Speculation only goes so far.
For Northwestern’s linebackers, there were doubts entering the 2007 season. The unit lost two starters, Nick Roach and Demetrius Eaton, to graduation. A handful of potential replacements entered training camp with minimal in-game experience.
But while outside sources deemed the corps as rebuilding, the players themselves expressed different feelings.
With the departure of two starters, seniors Adam Kadela and Eddie Simpson knew their roles would increase. But rather than worry about the loss, the pair embraced the opportunity to up their responsibilities.
“They don’t know who’s coming up,” Simpson said of the doubters. “For us, it’s taking the challenge and stepping up to the plate. Every year, if somebody leaves, another guy has to take ownership to try and become the guy.”
Kadela has taken that challenge, with 92 tackles in nine starts this season. His work ethic shines at a position that head coach and former linebacker Pat Fitzgerald described as “not necessarily about the glory.”
“He just does a great job in a leadership role and that’s why he’s playing at a higher level,” Fitzgerald said. “He’s seeing things happen before they happen on the field.”
The method to that is 12 hours per week of film study, according to Kadela. His work in prodding teammates to prepare mentally has helped shape a new breed of playmakers for NU’s defense this season.
Juniors Prince Kwateng and Malcolm Arrington entered training camp with 22 combined career tackles. Through nine games, the regularity of play has sparked a huge change: 56 combined tackles, a blocked punt (Arrington) and forced fumble (Kwateng).
“They had some idea of what it was like to go out there on the field and play,” linebackers coach Randy Bates said. “The biggest thing was they did a great job of preparing this season.
One of the biggest challenges at the linebacker position is the task of playing multi-faceted roles. The defensive line focuses on the quarterback. The secondary focuses on the receivers. That leaves the men in the middle with more on their plate: recognizing run versus pass, zone coverage and stopping gaps to prevent plays from entering the secondary.
With added experience in the middle from veterans, handling those duties grows easier for the younger players.
“It helps a lot to help them understand the tempo and how fast the reads will be in game first practice,” Simpson said. “That extra niche helps a lot experience-wise. For the most part, you have to be confident in yourself and study well.”
Bates said he has seen stark improvement in his team’s skills this season, pointing to improved tackling. A key to that improvement is proper management of personnel, which Bates alluded to as a huge part for his position in asserting the right gameplan.
“Some are better at pass than run, and some are better at run than pass,” Bates said. “We try to use those players to their strengths because we don’t have as many experienced guys. As they get experience, they’ll get better at what they’re more deficient at.”
With three games remaining on the schedule, Bates said the biggest excitement for his linebackers is the continued opportunity to improve. And if he is unable to detect things to fix, another source is right there.
To him, Fitzgerald gives the team a “linebacker mentality.”
“He stresses defense, being physical, and being aggressive,” Bates said. “It relates really well to my position and it’s great to have a guy who has coached there because he sees things sometimes that I may not. It just helps those linebackers to be better players.”
Reach Chris Gentilviso
