This game was always going to be tough. When previewing the schedule at the start of the season, playing in Los Angeles against USC looked like the third-toughest game for Northwestern behind Oregon and Penn State. Even after the ‘Cats upset the Nittany Lions (who have lost six straight), the game against USC still felt like it would take a miracle to win. While that miracle almost happened in the second quarter, momentum flipped quickly and Northwestern was outmatched by the high powered Trojan
offense. Not only that, but the NU offense stalled (plus some questionable decisions) and USC took advantage of it. Don’t mind my rambling, here are the numbers behind Northwestern’s loss in LA:
The Numbers
Although the numbers aren’t perfect, this was the loss Preston Stone didn’t throw an interception in all season. He was 20-of-30 passing for 150 yards and a touchdown. Stone posted a 57.6 PFF offensive grade consisting of a 56.7 PFF passing grade and a 68.5 PFF rushing grade, but the eye test didn’t say that. Yes, there were a lot of screen passes (7-of-8), but that’s more indicative of the gameplan. Stone did have one PFF turnover worthy throw, but it came late in the game when he was chucking it to try and lead a miraculous comeback. What does stand out the most is that he didn’t play a sloppy game and managed it well for the most part.
Caleb Komolafe has continued to look better each and every week. Against the Trojans, he posted a 68.3 PFF offensive grade, consisting of a 66.0 PFF rushing grade and a season-high 75.2 PFF receiving grade. He carried the rock 17 times for 118 yards and a rushing touchdown while catching a season-high five passes for 40 receiving yards. His increased volume in the passing game likely speaks to both Joseph Himon II and Dashun Reeder being out, but nonetheless Komolafe impressed in a part of his game that hasn’t been featured much at all.
Komolafe was the highest graded player in receiving grade on Northwestern this week (11th highest in Big Ten), but for wide receivers specifically, it was Ricky Ahumaraeze who was graded the highest for the ‘Cats. Ahumaraeze caught two of his four targets, turning that into 38 receiving yards. Griffin Wilde and Drew Wagner each had four receptions, with the former going for 23 yards and a touchdown and the latter going for 26 yards.
The offensive line once again was a massive bright spot. Evan Beerntsen and Jackson Carsello were the two highest-graded ‘Cats this week at a 75.8 PFF offensive grade and a 72.0 PFF offensive grade respectively. After struggling mightily in pass blocking against Tulane, Beerntsen has put it together and been a strong pass blocker for NU. Caleb Tiernan once again showed his presence as a pass blocker like he’s been doing all season. While USC did sack Stone twice, it was more so indicative of the game script and in obvious passing situations. Enough numbers and chatter, let’s dive into the film for Week 11:
The Good
The offense was churning in this one. Komolafe is the real deal and Stone had some success throwing medium-to-deep outside the numbers. While there was a heavy emphasis on screen passes this week, it was working in the first half before it had to be abandoned to try and keep up with USC’s high-powered offense.
Caleb Komolafe
Wow. Just wow. Komolafe has been getting better every week as I mentioned before. Right now, he’s sitting at sixth in the Big Ten in rushing yards with 726 and tied at 10th with eight rushing touchdowns in the conference. The Big Ten has many outstanding running backs and Komolafe has been up there with the best of them. Not only this, but NU has already had its two bye weeks and Komolafe didn’t see double-digit carries until Week 2 (when Cam Porter got injured). He’s the real deal, and the film shows it (also credit where credit is due to this offensive line).
Komolafe had career highs in receptions and receiving yards. This was his longest catch-and-run of the day (18 yards), and I wanted to put at least one of his catches in because he led NU in receptions and receiving yards. On this play, he motions into the backfield then runs to the left-side flat when the ball is snapped. He catches the ball even with a few bobbles and takes it for the first down with green grass ahead of him. Without Himon and Reeder, Komolafe was able to be featured in the passing game and to good avail.
“The Beast” had two runs of 20+ yards. This play was his 37-yard scamper that was immediately followed by a one yard touchdown run. Once again, Komolafe’s vision and decision to bounce it to the outside paid huge dividends as he turned a two or three yard run into more than a third of the field. Hunter Welcing delivered the block that opened the original hole for Komolafe to squeeze through after coming over in motion, while Wilde made a nice block upfield to allow his running back to gain extra yardage.
This was Komolafe’s other 20+ yard run. This time, it was a 21-yard carry that he took straight up the gut. Lawson Albright motioned in and was the lead blocker as the ‘Cats offensive line opened up a gaping hole for No. 5 to run through. Once he got into open field there were two defenders to greet him, but not before gaining a huge chunk of yards.
Outside the numbers
Despite the screen pass being a huge emphasis in this game, Stone still saw some success when throwing it medium-to-deep outside the numbers. I thought he played a solid game even though the stats didn’t jump off the page as I’ve stated earlier.
On this play, Hayden Eligon II runs his route and finds the open spot in the zone on the left sideline. With a good pocket, Stone zips one into him as the ball couldn’t have been placed any more perfectly. The Trojans dropped seven guys into coverage and Stone decided to forgo the check downs and delivered outside the numbers yet again.
Throughout the season, Stone and Ahumaraeze haven’t seemed to have had the strongest connection. That seemed a bit different in this game, especially on this play. On third-and-7, Stone trusted his guy to win the one-on-one matchup on the outside. While the throw could have been more in stride, it ended up working out perfectly as Ahumaraeze turns around at the perfect time to adjust his body and stop to make the catch. Beautiful throw-and-catch between the two as Northwestern had its biggest pass play of the night here and it just so happens to be outside the numbers. Also, the pocket created by the offensive line on this play is just magical.
The Bad
To be frank, the offense wasn’t that bad. Four punts in a game isn’t the worst, especially when three of those came when the game was either tied or within one score. The problem is that the game wasn’t managed the best, which falls on both the coaching staff and the players. Additionally, sacks are never great, but the timing of them can be just that much worse. The defense did struggle, but that’s to be expected against this USC team a week removed from a poor offensive performance.
Game management
I’m only showing one clip here because I’m not going to put a play in where NU calls a timeout in the third quarter on a third-and-7. That moment by itself wouldn’t be as bad, but that was the second timeout called by the ‘Cats in the second half.
In the post game press conference, Coach David Braun said NU would have been okay with taking the delay of game penalty and then punting the ball away. Stone called a timeout just before the play clock ran out. Firstly, this is a perfect situation to go for it. It’s a one score game against a tough USC team and you’re in opponent territory. It’s not like it’s a fourth-and-10 either; it’s just three yards. Whether or not Stone should have called the timeout is beside the point. After the timeout was called, Braun still sent out the punt team. At that point, you have to go for it. If they take the penalty and then punt, it’s a different story. However, because of the timeout, you can’t just punt right after. It didn’t help either that USC went 91 yards to score a touchdown at ease following the Northwestern punt.
When the levee breaks
I could have included the other sack here, but that was when the game was almost certainly out of reach and it was a more-than-obvious passing situation. This sack below, however, was a different story.
It is of note that Beerntsen wasn’t in the game on this play as he had gotten a bit banged up earlier. The Trojans rushed just three guys, and Nick Herzog’s double-team attempt completely backfired as he fell into Martes Lewis, taking both linemen out of the play. Additionally, Carsello’s block set up perfectly for Herzog to be there with double team help, but that led to his man going right by. Stone had nothing to do, so he had to take the sack. The worst part about this play was the fact that USC was able to rush just three and the play resulted in a five-yard sack.
Final Thoughts
This game was more so lost on defense rather than on offense. While Northwestern couldn’t do much of anything in the second half, the team did have just four drives in the final 30 minutes. The ‘Cats haven’t been the greatest at playing from behind this season and are significantly better when holding a lead. The Najee Story interception-turned-touchback changed the momentum of the game as the Trojans scored just three plays later. USC is one of the best teams in the Big Ten (and even the country), so losing momentum when it did start close was a killer. However, there needs to be a bigger emphasis on playing to win rather than playing to not lose.
