Northwestern took care of business against Ball State with a 45-14 homecoming victory. The offense came out firing and continued to show the brilliance it did last week in the statement win against Penn State. However, the game wasn’t picture perfect, as Ball State was able to take advantage of some of the ‘Cats weaknesses that could prove to be more detrimental against stronger competition. The game reinforced the new Northwestern normal, but it leaves much to work on heading into a matchup at Michigan
State next week.
Stock Up:
An absolute blazing start
Northwestern got off to a hot start, scoring a touchdown on its first three drives. The ‘Cats did this by leaning on the run game and running a strong play-action scheme off that.
On the opening drive, the ‘Cats marched down the field in seven plays, powered by a 41-yard run by graduate student Joseph Himon II. The offense also got senior quarterback Aidan Chiles moving with a play-action bootleg, completing two 16-yard passes. Chiles capped off the drive with a 1-yard rushing touchdown.
The team repeated this formula on the ensuing drive, scoring in nine plays. This time, Chiles finished the drive with a 19-yard passing touchdown to senior wide receiver Griffin Wilde.
The third drive was the most impressive one, a perfect blend of everything Northwestern wants to do on offense. A 39-yard bomb from Chiles to Wilde started the drive, and a 14-yard rushing touchdown by Caleb Komolafe ended it.
The defense matched the offense’s energy early on as well. Ball State was forced to punt on their first two drives, only accumulating 44 yards of total offense. And after giving up a touchdown, the defense responded, as senior Robert Fitzgerald picked off a pass and ran it in for a touchdown.
The cherry on top was the noticeable lack of penalties that have become all too common for the ‘Cats this year. If Northwestern wants to compete with teams like Oregon and Iowa later this year, getting off to starts like this is vital.
QB1 leaves no doubt
Chiles was not asked to do much against Penn State last weekend, as he only passed the ball 14 times. However, against Ball State, he had a lot more on his plate. He started the game 6-for-6, hitting guys on the move and putting the ball exactly where it needed to go. In fact, his first incompletion was dropped by graduate tight end Alex Hoing, where Chiles put the ball right on the numbers.
Chiles didn’t just play well in structure, however. On a poor center-to-quarterback exchange, where the ball ended up on the ground for a second, Chiles picked it up and made something out of nothing, rushing for an 18-yard gain on the second drive of the game. On the preceding drive, the ‘Cats had the ball on Ball State’s 30-yard line in a third-and-8 situation. Ball State sent the house, but Chiles was able to evade the pressure, roll to his left, and find junior wide receiver Hayden Eligon II for a 16-yard completion and conversion.
As long as Chiles continues to play in rhythm, structure and knowing when to take matters into his own hands, the ‘Cats offense will always have a chance.
Chip Kelly wizardry reach another level
Sometimes when I look at the formation Northwestern’ offense comes out in, I question if Offensive Coordinator Chip Kelly knows what he is doing. He’s tried formations with two backs 10-15 yards off the line of scrimmage against teams like Indiana and it just didn’t work. But to his credit, he came back to it against Ball State, and it worked this time.
Kelly simplified things; he didn’t have as many moving parts and limited the huge bubble screens and reads Chiles had to make in these formations. The highlight was a 34-yard pass play to junior wide receiver Drew Wagner on Northwestern’s last drive of the first half. DDDD
The offense as a whole was clicking, and a lot of the credit has to go to Kelly. He made sure not to show too much on tape, refined things that worked in earlier weeks and experimented with things he’s wanted to get going all year. Kelly continues to show why he is one of the best offensive minds in the nation, and he will certainly have interest from other schools this summer.
Stock Down:
The pass defense looked lost
If there was one thing I was worried about after the game against Penn State, it was the pass defense. Multiple times, the coverage broke down, or someone didn’t stick to their man. Luckily for the ‘Cats, Penn State was not able to take advantage of those hiccups. But Ball State was.
The ‘Cats consistently dropped into zone coverage, and except for the aforementioned pick-six by Fitzgerald, players would leave their assignments, creating massive holes in the coverage and chunk plays for Ball State.
It wasn’t just zone coverage, as Northwestern couldn’t hold up in man either. The worst example was when fourth-year quarterback Keldric Luster delivered a beautiful over-the-shoulder ball to third-year receiver Donovan Hamilton for a 46-yard gain. The pass set up Ball State’s first points of the game.
If Northwestern’s defensive backs look suspect against a team like Ball State, the outlook for games against Oregon, and especially Ohio State, is a scary one.
Giving up big plays in the open-field
Once Ball State realized they weren’t going to get anything up the middle, they smartly adjusted. They started to attack the boundaries of the field with zone reads, jet sweeps and even reverse jet sweeps, although those had limited success.
Ball State found a lot of success on the outside because Northwestern kept missing tackles. Whether it was defensive backs going high, lackluster pushes instead of tackle attempts, or multiple linebackers being needed to bring down a rusher and getting dragged for extra yardage, the defense did not look ready to play.
It wasn’t just the tackling attempts, as sometimes players just weren’t able to shed blocks. Multiple times, Ball State receivers pushed defensive backs around, or linebackers couldn’t read the play and fill lanes appropriately. A lot of the time, players like Fitzgerald or graduate student Braydon Brus would have to come across the field to make a tackle.
When playing against stronger competition in the Big Ten, Northwestern won’t be able to get by with this lackluster effort on defense.
Forgetting to block beyond the line of scrimmage
I might be nitpicking here, as the ‘Cats ran for over 150 yards on the ground, but it could have been more. While the offensive line created large gaps and dominated the line of scrimmage, the wide receivers didn’t hold up their end of the bargain.
Multiple times, I saw a large lane open for junior running back Caleb Komolafe or Himon, but instead of rushing for 10-plus yards, the backs were limited to five or less. This is mostly because wideouts didn’t hold blocks, allowing defensive backs to shed and make plays in the lane.
This wasn’t limited to wide receivers; once offensive linemen and tight ends hit the second level, they missed blocks that would limit gains. It’s confusing that this wasn’t an issue against stiffer competition like Penn State, yet NU struggled to hold blocks against Ball State.
If Northwestern wants to be a dominant running team and avoid another Indiana-like performance, every player needs to block with effort and tenacity.
This is not to say the run game was weak, not by any means. Northwestern might not have been as prepared as they should have been for this Ball State squad. I expect the run game to continue to be the focal point of the offense, especially with the gauntlet of Big Ten competition ahead of the ‘Cats.
