With two games left in the season, Northwestern sits in third place in the Big Ten in rushing yards per game.
Seriously.
Even with star running back Jason Wright day-to-day with a badly sprained left ankle, the Wildcats are rushing — and rushing with authority.
While Wright may or may not be back to his old self against Michigan on Saturday, Cats fans shouldn’t be worried, not with the statistics Noah Herron has put up in his place.
Between all of the running backs that NU has employed this season — primarily Wright, Herron and Terrell Jordan — the team has racked up 184.1 yards per game, an improvement over last year’s 157.0 average (and good enough for 32nd in the nation).
Even a shaky Brett Basanez isn’t cause for worry anymore. His ratio of four touchdowns to 10 interceptions has become obscured by the team’s 22 rushing scores and head coach Randy Walker’s renewed faith in his ground game.
And, in case anyone forgot, Herron isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. While Wright won’t be gracing Ryan Field next year, Herron has another season in Evanston.
With Herron’s emergence Wright’s graduation won’t be such a calamitous event. All won’t be lost next season.
But Herron isn’t even first on the team’s depth chart behind Wright. Jordan is. The sophomore is currently injured but seems to have a bright future for the Cats.
Last year Wright was lauded as the second coming of Damien Anderson while Herron was largely ignored. Even in short yardage situations by the goal line — presumably the perfect place to use the big running back — Herron rarely touched the ball, constantly baffling many of the spectators. But all that changed when Wright injured his ankle.
Herron gets the ball more and more often now. And it’s not just because there isn’t anyone else: Herron has backed up that increased confidence in his abilities with his statistics. The redshirt junior has gained an impressive 5.7 yards per carry this year, just a bit higher than the 5.5 yards per carry gained by Jordan. Both statistics dwarf the numbers put up by Wright (4.4 average).
At many points last season it seemed as if Herron were in Walker’s doghouse. If so, he now appears to have proven his worth. By being a dependable back, Herron has ensured that he’ll play a bigger role in the backfield next season.
On a team with an inconsistent passing attack, such as the 2003 version of the Cats, a multi-threat running attack can be the difference between a poor season and a mediocre-to-good one.
The running game has always been Walker’s forte. The coach was a tailback during his playing career at Miami (Ohio) and his success with running backs is constantly touted.
So far Walker has had 22 1,000-yard seasons from his runners, including Wright last season. The coach has a chance to have his 23rd this year as Wright needs just 134 yards in his final two games to reach the magic number.
And, if Herron keeps up the pace he’s set for himself this season, Walker has a good shot at adding another notch to his belt with No. 24 — from No. 33 — next year.
