What went right:
The passing attack showed a lot of improvement on Saturday against Michigan State. The Spartans are known for their stout defense and to see the Wildcats moving the ball down the field was refreshing. The Cats sprinkled in some big plays but clearly not enough of them.
Junior quarterback Trevor Siemian showed he’s getting healthier and had some nice zip on some balls in the windy conditions. He also showed some toughness, fighting for every yard when he tucked and ran.
Senior kicker Jeff Budzien is now the Wildcats’ all-time scoring leader with 267 points. He broke the record with his first field goal, which put the Cats up 3-0 in the first quarter.
What went wrong:
Running successful plays in the red zone seems to be an incredible challenge for Northwestern. They were able to get deep in Spartans territory twice and only came away with field goals. That can’t happen when you are trying to upset a great team like Michigan State. You have to get touchdowns when you are that close. It’s demoralizing when a team can’t score from the two-yard line.
The play calling on offense has been really suspect this season. It’s obviously difficult when a star like senior running back Venric Mark is out for the year but some of the plays on third down are extremely questionable, like calling pass patterns that don’t even go past the first down marker.
The defense has been the best part of this dreadful season but the unit couldn’t prevent the big play. The Spartans’ offensive line dominated the Cats’ defensive line for most of the day, opening up holes for Spartan running backs to glide through for easy scores.
What it means:
You have to feel for this group of seniors, especially senior quarterback Kain Colter, who left early in the game with an upper extremity injury and didn’t return. It’s an awful way to go out at home in front of the fans, who came out in the freezing cold to watch this senior class go out. The Land of Lincoln battle next week will essentially be the Cats bowl game and last shot at winning a conference game this year.
— John Paschall
