Billy Silva doesn’t remember exactly when, but during a Wisconsin drive three weeks ago at Camp Randal Stadium, the Northwestern defense gathered on the field. A flash of the team’s last two years’ records — 3-9 in 1998 and 3-8 last year — had crossed Silva’s mind.
The middle linebacker had some inspirational words for the Wildcats, then 2-1.
“I told everybody on that defense, ‘I’m sick and tired of being a loser,'” Silva said Monday. “I mean, that’s what you are when you lose, and that’s what we were. We were losers. I think that’s something that’s had the biggest effect on this team — that everybody’s sick and tired of being a loser.
“And that’s one of the things that’s helped us win a lot.”
After hovering near the conference cellar for the past three years, the Cats (5-1, 3-0 Big Ten) have been the surprise team of the Big Ten this year. And after pulling two straight road upsets and winning against Indiana Saturday, NU is ranked No. 17.
But the Cats regard their ranking in an offhand manner.
“Someone just told me. We’re 17th?” coach Randy Walker said. “Umm. That’s kind of about how much I care. It’s not important. It’s really not.
“They have a real value at some point, but I don’t think they do right now. I’d rather be 5-1 with no votes than 1-5 with a bunch of votes.”
For their part, the players seem to embrace their coach’s mentality.
“Our philosophy on a ranked team is, a ranked team is a team that has a number in front of your name,” cornerback Harold Blackmon said. “We realize that now we’re a ranked team and teams are going to look at us like, ‘Hey, this is our chance to really prove who we are as a team.’ So we have to avoid letting teams get up on us.”
Associated Press votes could eventually help determine NU’s New Year’s Day plans — and at the Cats’ current pace, a winter trip out west or down south looks realistic.
NU is only one victory away from being bowl-eligible for the first time since 1996, when it earned a Citrus Bowl berth. But five more conference games loom on the schedule, and the Cats won’t be lulled by outside speculation and bleacher talk of postseason glory.
“People say, ‘Oh, but you guys have Iowa, and you have Minnesota,'” Silva said. “I mean, Iowa beat Michigan State (last week), which was a ranked team, and Minnesota beat Illinois (two weeks ago), which was a bowl team last year. There’s no pushovers in this league. We know that, and no matter what number is in front of our name, we’re going to go out there and we’re going to give it all we’ve got.”
Added Blackmon: “I’d be lying if I say (a bowl appearance) is not on the minds of a lot of players. We’re excited about possibly being in a bowl game, but we’re also excited about Purdue this week.”
In the meantime, Silva, a junior, won’t forget the path NU endured to reach its present high.
“If you win, everything is nice and dandy — it’s a nice picture,” Silva said. “In the back of our minds, we realize what happened in the past two seasons and we don’t want to go back there.”
INJURY UPDATE: NU wideout Sam Simmons, who aggravated a back injury against Indiana, will most likely sit out against Purdue Saturday at Ryan Field. Walker said Simmons will be evaluated on a day-to-day basis, but he is expected to return to the lineup against Minnesota on Oct. 28.
Replacing Simmons will be sophomore Louis Ayeni, who has worked mainly with special teams this year.
“We feel like he’s ready to play,” Walker said. “He has complete command of the offense, so we’re going to go with him.”
Wideout Derrick Thompson will replace Simmons as punt returner.
