A bye week in September would usually seem too early in the season.
But for the Northwestern football team, an extra week of preparation is just what the doctor ordered. The Wildcats need to flush their 21-14 loss at Army and get ready for their Big Ten opener at in-state rival, Illinois.
No NU fan wants this year’s battle for the Land of Lincoln Trophy to be anything like last year’s meeting at Wrigley Field. And the Cats’ best chance to leave Champaign with a victory against a likely undefeated Illinois squad will be for Chicago’s Heisman Candidate to make his debut.
That’s why the additional time in between games is extremely timely, because it equals more time for Dan Persa’s Achilles to heal.
When NU announced Chicago’s Heisman Candidate was inactive for the season opener at Boston College, October 1st in Champaign became the next logical target date for his return.
Sure, Cats fans would have preferred Persa over redshirt freshman Trevor Siemian for that final drive with the game on the line at West Point.
But the cautious and longer rehab process makes sense for a team that has the goal of playing in the inaugural Big Ten championship game, not running the table against non-conference opponents. With Notre Dame having exposed Michigan State’s flaws, Ohio State coping with life after Jim Tressel and Iowa’s major fumble against Iowa State, the road to Pasadena may be as wide open as it has been in a while.
Persa’s comeback won’t eliminate special teams’ miscues or lower the number of missed tackles. Nonetheless, the return of the star quarterback who helped create a buzz for NU football entering this season that I haven’t seen in four years at this university should boost the morale of his own teammates.
As long as these extra weeks off help Persa fully recover, the Cats offense should open up its playbook moving forward. NU’s 227 rushing yards against Boston College, last year’s nationally top-ranked rushing defense, was a revelation, but the Cats will need a more balanced attack to compete in conference play.
A more balanced attack should translate into more opportunities for senior wide receiver Jeremy Ebert to do to Big Ten defenses what he did Saturday against the Black Knights. And maybe senior superback Drake Dunsmore, speedy sophomore wide receiver Venric Mark and the highly touted true freshman wide receiver Christian Jones will become more relevant when the Cats finally start airing out the ball.
All signs are pointing to Persa starting against Illinois, but we probably won’t know for sure until game day. But if Persa does indeed come back #persastrong against the Illini, NU fans will be as thankful for this bye week as they are that Wisconsin isn’t on the schedule.
Sports columnist Justin Schecker is a Medill senior. He can be reached at [email protected]
