The last 30 years of Northwestern football have been defined by inconsistency. After a historic Rose Bowl appearance in the 1995-96 season, the team has only had 13 winning seasons, emerging victorious in just six bowl games and not earning a playoff berth since the 2014 inception of a new postseason format.

However, five of those bowl wins have come within the last decade. NU’s recent history has proven that the program is capable of big wins. There is no better place to look back on for evidence than NU’s triple-overtime win over No. 16 Michigan State in 2017. 

The date was Oct. 28. The Wildcats were 4-3, coming off a 17-10 overtime win over Iowa a week prior.

Returning to Ryan Field for the second consecutive game, excitement filled the lungs of NU students and fans alike. 

“Michigan State was a good team,” recalled New York Times reporter Tim Balk, who was The Daily’s Gameday Editor at the time. “Northwestern had played a very exciting game against Michigan State the previous season, so there was some excitement.” 

NU’s offense had demolished Michigan State’s defense in the teams’ most recent matchup, winning 54-40. Going into their 2017 matchup, the Spartans were hungry for vengeance, and the ’Cats were eager to establish themselves as the better squad. 

Balk sat in the press box, covering the game for The Daily. Ben Pope, a former Daily staffer now a reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times, also attended the game.

“Attendance was pretty good,” Pope remembered. “I actually wrote a feature that weekend about how attendance for football games was at an all time high. There was optimism that we could win.” 

From the first second until the last, both teams were neck-and-neck. The Spartans scored on their opening drive to start the game, but the ’Cats were able to match their energy throughout the first quarter. After an evenly matched second quarter, the teams headed to the locker room deadlocked at 10-10. It was anyone’s game. 

In the second half, both defenses stood their ground. After a scoreless third quarter, and only one touchdown apiece for each team in the fourth, the two teams headed to overtime even at 17-17.

“Michigan State had a lot of athletes, guys that were great playmakers,” said Cameron Green, a former NU wide receiver who finished the game with six receptions, 76 yards and a key go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. “I was always set out to play the best that I could whenever we got to go play them.” 

In the first overtime period, NU only needed two plays to score, but Michigan State was able to respond in five. In the second period, Michigan State also took two plays to score, but NU fired right back with a score of its own.

After another NU touchdown in the third period, including a converted two-point attempt caught by Green, the pressure was back on the Spartans to tie the game. Former NU defensive tackle Jordan Thompson said he was determined to get a stop the third time around. 

“I remember telling guys on the sidelines to keep going, to keep fighting,” said Thompson, who finished the game with three total tackles including a tackle for loss. “Anytime the defense steps on the field, we’re trying to cause turnovers and get the ball back. We knew they weren’t going to go away easily.”

Thompson got what he asked for. After Michigan State’s quarterback fumbled and recovered on 2nd and 10, he heaved a prayer downfield, where defensive back Nate Hall intercepted the ball in the end zone, sealing the victory for the ’Cats.

This game etched its mark into the books as one of the most electric wins in Northwestern football history. The team used this momentum in the following week, going on to beat Nebraska in another overtime win, 31-24.

“We were gritty, passionate and weathered,” Thompson said. “We really knew what it took to win.”

The team finished the year with a 9-3 record, ending the season with an eight-game winning streak and defeating Kentucky 24-23 in the Music City Bowl.

With a new era of college football approaching, signature victories like these symbolized more than just winning; they symbolized a promising future. 

“The landscape has gotten so much harder now with the Big Ten expanding, adding more great teams and getting rid of the divisions,” Pope said. “Everything about college sports has changed a lot in the past 10 years, and most of those things have not been beneficial to Northwestern. They’re doing a good job for the circumstances.”

With the ’Cats currently sitting a win away from bowl eligibility at 5-3 and the new Ryan Field under construction, there is hope that NU will someday establish itself as a football powerhouse.

For many ’Cats fans, it may be difficult to see past a trend of underperformance. However, among the litany of historic heartbreaks, there is faith that a culture of success is on the horizon. 

“They’re headed in a great direction honestly,” Green said. “What they’re doing today is setting them up for the future. I’m excited to see what they continue to do; Cardiac ’Cats’ is the way to go!”

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