How many games will the Cats win in 2024?

[lou v]

We've asked nine questions already about this season, but really, it all comes down to this one: what will Northwestern's record be at the end of the year?

WildcatReport - Ten Questions: How many games will the Wildcats win in 2024?

Here are our game-by-game predictions for the 2024 season.

northwestern.rivals.com

 

[rmndcat]

I think the top line of 7-5 is pretty defensible. I'd expect another Duke loss rather than one to Miami.

 

[TheC]

I think 6-6. I think we lose either the Maryland or Purdue game and I have the Duke and Miami OH games reversed. I also think we upset Iowa but lose to Wisconsin.

 

[wicker]

So how many wins
In the bloated new Big Ten?
Put me down for six

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

How many wins will have half of the folks on this board declaring that Braun is the wrong guy and needs to go?
3? 4?

How many wins will have everybody clamoring that "we need to lock Braun up for 15 years NOW?"
9?

 

[AdamOnFirst]

How many wins will have half of the folks on this board declaring that Braun is the wrong guy and needs to go?
3? 4?

How many wins will have everybody clamoring that "we need to lock Braun up for 15 years NOW?"
9?

One would hope that that sort of panicked thinking will be extinguished if and when Braun has some sustained success.

 

[sprinkler2]

All I am asking for is that the team comes well-prepared and focused for these first non-conference games. First all or most of the first three and bowling is much easier to achieve.

 

[AstroCat]

If we find the right QB, then we'll have at least six wins. If not, it will be a struggle to get to five.

I'm picking six wins, and hoping for more.

 

[zeek55]

How many wins will have half of the folks on this board declaring that Braun is the wrong guy and needs to go?
3? 4?

How many wins will have everybody clamoring that "we need to lock Braun up for 15 years NOW?"
9?

I'm in the camp that he should be given these next 2 seasons as HC regardless of results.

He already gave us one year of such success that meant a lot more than any similar year normally would mean given the circumstances.

I have no honest idea what to expect this season beyond hoping for 5-6 wins and a bowl win. That would be a great outcome imo, but I think it may take time for Lujan to build the offense that he's aiming for...

Just hoping to see the team look reasonably well coached and improving across the year.

 

[CatManTrue]

3-9

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

I'm in the camp that he should be given these next 2 seasons as HC regardless of results.

He already gave us one year of such success that meant a lot more than any similar year normally would mean given the circumstances.

I have no honest idea what to expect this season beyond hoping for 5-6 wins and a bowl win. That would be a great outcome imo, but I think it may take time for Lujan to build the offense that he's aiming for...

Just hoping to see the team look reasonably well coached and improving across the year.

I'm hoping NU has a good season, but there's 3 (almost) certain losses in the 12 games.
To go 7-2 in the other 9 would be phenomenal. Thats 7-5.

My only nagging doubt for me is that the player dynamic last year may have driven the team's success.
The players were united against those who disparaged them (Schill, Gragg, other idiots).
There's a possibility that the fire is diminished now that it is no longer "Cats Against The World."
And Braun didn't have the pressure that he'll face now - he essentially got a free pass last year.

So we'll see how it plays out. I think Braun is up to the job and could turn out to be exceptional... but its also possible that last season was something of a fluke.

 

[DaCat]

8-4 in regular season. Don’t bet against Braun.

 

[Deeringfish]

8-4 in regular season. Don’t bet against Braun.

I kinda feel that too. Maybe I'm overly optimistic but the D should be pretty solid. Lots of returning talent.
NU has three playmakers in Porter, Kirtz and Henning. Plus there have been some rumors about Covey. If an improved Lausch is the baseline and Wright beats him out the offense could be pretty good. And don't forget Himan's speed combined with Wright's and Henning's could be interesting. More speed , I think than we have had in years.

 

[Eurocat]

We've asked nine questions already about this season, but really, it all comes down to this one: what will Northwestern's record be at the end of the year?

WildcatReport - Ten Questions: How many games will the Wildcats win in 2024?

Here are our game-by-game predictions for the 2024 season.

northwestern.rivals.com

Needing to pump up the post count eh?

 

[DaCat]

3-9

So sad CatManBlue
New season excitement lost
Drink purple Kool-Aid

 

[CatManTrue]

So sad CatManBlue
New season excitement lost
Drink purple Kool-Aid

Hey, maybe Lausch is the second coming of Persa.

But, then again, maybe it’s also a bad sign when our head coach has to donate to our temporary lakeside stadium.

 

[mkilla]

Watching the Big Ten Preview,

It appears that the QB1 is Wright and OLINE is Tiernan, Herzog, Bailey, Thompson, Wrather from left to right. Seems like Knox working with the twos which was a surprise. WR3 and WR4 are Johnson and Ricky A.

 

[DaCat]

Watching the Big Ten Preview,

It appears that the QB1 is Wright and OLINE is Tiernan, Herzog, Bailey, Thompson, Wrather from left to right. Seems like Knox working with the twos which was a surprise. WR3 and WR4 are Johnson and Ricky A.

Surprising but excited to see the OL come together!

 

[zeek55]

I'm hoping NU has a good season, but there's 3 (almost) certain losses in the 12 games.
To go 7-2 in the other 9 would be phenomenal. Thats 7-5.

My only nagging doubt for me is that the player dynamic last year may have driven the team's success.
The players were united against those who disparaged them (Schill, Gragg, other idiots).
There's a possibility that the fire is diminished now that it is no longer "Cats Against The World."
And Braun didn't have the pressure that he'll face now - he essentially got a free pass last year.

So we'll see how it plays out. I think Braun is up to the job and could turn out to be exceptional... but its also possible that last season was something of a fluke.

Yeah it's really hard to measure motivation. The '23 team had more to prove than basically any other team we've had since the Rose Bowl season.

I have no idea how you flip a switch like that again; Braun did a masterful job keeping the team focused throughout the season but obviously the players were motivated to prove everybody wrong about them. All the (very loud) noise pre-season was about how the team was going to fall apart and lose every game, and you no longer have that kind of situation. Still, there's plenty of doubters about Northwestern football every year so it's not like motivation can't be reforged.

The good thing about guys like Braun and Lujan is that I think they'll be hungry to prove themselves at this level for quite a long time (which is why I liked Fitz's strategy of going for young hungry guys from a lower level in the past 2 years of hires).

Also we've seen that having a QB with great leadership qualities (and quality of play helps naturally) has been a difference maker and it was with Bryant (like Ramsey and Thorson and many before him).

I have no clue whether Lausch or Wright have those types of intangibles. But at the same time, I'm optimistic that Lujan will be an upgrade over Bajakian so it may not matter as long as Lujan can make the offense work.

 

[CMcCat]

As is the case with NU football each and every year, the record will depend largely on the quality of QB play. As I have almost no familiarity with Wright aside from knowing he is athletic, is playing for his third college program and has never thrown for 1000 yards in a single season, I am doing little more than throwing darts.

Four of my darts hit the target, one reasonably close to the bull’s-eye, and eight darts are embedded in the drywall, a couple of them in another room.

 

[DaCat]

As is the case with NU football each and every year, the record will depend largely on the quality of QB play. As I have almost no familiarity with Wright aside from knowing he is athletic, is playing for his third college program and has never thrown for 1000 yards in a single season, I am doing little more than throwing darts.

Four of my darts hit the target, one reasonably close to the bull’s-eye, and eight darts are embedded in the drywall, a couple of them in another room.

Wright doesn't step out of the transfer portal with the track record as Ramsey and Bryant had, but he has shown promise especially his sophomore (1,042 yards passing, 8 TD/6 INT) and junior (974 yds, 12/4) years at Vandy.

I'm hoping he thrives under Lujan, with staying healthy being a big part of the equation. I also have high hopes for Lausch, who I'm sure will get some meaningful reps at some point in the season even if he's not the opening day starter.

 

[techtim72]

Watching the Big Ten Preview,

It appears that the QB1 is Wright and OLINE is Tiernan, Herzog, Bailey, Thompson, Wrather from left to right. Seems like Knox working with the twos which was a surprise. WR3 and WR4 are Johnson and Ricky A.

How can you tell that from the BTN training camp clips? OL, maybe, but receivers being rotated in?

 

[CMcCat]

Wright doesn't step out of the transfer portal with the track record as Ramsey and Bryant had, but he has shown promise especially his sophomore (1,042 yards passing, 8 TD/6 INT) and junior (974 yds, 12/4) years at Vandy.

I'm hoping he thrives under Lujan, with staying healthy being a big part of the equation. I also have high hopes for Lausch, who I'm sure will get some meaningful reps at some point in the season even if he's not the opening day starter.

Thank you for the correction regarding his sophomore passing yardage. The darts are unmoved by hope.

 

[mkilla]

Braun-era seems to be more secretive than Fitz.

How can you tell that from the BTN training camp clips? OL, maybe, but receivers being rotated in?

I actually watched the show and listened. I don't think you did.

 

[techtim72]

Braun-era seems to be more secretive than Fitz.


I actually watched the show and listened. I don't think you did.

And I think you prefer the wise ass form of commenting.

 

[DrillCat]

Hoping for a 6-6 regular season with a bowl win.

 

[NUCat320]

Yeah it's really hard to measure motivation. The '23 team had more to prove than basically any other team we've had since the Rose Bowl season.

I have no idea how you flip a switch like that again; Braun did a masterful job keeping the team focused throughout the season but obviously the players were motivated to prove everybody wrong about them. All the (very loud) noise pre-season was about how the team was going to fall apart and lose every game, and you no longer have that kind of situation. Still, there's plenty of doubters about Northwestern football every year so it's not like motivation can't be reforged.

The good thing about guys like Braun and Lujan is that I think they'll be hungry to prove themselves at this level for quite a long time (which is why I liked Fitz's strategy of going for young hungry guys from a lower level in the past 2 years of hires).

Also we've seen that having a QB with great leadership qualities (and quality of play helps naturally) has been a difference maker and it was with Bryant (like Ramsey and Thorson and many before him).

I have no clue whether Lausch or Wright have those types of intangibles. But at the same time, I'm optimistic that Lujan will be an upgrade over Bajakian so it may not matter as long as Lujan can make the offense work.

When the spotlight was on them and they were playing against the world, they stunk up the joint. Rutgers was awful. UTEP was awful for a half. Duke was awful.

When they stopped playing to remember their old coach, and started playing for each other and for their new coach, they started figuring things out.

We have reason to believe the defense will be good. Henning and Kirtz are excellent playmakers. Hopefully we can get the ball outside.

It always hinges on the quarterback, at NU and at most places. And I have no idea what to expect there.

I trust that Lujan is better at designing offense than Bajakian was. So we should see the playmakers getting the ball.

 

[BleedingPurple15]

I kinda feel that too. Maybe I'm overly optimistic but the D should be pretty solid. Lots of returning talent.
NU has three playmakers in Porter, Kirtz and Henning. Plus there have been some rumors about Covey. If an improved Lausch is the baseline and Wright beats him out the offense could be pretty good. And don't forget Himan's speed combined with Wright's and Henning's could be interesting. More speed , I think than we have had in years.

Porter is not a playmaker. He's slow, unbalanced, and falls down at the first sign of contact. Rather we would have kept Tyus.

 

[CoralSpringsCat]

Porter is not a playmaker. He's slow, unbalanced, and falls down at the first sign of contact. Rather we would have kept Tyus.

Brutal take.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

When they stopped playing to remember their old coach, and started playing for each other and for their new coach, they started figuring things out.

Do you really think it was the players who started figuring things out?
As opposed to Braun getting thrown into the deep end of the pool and learning how to swim?

I'm only responding to save you future embarrassment on this matter.

 

[NUCat320]

Do you really think it was the players who started figuring things out?
As opposed to Braun getting thrown into the deep end of the pool and learning how to swim?

I'm only responding to save you future embarrassment on this matter.

Everyone grew, but players who had lost for two years didn’t know how to win anymore. They didn’t know what it was like to play for a guy who really, really wanted to win, instead of a guy who really, really wanted to protect his assistant coaches’ feelings (and run the ball goddammit).

 

[lou v]

Porter is not a playmaker. He's slow, unbalanced, and falls down at the first sign of contact. Rather we would have kept Tyus.

I think you may be alone on this one.

 

[Overly_Invested_Cat]

Porter is not a playmaker. He's slow, unbalanced, and falls down at the first sign of contact. Rather we would have kept Tyus.

Falls down at the first sign of contact? That's not what I've seen. In fact, Porter tries to bowl over anyone who contacts him. While I'd prefer that he'd use cuts and stiff arms to avoid tacklers, I'm not sure we've been watching the same player for the last three years.

 

[TheC]

I think you may be alone on this one.

When our board "dad" steps in to disagree with you, you know you're wrong....

 

[NUCat320]

When our board "dad" steps in to disagree with you, you know you're wrong....

While I don’t agree with the characterization of Porter being slow
and contact-avoidant, he only averaged 3.9 yards per carry last year, and only cracked 4.0 in four of his 11 games against P5 competition.

He is a lower-tier playmaker than Kirtz or Henning.

NU will be a better team if Porter sees his touches decline because Caleb K. and/or Himon are taking them away.

 

[PurpleWhiteBoy]

Cam Porter was a really dynamic tailback as a freshman.
He was shifty but sought contact and tried to annihilate anybody in front of him.
He delivered serious punishment to anybody under 230.
Then he severed his right ACL and meniscus in practice.
He missed his sophomore season after a major reconstruction.
As a junior in 2022 he was clearly not the same tailback, slower, less explosive, less shifty.
He improved somewhat in 2023, but in my opinion was still not back to where he was.
Of course, the offensive line can make a tailback look bad or better than he is.

Hoping Porter gets better blocking and has a huge season.

 

[CoralSpringsCat]

Watching the Big Ten Preview,

It appears that the QB1 is Wright and OLINE is Tiernan, Herzog, Bailey, Thompson, Wrather from left to right. Seems like Knox working with the twos which was a surprise. WR3 and WR4 are Johnson and Ricky A.

This post is looking better by the minute…