Cats Eat Birds; NU wins 37-3
Northwestern was solid on both sides of the ball against an inferior opponent Saturday. And in a season that has now had for FCS teams beat FBS programs, this was exactly what the doctor ordered.
I have not yet seen the game recording as I missed the BTN replay today; but I am recording it tomorrow and will watch it then. But I do have a few comments about the game based on what I have seen and read. It is very difficult to judge ability against an inferior opponent. But execution can be measured. And NU executed all over the field.
Beginning of course with Dan Persa. Is this guy ever going to throw an incomplete pass? Persa is now 38-44 for the season. 38-44!!! He is the undisputed leader of this offense; he has weapons that trust him; and most important, he has the confidence necessary for the team to make a nice run. Every game will not be like the first two for him. But there is one thing that Cat fans can be certain of, Persa is not afraid to throw the ball. He currently leads the nation in passing efficiency and completion percentage.
Drake Dunsmore is not the largest Tight End in the country, but he might be one of the biggest mismatches in the Big Ten. Teams will have to find ways cover him in different ways, and that will open up the rest of the offense. His three touchdowns are tops in the nation for Tight Ends.
The running game was at the very least proficient, which again, is not much more than a confidence booster against ISU. It was also nice to see Arby Fields get 22 carries, which shows that he has the stamina to be a feature back. Hopefully, he will keep showing fans the game that he talked about in the pre-season, and not the one that he demonstrated in Nashville. The downside is that the Cats still only managed 3.2 yards per carry.
The defense, obviously, put on a show. Four turnovers, including two by Quentin Davie; three sacks, including two by Vince Browne lead the team to almost a shutout. The playmakers are making plays and that is good to see, because they did not last weekend. We must consider the opponent, but the Redbirds put up 55 points in week one. Dominance is dominance.
Special teams was spotty again. Demos pegged a nice 39 yard FG and Williams averaged 42 yards per punt. The Redbirds managed only 9 yards on the nine punt returns. But there were two more missed kicks. This cannot continue if the Cats want to win close games.
All in all, there is very little you can bring from this game that will demonstrate how the Wildcats will play against other teams. But there is a lot of confidence that the Wildcats can take from this game and the fan base should be able to breath a little easier this week.
There are a couple early week injury updates. Niko Mafuli, David Arnold, and Bryce McNaul are all listed as questionable for the Rice game. Backup offensive lineman Keegan Grant is also questionable with an unspecified injury that has kept him out of all three games so far. Looking forward to seeing you guys back on the field.
Once again, I will post a little more once I have had the opportunity to review the game tape.
Go Cats
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