Randy Walker wanted to get something through to his team this week – and he wasn’t above using a potty mouth to do it. In fact, he wanted more than just the group of guys squatting around him in shoulder pads to hear what was he was saying.
The message was clear — he isn’t throwing in the towel just yet.
Beginning on Saturday with Iowa (4-4, 2-4 Big Ten), Northwestern enters a final stretch of games that will determine its bowl status. To remain above .500 and to qualify for the postseason, the Wildcats (4-4, 2-4 Big Ten) need to win two of their last three games — a hefty task for a team that hasn’t felt the thrill of victory for nearly a month.
Not that the Hawkeyes are sitting pretty, either. Like NU, Iowa has won only one of its last five games – and Walker knows the two teams’ similarities don’t stop there.
“They’re a football team that’s probably a little bit like us — a little frustrated,” Walker said. “They came out of the box and played well early. They had high aspirations and high hopes. They were the buzz of the preseason media — and have struggled of late. So we have two teams at a crossroads — at a point where neither one expected or wanted to be, but finds themselves in nonetheless.”
The Cats will have to adjust to life without starting running back Damien Anderson, who is likely out for the season with a dislocated shoulder. Junior Kevin Lawrence will start in his spot.
“This team and my whole career has been about response, and that’s what we definitely need to do this week,” Anderson said on Monday. “We’re going to have a great test in Iowa.”
Iowa has had its share of injuries this season as well. Like the Cats, Iowa now starts backups on its defensive line and in its defensive backfield. Sophomore safety Bob Sanders, who notched 25 tackles against Indiana on Oct. 20, has been injured and hobbles into Evanston as a second stringer. Hawkeyes senior defensive back Matt Stockdale had surgery last week for injuries sustained during Iowa’s loss to Michigan on Oct. 27. The loss of both players could hamper one of the best defenses in the Big Ten.
Not that any of this makes the Cats’ job any easier. quarterback Zak Kustok said he expects the Hawkeyes to use the same formula that led them to an upset win last year — a strong, consistent defense. But unlike last year, Kustok believes the NU offense could keep Iowa off balance this time around.
“Our offense is a little different from other offenses they have been facing,” Kustok said. “But they had a great plan against us last year, so I don’t see them doing a whole lot different.”
The Hawkeyes bring a competitive offense of their own. Senior running back Ladell Betts averages 85 yards on the ground, and quarterback Kyle McCann has averaged 176 yards in the air.
But then there’s NU’s grudge from last year. The Cats’ late-season loss to Iowa kept them out of the Rose Bowl last January. Walker has cited that loss throughout this season as a textbook example of an opponent coming out strong when his team was flat. Unfortunately for NU, he’s had to reference it a lot.
“They physically dominated us a year ago,” Walker said. “It surprised a lot of people, but it didn’t surprise me. I saw them getting better and better as the year went on. They were really playing better down the stretch of the season, and I knew we were going to be in for a difficult game. They took the game to us in every aspect.”
While Walker laughs off any thought of avenging last year’s game, his players have a better memory of the devastating defeat.
“I want to punch Iowa in the mouth,” linebacker Pat Durr said.
