Coach Pat Fitzgerald needed one word to describe the Wildcats’ tackling on Saturday: “Awful.”
Northwestern has struggled to bring its opponents to the turf in previous games this year, but it was particularly evident against Minnesota.
Linebackers usually lead the defense in tackles, and coming into the game, junior Quentin Davie was tops on the team with 21 takedowns. On Saturday, five of NU’s six top tacklers were defensive backs.
“(The tackling) can be a lot better,” senior cornerback Sherrick McManis said. “And that’s what we’re going to work on. It’s not like we can’t do it. Tackling is a whole ‘want to,’ and you have to focus. We’ve just got to make plays that we’re capable of making. We’re not doing anything extraordinary or spectacular. Just being consistent.”
Defense wasn’t the only place where the Cats failed to wrap up. They also slacked on special teams. The Gophers averaged 26.2-yards-per-return on five kickoffs, compared with the Cats’ 15.7 yards. Minnesota likely would have scored a touchdown on its first return of the game if it weren’t for a Stefan Demos tackle.
“They had the same return every time,” Fitzgerald said. “We’ve got to coach them better. We’ve got to do a better job of executing what’s expected. And when we do that, we’ll play better and we’ll win.”
Keeping it simple
Through three quarters, all of Gophers quarterback Adam Weber’s 11 completions had gone to either wide receiver Eric Decker or tight end Nick Tow-Arnett. The duo had combined for one touchdown and 136 yards through the air.
“Deck runs great routes,” Fitzgerald said. “It seems like when Weber gets in any way, shape, or form flushed, or he’s off the playbook at all, he knows right where he’s going. And those two work really well together. Nick is one of the most underrated tight ends in the league. He runs well, he blocks well at the point of attack and he’s a very good football player.”
It wasn’t until around 13 minutes left in the final period when someone other than Decker or Tow-Arnett caught a pass. On Minnesota’s opening drive of the fourth quarter, Weber completed a 27-yard pass to Brandon Green, who led all receivers in the final quarter with two catches for 37 yards.
No home run hitter
The Cats have notched at least one big play in each of their three games this year. Against Towson, senior wide receiver Andrew Brewer hauled in a 72-yard touchdown catch. Against Eastern Michigan, Ben Johnson had a 70-yard interception return for a touchdown. Against Syracuse, Kafka and Brewer hooked up for a 39-yard touchdown pass.
On Saturday, NU was unable to come up with this big play. The Cats’ longest play on the day was a 24-yard touchdown pass from Kafka to Brewer. They came close in the fourth quarter when senior wide receiver Sidney Stewart beat the coverage over the middle, but he was unable to catch up to Kafka’s pass.
Still, Kafka said the team didn’t do anything different this week against Minnesota.
“We just wanted to take what the defense gives us,” Kafka said. “We did a good job of that. It comes down to big plays, and they made more than we did.”
Quick hits:
Senior superback Brendan Mitchell caught his first touchdown pass of the year and the second of his career in the loss. … NU has lost back-to-back games for the first time since losing to Purdue and Iowa in 2007. … Minnesota now leads the all-time series with NU 50-30-5.
