Three weeks into Northwestern’s season, alarm bells might have been ringing. The team marched into its first bye week with a losing record and without a defining performance from graduate student quarterback Preston Stone.
However, Saturday’s matchup with Louisiana-Monroe provided further evidence that the transfer quarterback is finding his way.
In the Wildcats’ (3-2, 1-1 Big Ten) 42-7 victory over the Warhawks (3-2, 1-0 SBC), Stone threw for a season-high 262 yards and three touchdowns.
“I think you’re seeing a young man that’s starting to find his rhythm,” coach David Braun said postgame. “When things were there in the passing game today, he took them. When they weren’t there, he used his feet to be efficient or extend plays.”
Before the week off following a loss to Oregon on Sept. 13, Stone had thrown for 541 yards with three touchdowns and six interceptions through three games. Against NU’s first two FBS opponents, the quarterback seemed uncomfortable, especially during a four-interception debut against Tulane.
When the time came to play against UCLA, though, Stone and the offense looked fit for the challenge in the first half, when the quarterback threw his first touchdown of the season against an FBS opponent and led the ’Cats to a 17-3 lead at the intermission.
A poised version of Stone emerged against ULM on Saturday. Mainly, Stone distributed the ball well to receivers not named Griffin Wilde, who had been his standalone go-to guy ahead of the UCLA matchup.
Sophomore wide receivers Drew Wagner and Hayden Eligon II each had a co-team-high seven targets, while graduate student tight end Hunter Welcing hauled in all four of his targets.
Additionally, en route to collecting NU’s first back-to-back wins since the 2023 season, Stone and the offense were efficient on third down. The ’Cats were 11-of-17 on third down and only punted on their final drive of the game.
Throughout the course of the contest, NU faced four third downs with ten or more yards to go. Stone converted three of them with completed passes.
The single unsuccessful attempt occurred with 14 yards to go, when Stone hit Wagner for a 13-yard gain. Redshirt sophomore running back Caleb Komolafe ran it up the middle on the next play for a first down.
Stone attributed the third down success to offensive coordinator Zach Lujan.
“We had a great game plan for third downs this week,” Stone said. “… Receivers came up big today making plays, so when they get that kind of separation, and I have that kind of time, it makes my job pretty easy.”
With Big Ten play officially fully in swing, the road ahead for Stone and the offense is a difficult one. Fortunately, Stone is a different quarterback than he was at the beginning of the season.
Braun said that the biggest difference in Stone before and after the week-long break is his mentality.
“I really think it comes down to him not pressing and feeling like he has to make an exceptional play every play,” Braun said. “He doesn’t have to week in and week out be the reason that we win.”
When Stone transferred to NU in the winter, he moved to a new part of the country with new coaches, teammates and opponents. The quarterback needing some time to adjust and find his rhythm is not a completely unexpected development.
Good things have come to the fans who waited for Stone.
Against ULM, Stone completed over 60% of his passes without throwing an interception for the second week in a row. Before the break, Stone had not accomplished such a feat against an FBS opponent.
For Stone, success against UCLA and ULM has come through trusting the process and taking ownership of the team’s preparation, while connections have started to break through.
“We definitely built up a ton of chemistry in spring ball and fall camp,” Stone said. “But, once you really start to stack those game reps, that’s done a lot for us. So, I think we’ll be able to keep that momentum going moving forward.”
Not only was Stone dynamic in the pocket, but he also was on his feet. On five attempts, Stone rushed for a season-high 49 yards.
His biggest play on the ground was a 30-yard rush up the middle. Stone credited the play to a great call by Lujan where he could either throw it quickly or get downhill. Two plays later, Stone connected with Eligon for a 37-yard score.
It’s taken five games, but Stone seems to have found a groove.
“I’m proud of his continued development,” Braun said. “He should be proud of himself, and he just needs to continue to understand that he’s a winner, but he’s got a lot of really good support.”
Stone will have another chance to show what he has been working on Saturday at Penn State.
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