Football

It could have been Clayton Thorson’s fumble at the goal line to clinch a season-opening loss to Western Michigan. It could have been the last-second banked-in field goal that lifted Illinois State to an upset win. It could have been the thorough beatdown Nebraska delivered in Evanston, a game that only looked respectable thanks to two Cornhuskers fumbles in the end zone.

Northwestern’s first month was filled with disheartening moments, any one of which might have been enough for a Wildcat fan to write the season off. The luck that powered last season’s successes dried up. The defense was mortal, and the offense hadn’t stepped up to fill the gap. NU was 1-3, and the schedule was only getting tougher.

The only way to fully appreciate how much things have changed in the last three weeks is to recognize how dire things were before that fateful road trip to Iowa. In the course of one 38-31 victory over the Hawkeyes, the Cats went from a team down on its luck to one with some positive vibes. Two weeks later, after NU scorched the Michigan State defense to the tune of 54 points, the team is genuinely hot.

Coach Pat Fitzgerald deserves credit for staying the course, trusting his team was better than its record. The Cats didn’t play their best in the season’s first month, but they were a few breaks from coming out on top against the Broncos and surviving the Redbirds. Fitzgerald never panicked through the losses, sticking with the same lineup and same schemes until the results came.

Still, nothing about NU has really fit expectations. The Cats were supposed to start strong before running into games in Iowa City and East Lansing that they weren’t supposed to win. They were supposed to be led by the defensive stars that formed the nucleus of one of the best units in the country last season, but junior linebacker Anthony Walker has started slowly by his lofty standards, and injuries have left the defense with many questions to answer.

Senior wideout Austin Carr wasn’t supposed to be one of the best wide receivers in the Big Ten, but he leads the conference in receptions, receiving yards and receiving touchdowns. Junior running back Justin Jackson had high expectations coming into the year, but he was no guarantee to lead the Big Ten in rushing, as he does through six games. Thorson was supposed to take a step forward in his second season as the starter, but his performance in the last two games — a combined 45-of-65 for 445 passing yards and eight total touchdowns — is more like a quantum leap.

Put it all together and NU sits at 3-3 halfway through the schedule, back from the brink and with a serious shot at a bowl game. No game can be taken for granted, but the Cats should feel good about managing three wins from four games against Indiana, Minnesota, Purdue and Illinois to get to bowl eligibility.

It wasn’t the path NU was expected to take, but the destination makes sense. A 1-3 start was supposed to be the end of the Cats’ season. Instead, they’re right where they were supposed to be all along.

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