CHAMPAIGN – Ask Randy Walker to explain his fine line theory, the one that preaches how the smallest of margins separates an 8-3 champ from a 3-8 chump.

Pay close attention to his eyes. That’s the same look he had after last year’s pulse-prodding triumphs and this season’s back-breaking blowouts.

It’s the same gaze he had at Memorial Stadium on Thursday as he tried to explain his team’s moonwalk back to Big Ten obscurity. Throughout the peaks and valleys of the last two seasons, Walker has known the truth. He knew last year’s team was charmed, pulling colossal comebacks and crunchtime conquests out of its hat on a weekly basis. He knew this year’s squad would need an overdose of consistency and discipline to come close to last year’s miracle mark.

He understood the difference between a great team and a team that knew how to win, and he knew this year’s success hinged on his team’s ability to become the former.

“You pull three plays out of our season last year and we’re just another bunch of guys,” Walker said back in April. “Take three plays out, I can pick them out right now, and we are just another .500, 5-6 football team.”

Or 4-7, but that’s not the point.

While his position and pride prevent him from spewing it out, Walker’s eyes tell the story. He knew last December that the 2000 Wildcats were not great — they just knew how to win. He also knew on Thursday that the 2001 Cats is not this bad — they just were unable to grasp the winning edge.

In the last two years Walker has danced on both sides of that fine line, guiding his troops through a season where everything went right and another where everything went wrong. Now he faces the first true test in his Northwestern tenure — finding a balance and constructing greatness piece by piece.

Here are some key building blocks for Walker to use in staging NU’s balancing act:

• Fire Jerry Brown: Bless his heart, but Brown is well past his coaching prime. The NU defense has been a thorn piercing Walker’s side for two-and-a-half seasons and the blame must be placed at the top. This season’s offensive instability was all it took to expose a unit that didn’t stand a chance against the Big Ten’s bruising backs and flamethrowers. And the numbers don’t lie: 34.4 points per game, 204.9 rushing yards per game, 47 touchdowns, 271 first downs. That’s a rap sheet worthy of a scrapbook of pink slips — Brown’s time is up and he must bow out. The Cats need some new blood at the helm of a defeated defense — lame duck Notre Dame head coach Bob Davie or former Vanderbilt head coach Woody Widenhofer would be excellent replacements.

• Hand the reigns to the class of 2002: After serving as PR director for this year’s core of seniors, Walker must immediately forget about the Kustoks, Silvas and Andersons and fixate his attention on their successors. As hard as it is, he must accept that this year’s veterans failed; then he must make sure that next year’s emerging leaders carve a different path. He must look at Pat Durr, Jon Schweighardt and Jeff Roehl and tell them that this is their team and their legacy to forge. In order to buy into the theme of consistency, NU’s seniors-to-be will need to forget the highs and lows of the past two seasons and start over. An immediate advantage they have in motivating a turnaround is that they have been in the foxhole with many of the underclassmen who will crack the starting lineup in 2002.

• Run back to your roots: NU’s inability to establish a running attack until the 10th game of the season was inexcusable. The Cats’ overpowering offense of 2000 hinged on the feet of Damien Anderson and Zak Kustok. Walker’s plan to pass fizzled miserably from the outset — and unbelievably, the run seemed to be NU’s last resort. The Cats must play to their strength next season, and that’s an experience-laden group of runners. NU’s ground game allowed it to become the aggressor in every game last season — this year’s misguided focus resulted in first-quarter pummelings and insurmountable deficits. While Tony Stauss may be more capable than Kustok of crafting an aerial assault, Walker will be best served by keeping the ball with Kevin Lawrence, Torri Stuckey, Noah Herron and Co.

Throw in a prohibition on faceguarding on defense and new emphasis on hanging onto the football on offense and Walker has a nice little checklist to work with.

But the most important challenge for the coach is eliminating that fine line, ridding the extremes from his team and putting a product on the field that plays to its ability.

Until then, they’ll just be another bunch of guys.

Adam Rittenberg is a Medill junior. He can be reached at [email protected]