Reggie McPherson saw it.

In the eyes of Wisconsin quarterback John Stocco, the extra defensive back in Northwestern’s “prevent” package found a fleeting chance to make up for past mistakes. He waited for the receiver to break, saw Stocco throw, then dove.

And he snagged it.

Redemption.

“There’s just some poetic justice there, isn’t there?” NU coach Randy Walker said, referring to McPherson’s fourth-quarter, potentially game-saving interception deep in Wisconsin territory. The pick sealed a wild, 51-48 win for the Wildcats (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) at Ryan Field on Saturday.

Two weeks earlier the sophomore safety played the part of NU scapegoat. His botched coverage and missed tackle on a last-minute touchdown that helped Penn State to a 34-29 win and sent NU reeling into its bye week.

McPherson also was part of a secondary that gave up 326 yards and four touchdowns to the Badgers, nearly undoing a record-setting performance by NU’s explosive offense. Two of these touchdowns came late in the fourth quarter as No. 14 Wisconsin (5-1, 2-1) quickly chopped NU’s lead from 17 points to three, giving the game a feeling eerily similar to the Penn State showdown in which the Cats squandered a 16-point lead.

But with one play, all was erased.

“(The Penn State game) was a hard loss for the team, for me,” McPherson said. “I just had to bounce back – and I had the opportunity and made the big play.”

Before McPherson’s heroics spoiled outgoing Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez’s final trip to Evanston, the Cats offense broke out for a school-record 674 yards and scored touchdowns on six-straight second-half possessions. The Cats reached the 50-point mark for the first time since 2000.

Marred by red zone futility in its first four games, NU reached the end zone on five of seven trips inside Wisconsin’s 20. The other two possessions resulted in a first-half-ending field goal and NU running out the clock after McPherson’s interception.

“We just had it in the back of our minds to score (touchdowns) every time,” senior wide receiver Mark Philmore said. “Don’t leave anything on the field. Don’t have our kicker kicking field goals.”

In the first half, the offense appeared unimproved from two weeks ago, when it settled for five Joel Howells field goals and just two touchdowns. NU trailed 17-10 and Wisconsin held the ball for 19:46, compared to the Cats’ 10:14.

After the second-half kickoff, a new NU offense appeared. The Cats exploded for 41 points and 458 yards, making the nation’s No. 29 scoring defense look less than pedestrian behind senior quarterback Brett Basanez and freshman running back Tyrell Sutton. Basanez finished 26 of 36 for 361 yards and three touchdowns, with 69 yards and one touchdown on the ground. Sutton ran 29 times for 244 yards and three touchdowns.

The turnaround, which Walker said resulted from fewer mistakes and penalties, reached its climax on a 62-yard Sutton touchdown run that gave the Cats a 51-34 lead with 4:22 remaining.

“We feel as though every time we step on the field, it’s showtime,” Philmore said. “It doesn’t matter how many points the other team scores, we feel we can outscore them.”

But they almost didn’t.

After the Sutton touchdown, Wisconsin came roaring back. Stocco and wide receiver Jonathan Orr connected on two of their four touchowns while the NU offense stalled with penalties and a Sutton fumble.

With the score 51-48, an NU three-and-out gave Stocco and the Badgers a chance with 1:23 remaining, though a Ryan Pederson punt out of bounds pinned Wisconsin at its own 3-yard line.

“I completely thought we would go down and score,” Stocco said. “(It was) just a mistake on my part. I was trying to hit (Orr) over the middle, and (McPherson) made a nice play.”

The comeback, though unsuccessful, continued a trend of offensive success against the porous NU defense. The Cats fell one spot to No. 116 in total defense, allowing 515 yards. NU struggled to defend star running back Brian Calhoun, who ran for 122 yards, caught 11 passes for 128 yards and scored a touchdown.

Senior linebacker Tim McGarigle made 25 tackles, 15 solo, with two sacks and 3.5 tackles for a loss, but he missed several tackles early.

“It was a bittersweet victory defensively,” McGarigle said. “We gave up 48 points, which is unacceptable in the Big Ten.”

As the fans trickled onto the field, the defense’s struggles were forgotten as the students mobbed NU’s many offensive stars – and one unlikely defensive zero-turned-hero.

“Reggie has worked extremely hard,” Walker said. “It’s just redeeming and positive and good, and there’s just something smiling down on us today.”

Reach Patrick Dorsey at [email protected]