Persa. But... ultimately, it wasn't Persa who allowed three touchdowns in three subsequent possessions. The defense played well for 45 minutes but I don't know that having Kafka under center would have meant that the D would have lasted for the whole 60. Even if Kafka's presence accounted for two more touchdowns (which is being optimistic), if the defense didn't also play better, Northwestern still would have lost by seven.

So where does this leave Northwestern? The 'Cats have three games left on the season. They need one win to be bowl eligible and seal a date in Detroit. Their next three opponents are Iowa, Illinois, and Wisconsin. Only one of those games looks to be ripe for a win, but it's a road game in Champaign and Illinois just steamrolled Michigan. If Kafka is healthy and returns to form, the 'Cats should be able to take that game or steal one from Iowa or Wisconsin. If Kafka isn't healthy....

Well...

Let's just not think about that, shall we? Until next week...

GO U! NU!

Malicious Internet Interrogation With Lake The Posts

BSD — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 13:30:25 -0000

More photos » by Jim Prisching - AP

about 1 month ago: Northwestern's Sidney Stewart (5) and Brendan Mitchell (80) celebrate with fans after Northwestern's 29-28 victory over Indiana in an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 24, 2009, in Evanston,Ill. (AP Photo/ Jim Prisching)

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This week Lake The Posts, a very fine Northwestern blog, was kind enough to tell us about the Wildcats and give us his perspective on the game this Saturday. He promised not to use any smart school words us state university educated people can't understand.

You guys aren't still mad about that whole 2005 thing, are you?

Not nearly as much as 2001! You'll see how the '01 game is the most underrated part of the demise of the most promising season we had. But yes, I was in the Cincinnati airport listening to the play-by-play of the Robinson-fumble game and nearly had police take me in to custody in the final minute of that game. Thanks for opening up that painful scab. Can we revisit 1995 please?

No. I don't remember anything between 1994 and 2005.

Before the season, Northwestern fans were pretty upbeat coming off of a 9-4 season and a narrow loss to Missouri in the Alamo Bowl. How would you say this season to date has met your expectations?

Abysmally short. The "realistic worst case scenario" heading in to the marquee home game of the year - Penn State - was 6-2. Most of us felt 7-1 was likely with the loss to Sparty being the lone loss. The reason for the optimism was the return of almost our entire defense including what was touted as the best secondary in school history. However, we've been absolutely decimated by injuries. By now you know we have likely 3 starters of our secondary out for Saturday and several back-ups out. No joke, Ricky Weina, an unrecruited walk-on played the entire second half at CB. Hence Fitz's predictions "guaranteeing" Penn State will throw "at least 10 deep balls" on Saturday. Our pre-season All-American Corey Wootton, an absolute DE terror last season has been painfully slow to recover from his blown knee in the Alamo Bowl. It is tough to watch as he hasn't been able to come close to playing to his '08 level.

When I saw Northwestern's poor rushing statistics I thought they must not be trying to run the ball much. But it turns out as a team they have 313 rushing attempts versus 305 passing attempts on the season, so they are trying to run the ball. Would you say the lack of production is more a function of the offensive line struggling or the lack of a feature running back to carry the load?

Wow. That number surprises me. The answer is both. Our OL has been terrible - again, a perceived strength since we return most of the starters but we also lack a traditional Damien Anderson/Jason Wright/Tyrell Sutton playmaker at RB. Mike Kafka, our QB is our best rusher, however our 4^th string RB, Scott Concannon showed the first glimpse of hope at that spot last week by making guys miss and he was brilliant on the game-winning drive. He earned the starting nod this week. Kafka is getting 15 or so rushes per game so you can significanty reduce the touches by our true RBs.

Northwestern's passing defense is middle-of-the-road in the Big Ten right now. Being a defensive-minded coach, this has to be driving Fitz nuts. Is the problem a lack of experience? Is it a lack of talent? Is it injuries? What does Northwestern need to get better?

See above. Injuries. When we're healthy, we're very good. Sherrick McManis is a star CB - a true star on any Big Ten team, yet he's now out for Saturday. It's all injuries. When we lost one of our starters in the secondary for the ‘Cuse game, they just picked on then 3^rd string Demetrius Dugar and Mike Williams picked him apart for nearly 200 yards. I can't remember a unit being so plagued by injuries. Despite the alleged upgrade in recruiting under Fitz, depth is still not our strength. If our 4 starting DBs were playing, I'd actually feel promise for Saturday. With the injury-depleted replacements (we have 2 back-ups out with injury) I fear for a long day. Clark should throw all day downfield.

I'm assuming some Penn State games this year. Where do you think the Wildcats will try to exploit the Nittany Lion defense when they have the ball?

NU hasn't really altered the offensive gameplan against anyone, other than throwing downfield more last week vs Indiana. We are extremely deep and talented at WR and walk-on, turned scholarship senior Zeke Markshausen is one of the surprise stories not only at NU, but in all of the Big Ten this season. He had 1 catch in his career prior to '09 and he has 58 this season, including 16 in a game at Michigan State. Kafka is extremely accurate until the 2^nd half of last week when he threw 3 really bad INTs. We dink and dunk downfield and take the occasional 20-30 yard strike. Andrew Brewer has finally emerged as the true playmaker we knew he could be. I expect us to continue to throw 45+ times this weekend and see if Concannon can establish any kind of a ground game. We've yet to face a D anything close to Penn State, so we shall see.

And how do you think Fitzgerald will scheme to stop the Penn State offense?

I've got to believe you'll see one of the more aggressive blitz packages to date. If we give Clark any time it's over early. We're going to have to create a slew of turnovers - a la 2005 - to have any shot.

Care to make a prediction?

Penn State 41 NU 20

Thanks LTP. Good luck on your season.