119 yards. That’s 28.53% of Caleb Komolafe’s career production. That’s 85.61% of his production in 2024, and 106.25% of his production in the Big Ten last season.
119 yards. In one game. On nearly 30 carries.
To say Komolafe has been a bright spot on an offense unit that’s seen its troubles in the first five weeks of college football would be an understatement in giving the redshirt sophomore his flowers.
Northwestern was in a desperate need of a spark in Week Five. After losing one of its most integral
leaders in Cam Porter in Week Two and falling to No 6 Oregon in Week Three, David Braun found himself in limbo, posting a sub-.500 record with a quarterback who had the lowest QBR in college football at the time, a defense that’s been torn up by the passing game, and a laundry list of injuries to sift through.
So he rolled the dice with his gameplan on Saturday: give the ball to a guy who’s hungry to prove himself to the coaching staff as their running back of the future. That player was Komolafe.
And prove himself he did.
For Komolafe, last Saturday’s career game came to fruition through patience: biding his time in the wings of the offensive unit, knowing his turn would come to show off the ability he’s always had in the backfield.
The potential always existed. It just was never allowed to bubble to the surface until now.
Komolafe’s true freshman season saw him buried on the depth chart behind Porter, Anthony Tyus III, and Joe Himon II. The most notable highlight of the 2023 season for the Texas native was snagging Northwestern’s first touchdown of the season from the one yard line.
That’s not to say he didn’t have flashes that season. He’d be NU’s third leading receiver in their Week Three matchup at Duke, but was redshirted thereafter and wouldn’t see the field again that year, save for the bowl game against Utah.
2024 would bring a bit heavier of a weight for Komolafe, as he reached the half-century mark in carries, but remained a clear third option, still behind Porter — a mainstay in the offense — and Himon — who was, and still is, highly touted for his versatility. The latter would nearly double Komolafe in rushing yardage, while the former led the team, nearing the 600-yard mark.
This season was much different.
A perfect storm that opened the door for the now-redshirt sophomore.
At the start of the season, the Northwestern offense was given a complete revamp with Preston Stone, Griffin Wilde, and Xavior Gray, while Ricky Ahumaraeze was thrown in a major role coming off a medical redshirt year. Himon was expected to utilize his aforementioned versatility as a flex receiver, bouncing between the slot and the backfield all year. The only constant that remained was Porter being at the helm of the run game, while Komolafe provided support as a secondary option.
That was until Week Two.
Porter’s season-ending leg injury meant that Komolafe would go from Northwestern’s running back of the future to the running back of the now. He no longer had time to “grow” — no “easing in”, no “trial and error.” With the loss of their beloved sixth-year, NU needed Komolafe to take the ball and run with it. Literally.
His first test was a difficult one against the then 4th-ranked Oregon Ducks, but one in which he did the best with the opportunity he had, posting 54 yards on a team-high 16 carries. Not the type of game ‘Cats faithful would be particularly optimistic about, but their sentiment towards their new lead back would change after the bye week.
Week Five. UCLA. 119 yards. The first 100-yard game from a Northwestern back in three years.
119 yards. 44.24% of his production in 2025.
These numbers aren’t meant to point this performance out as an anomaly. They’re meant to put this performance in perspective. Komolafe was waiting for his opportunity. It was only a matter of time until he’d seize it.
Many will point at the fact that UCLA’s run defense ranks dead last in the Big Ten as a major factor in his instant-classic performance, but behind blocking that ranks in the PFF’s national top five, Komolafe seems bound for a career year as the RB1 for the ‘Cats going forward.
Northwestern’s path to the north star of bowl eligibility runs through a player with one of the biggest chips on their shoulders in all of college sports: Caleb Komolafe. Every handoff is a chance for him to emerge from the shadows of his counterparts and make a dent in the landscape of the Big Ten.
