Northwestern opened its third consecutive season with a 2-0 record after blowing out Towson and surviving Eastern Michigan.
NU welcomed FCS opponent Towson to kick off the year. The Wildcats jumped out to a 21-0 first quarter advantage against the Tigers and never looked back. NU dominated on the ground, rushing for five touchdowns and 221 yards. Sophomore Scott Concannon and freshman Arby Fields each found the endzone twice, while junior Stephen Simmons led all running backs with 77 total rushing yards.
Starting quarterback Mike Kafka led an efficient passing attack, completing 15-of-20 attempts for 192 yards. Sophomore backup quarterback Dan Persa connected with senior wide receiver Andrew Brewer for a 72-yard score. The touchdown was the first in both Persa’s and Brewer’s careers.
Despite the margin of victory, coach Pat Fitzgerald and players said they knew the team would have to correct its mistakes to be succesful in the upcoming weeks.
“We need to get better,” Kafka said. “There are some things we left out there that offensively, protection-wise, we need to get fixed up, and we will.”
NU got off to a similar start the next week against Eastern Michigan, outscoring the Eagles 21-3 in the first half. But the Cats’ lackadasical effort in the second half allowed the Eagles to turn a blowout into a nailbiter.
The Eagles rushed for 126 yards in the second half as their offensive line dominated NU’s defensive line. Several miscues, including a Kafka interception and a botched punt recovery, cost NU its lead.
With the game tied at 24, junior kicker Stefan Demos bailed the team out with a 49-yard game-winning field goal-only the third made field goal of his career. While the Cats slipped away with a victory, there were questions about NU’s ability to keep its foot on the pedal and avoid playing down to the competition.
“Our inability to not have penalties, to turn the ball over multiple times, put our defense in a tough situation,” Fitzgerald said. “We need to respond to that better; to put the fire out.”
After a 37-34 road loss at Syracuse, NU’s record was 2-1 through three games.
Next up the Cats open Big Ten play by hosting Minnesota on Saturday.
