I believe that Northwestern is currently at the top of the APR rankings. If I am correct, what is the possibility that the Cats could get a bowl invitation if we win just one more game? It’s probably too early to try to calculate how many teams will get to the required six victories for bowl eligibility, but are we in a good position if we win five and there are not enough six-win teams to fill out all the bowl slots?

Somehow in the 5 home games we have averaged almost 29ppg at home. And that is with two QBs, questionable OL etc. Pretty good fro all the crap we give Jake. Unfortunately we have only averaged about 10ppg on the road

Of course, I hope we win (at least) 2 more to remove all doubt.

Really, really empty. Pretty cold. Great day for football.

Missed Howard due family obligation, but my crew was here.

Only game this empty was the frozen Ellet game against Minny in 2016 or17.

Go Cats.

I actually think he’s done a reasonable job this year with this group. Clearly the weak link on the staff is Kurt Anderson.

Day after I google NU news stories after wins and came upon this article.

Outworked us. Outplayed us. My kind of team!

They are like the Washington Sentinels of the movie The Replacements. 🤣

This team has heart and guts. They are really easy to cheer for. And I do hope Braun keeps it up to bowl eligibility and Sully seizes the starter reigns for a WIN over ioa. Special story indeed Braun.

I believe NU hoop is playing its secret scrimmage this weekend. 🤫

For those that follow closely, lots of heartburn during fall ball regarding new green card rules. Not looking forward to games going over 2 hours.

Of course there is already a petition to rescind....

Braun as interim coach inherited one of the worst offenses in FBS. He is fighting for his job, and has the defense and special teams headed in the right direction. With this offense, however, he will be hard-pressed to win another game this season. If he really wants this job on a permanent basis, he needs to take drastic action with regards to the offense - namely, replace Bajakian and Anderson ASAP. The quickest fix, with the biggest return, is to simplify the blocking schemes. I don't care if our guys get beat one-on-one; but what's unforgiveable is having one or two linemen stand around looking for someone to block, while the opposing defense has open season on our QB and RB. I've seen this happen multiple times in every single game. If it's that obvious to a casual observer like me, what the hell are the coaches looking at? It's a disaster, and it's not rocket science to see what is happening. Braun is coaching for his livelihood, and Bajakian and Anderson are his biggest obstacles to success. Coach, get it done.

After a competitive loss against Nebraska, NU's bowl hopes are growing dim. Maryland, however, could clinch eligibility with a win in Evanston on Saturday. NU is improved over last season and has a competent defense. The offense has its moments, but is often ineffective. Maryland lost to Illinois last week and so is not invulnerable.

David Simon 17
George R.R. Martin 21

After the Cats game I drove home for about two hours. Tuned into some of the midday games and literally every game was a complete blow out by 2nd half.

Am I nuts or is college football getting really boring? There just aren’t as many good games as there used to be.

That was a fun game to attend. Himon’s run was electrifying! So darn exciting to sit in the stand with my group and cheer on the Cats.

With no one there, I could pace the aisle wracked with nerves until Coco’s pick.

Lots of shocking plays by the Cats! Great feeling afterward. Cleaning up from the tailgate will be a pleasure, not a chore!

At the halfway point of the 2023 season, in spite of the difficulty for transfers to get into NU and the unexpected turmoil of the hazing scandal, it seems we had a surprisingly decent haul from the transfer portal. Arbitrary mid-season grades are as follows, based on contribution to the team thus far:

Cam Johnson, WR (Arizona State) Grade: A
AJ Henning, WR (Michigan) Grade: A-
Ben Bryant, QB (Cincinnati) Grade: B+
Richie Hagerty, DE (SIU) Grade: B+

TBD
Matt Lawson, DT (Fresno State)
RJ Pearson, DT (Bethune Cookman)
Luke Akers, P (UCLA)

2022 Portal
Jack Olsen, PK (Michigan State) Grade: A
Jaylen Pate, DE (Wyoming) Grade: B


Agree, disagree, other thoughts?

Mack Sutter is a 6-6, 220-pound sophomore QB/ATH at Dunlap (Ill.) High School. He’s the son of former NU LB Ed Sutter and comes from the same school as Charlie Mangieri.

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Is he good or just a “gamer? Should he play more? It’s seems we actually have a nice overall QB room, but I’m a bit confused as to who should get time as they all have their moments.

Anyone know the last time we had that many sacks in a game?

...the growth that units and individual players have shown over the course of the season. Fitz's best teams were always those that seemed to get stronger as the year went on.

Seems that the players are getting meaningful coaching week to week. Kudos to Braun and staff.

33 points?!? In one game, not a month.

Did the dad in this story block a field goal back in 97 to seal a Cats win (against MSU or Wiscy maybe)? Anybody remember this? https://www.si.com/college/colorado...-blue-chip-son-mistreated-on-recruiting-visit

Was that 3rd and goal pass really incomplete with 5 mins left?

Was that really an interception to seal the game?

I couldn't tell for either, watching from the stands, or with the replays they showed on the big screen.

Northwestern kicking is off to a perfect start, 4-for-4 on field goals and 13-for-13 on extra points. I interviewed long snapper Will Halkyard and kicker Jack Olsen on their long-standing friendship, the card game that brings the specialists together this season, and how they plan to continue their success in the second half of the season.

Here are @mshelton33's takeaways from a fun day at Ryan Field.

I went down on the field before the game to get a look around. I saw Timi Oke down there, filming EVERYTHING with his camera on the sideline. I also saw 2025 QB Alessio Milivojevic and 2024 TE commit Patrick Schaller. One new face: 2025 OL Xzavier Grabher (not a great last name) from Racine (Wis.) St. Catherine's. Here's his film:

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It's looking like a light crowd today, even by NU standards. The parking lots were a lot less empty than usual, and Maryland didn't bring a lot of fans. I can count the fans in the East stands right now, 15 minutes before the game.

People I sat with at the game thought (for most of the game) that he looked horrible, taking too many sacks, missing open receivers, etc.

I thought he threw well. He threw 13/18 (not a bad percentage) for two touchdowns, and the one in the 2nd half was a beautiful, deep shot. The problem, I thought, was that he needed to throw more.

It was a very run-heavy, vanilla game plan. And many of those runs were from Sullivan, without much to show for it. He did have a nice, 35-yard scamper for a TD. Then he had another 14 runs for a total net of 3 yards. There were 4 sacks, but that will happen when the QB runs that much. Some of that is blocking, but some of that is Howard's adjustments. But with Howard keying on Sully, it allowed our RBs to put up some good numbers.

He's still an athletic runner who makes things happen, and I thought he did have some success when he decided to throw it. Once Howard adjusted after he ran for that TD, I wish he would've thrown it some more.

We can tweak the game plan against Nebraska (assuming it's Sully again). I think he has the tools to keep us in the game.

Here are @mshelton33's takeaways from a fun day at Ryan Field.