Northwestern’s Week One matchup against Tulane was a far cry from what the Wildcats’ faithful hoped it would be. Saturday was pretty uneventful for the men in purple and white, as drive after drive, NU seemed to hit an invisible wall of sorts, and barely moved the ball downfield all game.
Two days removed from Northwestern’s home opener, here are the three major takeaways that might give some insight into how the rest of the season may pan out.
1: Preston Stone needs to shake off the rust
Preston Stone hadn’t started a football game in nearly
a year going into Saturday, yet the weight of the Northwestern offense was thrust onto his shoulders immediately.
And boy, did he crumble under that weight.
Four interceptions. Three in one half. Two in one quarter;
Stone’s first two drives of the game tell the entire story: right decisions, bad throws. He short-armed the ball in the pocket numerous times. While part of this can be attributed to first-game jitters, most of it should be attributed to the limited playing time he saw in 2024.
Going from the third-best QB in the FBS in 2023 (according to PFF), to being a second-stringer in 2024, back to a starter for a Power Four team in 2025 isn’t easy. It means Stone has a lot to prove this year, and he knows it.
He also knows that Northwestern fans view him as the savior of the offense, and there’s good reason to believe so. His third drive of the game was by far his best of the afternoon, going 4/5 for 46 passing yards en route to NU’s only score of the day.
Stone’s pass to Frank Covey IV at the end of the third could’ve easily ended in six had Covey not slipped after the catch.
The Stone of old is somewhere in there, but it may take a couple of games for him to regain his true form. Friday against FCS Western Illinois will say more about Stone as a player than last Saturday did.
2: O-line has improved, but not by much
When your best offensive lineman gets beat off the edge on the first snap of the season and allows a strip sack, one has good reason to lose faith in their team’s pass protection.
Although the line did show flashes of 2024 throughout the game, giving up three sacks and two other pressures, there were specific plays that revealed the newfound potential of the offense. On a 25-yard run by Cam Porter late in the third quarter, Evan Beerntsen destroyed his matchup and opened a wide B-Gap. A minute after that, Deuce McGuire had a great rep on 3rd & 10 where he sured up the edge enough for Porter to get to the outside for an eight-yard gain.
At points throughout the second half, Stone was able to settle in for three to four plays at a time because the offensive line did its job in keeping the pocket clean.
Yet the consistency remains in question for this group.
The Big Ten contains a lineage of great defensive line groups that NU is going to have to nullify if they’d like any chance at a bowl game this winter. 76 rushing yards against a Group of Five team doesn’t bode well for what the run game will look like in conference play.
3: The secondary may not live up to expectations
Now, firstly, let’s establish these points before we dissect the defense.
Garner Wallace had a great game. So did Robert Fitzgerald. Both gave their assignments trouble throughout the contest, especially in the red zone, but the secondary group as a whole had some blunders.
Jake Retzlaff’s TD pass to Justyn Reid is the first play that comes to mind.
On 1st & goal, Tulane came out in a heavy set: I-23 with Retzlaff faking the handoff and rolling out to his right.
Ideally, NU would have this covered with the two outside linebackers taking the two innermost tight ends, the corner taking the extra tight end on the strong side (left), leaving the RBs to the strong safety and middle linebacker.
That’s not what happened on that play. Jack Sadowsky V ends up crashing for the run, gets fooled by the play action, and leaves Reid wide open for the score.
Mishaps like this all afternoon for the ‘Cats. On Retzlaff’s rushing touchdown, Mac Uihlein gets completely caught up in Maurice Turner’s chest plate, making the block easy and opening the floodgates for the 69-yarder. Braden Turner takes a bad route from the edge, doesn’t provide help, and leaves the QB room to accelerate.
The good news is that NU can clean up on these mistakes before they run into the toughest part of their schedule, and these mistakes getting exposed by a CFP contender may be a blessing in disguise. The worries around this defense should arise if these issues are still prevalent in Week Three against Oregon.
Looking Ahead: Week Two vs. Western Illinois
Facing an FCS opponent coming off a 49-point loss to rival No. 12 Illinois is a great reset after facing one of the toughest teams on the schedule. Last week can be framed as a test run for what conference play might bring NU, while next week is the first true “tune-up” in preparation for Sept. 13.
Friday’s going to set the foundation of the Northwestern offense: who Stone’s targets will be, who will take most of the carries in the run game, and how Joseph Himon II’s versatility will be weaponized going forward.
On the defensive side, this is the time for the ‘Cats to hash out any miscommunication amongst the linebackers and to sure up the coverage assignments for the DBs.
‘Cats faithful, being worried is a logical reaction to Week One. But don’t write this team off yet. Let’s reconvene after Week Two.
