Northwestern lost its first game in the new Ryan Field, and it happened without Aidan Chiles under center. Nicco Marchiol stepped in as the starter for the Wildcats, and played a solid game. The problem was that Iowa jumped out to a 14-0 lead early, and the ’Cats couldn’t claw their way back. The defensive struggles across the board, especially against the run, were exposed against Iowa, plus the Hawkeyes’ defense tore up the Wildcats’ offensive line and had Marchiol scrambling more than maybe anyone
would have expected. Either way, Northwestern had a new quarterback this week so here’s a breakdown of that.
Southpaw
There’s something that is so fascinating to me about watching a left-handed quarterback. While I’ve seen more lefties than normal with the absurd amount of college football I consume on a week-to-week basis (plus Michael Penix Jr. in the NFL), I’m still in the honeymoon phase of it. Marchiol’s longest completion of the game was just 22 yards — a massive difference compared to Chiles and his ability to stretch the field. However, Marchiol looked composed at quarterback, finishing 24-for-32 for 181 passing yards and a passing touchdown (I’ll get to the rushing later). Iowa’s defense is famous for limiting big plays, so even with Chiles, the game plan may have looked similar: a lot of shorter, underneath throws to move the ball.
This first play starts out of the pistol. Marchiol fakes the handoff and waits for Iowa’s defenders to turn upfield before hitting Wilde on the outside curl route. Marchiol did stick with his first read this entire play, but he had a clean pocket and was able to wait for Wilde to break open. The second play is another play-action pass, this time out of the shotgun. Luke Dehnicke runs a 10-yard dig route across the middle, and Marchiol waits for him to cut before throwing right to his hands. Dehnicke gets some extra yardage on the play (this is the 22-yard gain), with Marchiol once again sticking to his first read to success.
The third play is interesting. Marchiol gets the snap, takes a couple of steps to his right and then looks back to the left side of the field to find Dehnicke open on a drag route underneath. Marchiol ran a lot in this game, so the quarterback play-action design was something unique to see. The fourth play is a sprint rollout for Marchiol, who rolls to his left and gets it to Hayden Eligon II for a short gain. Once again, a display of Chip Kelly using his quarterback’s strengths to move the ball.
On the fifth play, Iowa runs a Cover 2 defense. Northwestern once again starts with play action, before Marchiol hits Wilde on a 10-yard quick curl route. Marchiol did a good job getting the ball out quick, especially against this Hawkeyes defense that is so stifling. For the sixth play, Drew Wagner runs a Y-Option route (a crossing route that the receiver can run the crosser, sit down in the middle of the field or turn upfield) and sits in the middle of the field where Marchiol finds him. The Y-Option is one of the tougher routes to defend in football, especially against a zone defense. The final play is Marchiol’s touchdown pass to Joseph Himon II on a singleback rollout look with Himon running a flat underneath.
Scramble drill
There were plenty of designed runs for Marchiol, but I want to look at the off-schedule ones. Chiles could have easily done the same with tucking it and scrambling, but it felt like Marchiol was more likely to do so. That also could speak to Iowa’s defense and how they cover, especially in the back end, but it also may have been part of the gameplan. On the first play, Patrick Schaller gets beat quickly off the edge and Marchiol sees a hole between Grant Seagren and Deuce McGuire, so he decides to tuck it and run. The second play is a singleback look where Marchiol runs a bootleg to his left, and with the defender closing in, he jukes him and takes off. The third play starts out of the gun, and Marchiol is able to sense the pressure creeping up on him from his left. Ditto here to the first play: he tucks it and runs between Seagren and McGuire.
Iowa rushes four on the fourth play, and Jackson Carsello and Dennis Rahouski get beat immediately off the line. Marchiol again senses the pressure and takes off up the middle. On the fifth play, Schaller gets beat once again and Marchiol runs to his right to evade the pressure. The sixth and seventh plays are also very similar: Schaller gets beat and Marchiol then takes off. Overall, he did a good job of sensing pressure, but he still was sacked plenty.
