It has been a busy first three weeks for Northwestern football.
The Wildcats sit at 2-1 with wins over Miami (Ohio) and Eastern Illinois and a double overtime loss to Duke. NU has also made a starting quarterback change, with redshirt sophomore Jack Lausch replacing graduate transfer Mike Wright Saturday against the Panthers.
The ’Cats are certainly battle-tested. But, now comes the real trial: Big Ten play, starting with a trip to Seattle to face Washington Saturday night.
With conference play imminent, NU has shown both strengths and areas in need of significant improvement.
It starts with Lausch, who performed well in his first start against Eastern Illinois. The Chicago native was 20-of-31 for 227 yards and two touchdowns while adding 62 yards on the ground on seven carries.
Most of Lausch’s production came in the second half, and that’s expected for someone making their first collegiate start. It’s hard to evaluate Lausch as of now, but if Saturday was any indication, he can be a threat both in the air and on the ground.
However, Big Ten play — starting with the Huskies on Saturday night — is going to be a whole different challenge. When making the change to the redshirt sophomore, coach David Braun had to think Lausch gave the ’Cats the best chance to compete in conference play.
What NU needs the most is consistency through four quarters. There’s little margin for error against Big Ten defenses, and the ’Cats have to move the ball; They play Iowa, Ohio State and Michigan inside a month, three of the top four defenses in the Big Ten in 2023.
Outside of the signal-caller, the ’Cats have to rely on their veterans at the skill positions, including graduate student running back Cam Porter and graduate student wide receivers Bryce Kirtz and A.J. Henning. NU needs this dynamic trio to make Lausch’s job easier as he makes more starts.
So far, Porter has led the ’Cats’ rushing identity, and while they haven’t been able to establish consistency in the passing game, Lausch’s relationship with Kirtz and Henning will develop over time.
Defensively, NU is as prepared as it could be entering conference play. What’s been most impressive is NU’s rush defense, which is sixth in the nation, allowing 57.7 rushing yards per game. This is the ’Cats lowest value since 2000.
Right now, NU’s biggest strength on defense is the front seven. The ’Cats return All-Big Ten Third Team linebacker Xander Mueller, and redshirt junior linebacker Mac Uihlein has shown potential to be a budding star next to him.
If the defensive line is healthy, this pairs well to make one of the better front sevens in the conference. Defensive line coach Christian Smith’s unit has dealt with injuries early in the season, with redshirt sophomore defensive end Anto Saka and redshirt junior defensive end Carmine Bastone both missing games.
With Saka and Bastone returning sooner rather than later — paired with rushers Jaylen Pate, Najee Story, Aidan Hubbard and others — a defense that has nine sacks through three games may elevate its play even further.
The secondary is still a question mark, with redshirt sophomores Evan Smith, Robert Fitzgerald and Braden Turner all taking on larger roles this season. The level of competition is going to increase, and this is where NU’s secondary will have to adopt fast.
The ’Cats return key defensive backs — redshirt junior cornerback Theran Johnson, junior safety Devin Turner and graduate student safety Coco Azema — to a unit that was sixth in the Big Ten in 2023, allowing 182.9 passing yards a game.
In the first three weeks, the defense faced its fair share of talented opponents. NU held Brett Gabbert, who earned All-MAC honors in 2021 and 2023, and the defending MAC champions Miami (Ohio) to six points. The next week, the ’Cats held what figures to be a high-flying Duke offense led by Maalik Murphy to 13 points in regulation.
While there will be an increase in competition — the ’Cats will face quarterbacks like Washington’s Will Rogers and Ohio State’s Will Howard, to name a few — defensive coordinator Tim McGarigle’s unit was as tested as it could be over the first three weeks.
On both sides of the ball, the message is the same. Is there a lot unproven? Sure. But is NU prepared? I’d say yes.
The bottom line is that it is only going to get harder for the ’Cats as Big Ten play opens up. It’s up to Braun’s team to prove it’s ready for the challenges ahead.
That starts Saturday night, under the Husky Stadium lights in Seattle.
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