Have you heard of Tyrell Sutton?
That’s the question commentators on sports media outlets asked after Saturday’s game. Sutton torched Wisconsin for a career-high 244 yards rushing, averaged 8.4 yards per carry and scored four touchdowns.
“He’s a good running back, I really didn’t know much about him going into the game,” Wisconsin running back Brian Calhoun said.
It will be difficult for Sutton to sneak up on anybody anymore, as he passed Calhoun and became the nation’s second leading rusher after his performance against the Badgers. Sutton was nominated for the Cingular Wireless/ABC Sports All-America Player of the Week for the second time this season.
“It’s not surprising,” Northwestern senior wide receiver Mark Philmore said. “There’s a reason he’s Mr. Ohio. He might be little, but he packs a powerful punch.”
Sutton was held to 11 yards on five carries in the first quarter.
With the Wildcats seemingly content to run out the clock before halftime, Sutton converted a 3rd-and-1 by scampering 28 yards to the Wisconsin 42-yard line. The run not only doubled Sutton’s production to that point, but it also set up NU’s 21-yard field goal to close the Cats to within a touchdown.
“It definitely did get me going,” Sutton said of the run. “It sparked something in me.”
It also began the Cats’ 30-10 run, which turned out to be too much for Wisconsin to overcome.
Even though Sutton broke the Cats’ freshman season record for rushing yards in just five games, his effort was not perfect.
With NU leading by 10 and about three-and-a-half minutes remaining, Sutton lost his second fumble of the season. It gave Wisconsin the ball in NU territory but did not end up costing the Cats.
“I guess you can’t take the fight out, but there’s a time you just want to squeeze it and get down and not let it come out,” NU coach Randy Walker said. “We really had a chance to put the game away at that point.”
NU went back to Sutton in its next possession, continuing to show confidence in the true freshman.
Sutton, Ohio’s 2004 Mr. Football, dropped a pass early in the fourth quarter that would have put the Cats 2nd-and-goal from the one-yard line. But NU senior quarterback Brett Basanez tried an almost identical throw on the next play, and Sutton caught the first touchdown pass of his young career.
The Cats gave Sutton the ball five out of seven plays on the next drive, which he capped off with a 62-yard touchdown run – his longest career run.
“He ran through a lot of tackles, but there were a lot of missed tackles,” Wisconsin coach Barry Alvarez said. “But he’s a strong, strong runner.
“I thought that was key, that they could establish the run.”
Before facing Sutton, the Badgers were 10th in the nation in rush defense, giving up fewer than 78 yards on the ground a game. They fell 22 spots in those rankings after Sutton’s performance.
With his 11 rushing touchdowns so far, Sutton moved to eighth in NU history in rushing touchdowns in a season. His 244 yards on the ground is the sixth-best single-game effort in Cats history.
“He broke a lot of tackles and proved that he’s a good running back,” Calhoun said.
Reach Abe Rakov at [email protected]
