We conclude our Northwestern football position reviews by breaking down the defensive backs, a group that competed relatively well against tough Big Ten offenses.
Overall Grade: B+
Overall, Northwestern’s DBs held their own against a tough Big Ten slate. The Wildcats tied for eighth in the Big Ten in passes defensed and interceptions, recording 38 and nine, respectively. They also limited quarterbacks well overall, ranking seventh-best in the conference with an average of 193.5 passing yards allowed per contest.
Subpar
performances against USC and Minnesota kept this grade from being an A or an A-, but it was impressive that Northwestern managed to avoid any truly awful performances in the secondary despite facing a number of great offenses.
Josh Fussell: B+
Stats: 11 games played, 32 tackles, nine passes defensed, 62.5 PFF grade
Northwestern’s top corner got more than his fair share of tough matchups in 2025. More often than not, he managed to turn in a solid performance, being named an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention as a result.
Fussell’s worst performance of the season arguably came against Michigan, when Wolverine wideout Andrew Marsh accumulated a significant portion of his 189 receiving yards by consistently getting open against Northwestern’s CB. However, he bounced back nicely in the ensuing weeks, playing reliably in coverage and earning nine tackles, a tackle for loss and two pass breakups in the matchups against Minnesota and Illinois. When looking at the season as a whole, it’s easy to see that Fussell’s leadership added a lot to the secondary, earning him a B+ despite occasional inconsistency.
Fred Davis II: B-
Stats: 12 games, 32 tackles, six passes defensed, one fumble recovery, 65.7 PFF grade
Davis was able to hang with almost anyone in 2025, but he played inconsistently in coverage to begin the year and didn’t manage to make as many big plays as Fussell (all six of his pass breakups were against middling teams in Western Illinois, ULM and Purdue). Still, there were plenty of highlights, such as in the Nebraska game where Davis recorded his fumble recovery and a tackle for loss. Overall, Davis was a valuable piece as a regular starter for the ‘Cats, and he more than held his own in Big Ten competition, allowing him to earn a B-.
Robert Fitzgerald: A-
Stats: 13 games, 115 tackles, one interception, five passes defensed, one forced fumble, one fumble recovery, 77.9 PFF grade
An All-Big Ten Second-Team honoree, Fitzgerald was a rising star for the Wildcats in 2025, flying all over the field to force negative plays and defend passes in coverage. As shown by his incredible 90.2 rushing defense PFF grade, the redshirt junior posed a consistent problem for offenses, playing as a hybrid safety due to his elite ability to tackle near the line of scrimmage. Admittedly, Fitzgerald’s pure coverage skills could use some work, but he added so much as a tackler that any grade lower than an A- would be highly unfair to a stellar year.
Garner Wallace: C
Stats: 13 games, 51 tackles, one pass defensed, 55.0 PFF grade
Wallace deserves big-time credit for stepping up in his graduate year, ascending from a relative unknown into a regular starter who made plays against tough opponents. However, he wasn’t consistently impactful in 2025, recording his only pass breakup against Tulane and contributing to costly big plays allowed throughout the season. Wallace’s season began well against the Green Wave, but he didn’t make his presence particularly felt against most Big Ten opponents, earning him a C grade overall.
Braden Turner: B+
Stats: 13 games, 56 tackles, two interceptions, four passes defensed, two forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, 79.0 PFF grade
Turner’s season seemed to get better and better as it went along, and by the end of 2025, it was clear that the All-Big Ten Honorable Mention had turned himself into a highly valuable asset. Turner picked off a pass, recorded a pass breakup and recovered a fumble in NU’s close loss to Michigan, and he added another pick and a fumble return touchdown in the Wildcats’ victory over Central Michigan. With great performances against Penn State, Purdue and Nebraska, among others, Turner helped the ‘Cats tremendously by making big plays and forcing turnovers, and his development in 2025 (albeit against typically-easier assignments than Fussell) was fun to watch.
Ore Adeyi: B-
Stats: 11 games, 19 tackles, one interception, five passes defensed, 62.4 PFF grade
Adeyi bounced back nicely from an injury that caused him to miss all of 2024, starting five games for the Wildcats and making more plays as the season progressed. The highlight of Adeyi’s season was an early interception against Penn State that helped the ‘Cats establish momentum on the road, but he also recorded two pass breakups against UCLA a couple of weeks prior. Adeyi wasn’t NU’s top corner by any stretch, but he did make key plays for the team throughout the year.
Damon Walters: N/A
Stats: three games, three tackles
Walters is a great player and a key asset for the ‘Cats at safety, but he ended up missing almost all of 2025 due to injuries. If Walters can build on his All-Big Ten Honorable Mention selection from 2024, he could be set for a big breakout as a redshirt junior.
Dillon Tatum: C
Stats: 12 games, 17 tackles, one pass defensed
Tatum didn’t see the field consistently in 2025 after transferring in from Michigan State, falling behind players such as Fussell, Davis, Turner and Adeyi in the rotation. He did break up a pass against Western Illinois, but in Big Ten performances, Tatum did not make a major impact with limited snaps.
Jon Jon Stevens Jr.: B-
Stats: 13 games, 15 tackles
As a true first-year, Stevens impressively appeared in every game for the Wildcats, making important plays in the secondary when other DBs went down with injuries. The highlight of Stevens’ year was a six-tackle, one-TFL performance against Oregon, but he also recorded three tackles in the bowl game against Central Michigan. Stevens certainly committed his fair share of coverage lapses, but his inconsistencies were hardly out of the ordinary for a first-year player thrust into immediate action, allowing him to earn a B-.
Alijah Jones: N/A
Stats: 12 games, 10 tackles
Evan Smith: N/A
Stats: eight games, six tackles, one pass defensed
Marquet Dorsey Jr.: N/A
Stats: seven games, one tackle
Sean Martin: N/A
Stats: five games, one tackle
Terrion Curry-Hicks: N/A
Stats: four games, one tackle
Jalen Lewis: N/A
Stats: two games, one tackle
Seth Valeri
Did not record a statistic
J.J. Lewis
Did not record a statistic
Cole Shivers
Did not record a statistic
Jack Oyola
Did not record a statistic
Timi Oke
Did not record a statistic
Tito Williams Jr.
Did not record a statistic
