The Wildcats stunned Penn State and shook up the college football world when they went into Happy Valley and beat the Nittany Lions, 22-21, in an absolute thriller. Riding a high after a win no one was expecting, NU’s outlook on the season has changed considerably. What can we learn from this game?
The Offense Has Turned a Corner
Think back to Week Three, in the aftermath of the game against Oregon. Preston Stone led all of FBS with six turnovers. There was optimism surrounding the running game, especially with how well Caleb Komolafe
and Joseph Himon II were playing in the absence of Cam Porter, but it felt like that was it. Fans had resigned to the fact that Stone was too prone to turnovers and poor decisions for this passing game to ever be good enough in the Big Ten.
In the three games since, Stone has thrown six touchdowns and hasn’t turned the ball over once.
Head coach David Braun and offensive coordinator Zach Lujan have achieved the ultimate goal of anyone trying to design a successful offense: They’ve made life easy for their quarterback. Many of Stone’s pass attempts Saturday were screens and quick throws to the flats, getting the ball out quick to playmakers in space. The biggest pass play of the game, Stone’s 29-yard strike to Griffin Wilde, was a play-action setup that Penn State bit on due to the success of the run game up to that point.
Of course, the offense isn’t all just screens and check downs. Stone still has had difficult throws he’s had to make, and he’s risen to the occasion the past few weeks. Stone’s accuracy, efficiency and connection with Wilde have all improved in the past few weeks. More structured reads and easy throws have allowed Stone to get into a rhythm early in games, so he’s ready when the true dropbacks are called. Stone isn’t asked to do anything—he hasn’t eclipsed 200 yards passing against an in-conference opponent yet this season—but he’s hitting the throws that matter.
Braun and Lujan have the Wildcats playing turnover-free, complementary football, something which many didn’t think possible only a few weeks ago.
How About that Secondary?
It’s no coincidence that all of Penn State’s touchdowns came on the ground on Saturday; there was nothing for them through the air. Ore Adeyi’s first quarter interception was certainly the loudest play on the defensive end, but the whole team was locked in on that end of the ball throughout all four quarters.
Penn State’s drives throughout the game went like this: interception, touchdown, three and out, touchdown off of a shortfield, punt, punt, touchdown, turnover on downs. Outside of a 67-yard reception by Devonte Ross, 63 of which were after the catch, Allar was just 12/19 for 70 yards and a pick.
Northwestern was able to cover everything deep and force Penn State into shorter throws. The defense was flying to the ball and making big tackles in order to limit run after catch opportunities. Mac Uihlein was the standout in this regard, leading the team with nine total tackles.
Penn State might not be the most formidable passing game in the nation, but Northwestern’s secondary has been a strong point all season, and that group will need to keep playing that way with some of the games it has coming up.
Bowls May Runneth Over?
Northwestern currently sits at 4-2 overall and an impressive 2-1 in the Big Ten. No one should be dreaming of a title game appearance or a playoff berth, but Northwestern does sit just two wins from a bowl game.
The easiest path to playing in the postseason would almost certainly involve beating Purdue at home next week. The Boilermakers are tied for last in the conference, going winless Illinois, USC and Minnesota thus far. After that, Northwestern visits Nebraska and USC, then plays against Michigan and Minnesota at Wrigley Field before ending the season at Illinois.
Which of those last five could be winnable for the Wildcats? Minnesota stands out, as the Gophers are the only team of those five to have not been ranked at any point this year.
But with the way this offense has been humming in recent weeks, a win at Nebraska is a lot more plausible than one may think. The Cornhuskers have given up 27+ points in three straight games, and turned the ball over three times against Maryland on Saturday. Northwestern should look to take advantage of a run defense that gives up 4.5 yards per carry on the season.
Northwestern has momentum on its side going into the business end of the season. The ‘Cats could plausibly be 6-2 heading to the Coliseum, and if that happens, they can truly start dreaming.
