Nov. 12, 2001
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GAME 10:
NORTHWESTERN (4-5) vs. BOWLING GREEN (6-3)
Date/Time: Saturday, Nov. 17, 2001/11 a.m. CST
Site: Ryan Field, Evanston, Ill.
Capacity/Surface: 47,130/Natural Grass
Television: None
Radio: WGN 720 AM (Dave Eanet, play-by-play, Ted Albrecht, color) (also on wgnradio.com)
The Game
Coming off a 59-16 home loss to Iowa this past weekend, Northwestern's football team must regroup as it entertains Bowling Green State University at 11 a.m. this Saturday, Nov. 17 in its home finale. The Bowling Green contest was added to the schedule in mid-September to replace the canceled Sept. 15 game vs. Navy. (The Navy game was canceled following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the East Coast.)
Despite their current four-game losing skid, the injury-riddled Wildcats are still clinging to slim postseason bowl hopes. Northwestern, however, has no margin for error and must win its final two games. After Saturday's contest, the Wildcats travel to 12th-ranked Illinois for a Thanksgiving day meeting with their Big Ten rival.
The Falcons, who shut out Ohio University 17-0 this past weekend, are one of the Mid-American Conference's most improved squads this season. Under the direction of first-year coach Urban Meyer, Bowling Green (6-3) has already secured its first winning season since 1994. Last year, the Falcons finished 2-9. Northwestern's offense, which was held to a season-low 256 yards on Saturday, will get a stiff test from Bowling Green, which features one of the nation's top run defenses. The Falcons, who allowed a season-high 109 rushing yards two weeks ago in a 24-21 loss to Miami, are giving up 72.6 yards per game on the ground and 2.3 yards per carry. Overall, the BGSU defense is allowing 290.9 yards per game. Nationally, the Falcons rank third in rushing defense and 11th in total defense. Offensively, the Falcons have awarded their starting quarterback position to sophomore Josh Harris, a threat both running and throwing. Fans may use their Sept. 15 tickets (Navy game) for admission to Saturday's contest vs. Bowling Green. For more info, call 847-491-CATS.
The Series with Bowling Green
Series Record: First Meeting
Series Notes: Although this is the first meeting between the Wildcats and Falcons, it is not the first time that Northwestern has battled a Mid-American Conference foe. Since the Wildcats began playing football in 1882, they have played three other MAC schools and compiled a 7-6 record. NU is 5-0-1 versus Northern Illinois, 1-5 versus Miami University and 1-1 versus Ohio ... The Wildcats last played a MAC school in 2000, a season-opening victory against Northern Illinois ... Head coach Randy Walker faced Bowling Green nine times at Miami and went 2-6-1 versus the Falcons.
Senior Day
Prior to the start of Saturday's game versus Bowling Green, Northwestern will honor 14 seniors, who are playing their final home game. All 14 seniors will be in the starting lineup, with the exception of running back Damien Anderson (Wilmington, Ill./Wilmington), safety Marvin Brown (Pueblo, Colo./Central) and defensive end Pete Konopka (Marengo, Ill./Marian Central Catholic), who are out for the season with injuries.
Besides Anderson, Brown and Konopka, the other 11 seniors include: linebacker Kevin Bentley (North Hills, Calif./Montclair Prep), offensive tackle Leon Brockmeier (Tallahassee, Fla./Lincoln), offensive guard Lance Clelland (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh), offensive guard Adam Fay (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf), defensive end Napoleon Harris (Dixmoor, Ill./Thornton Township), quarterback Zak Kustok (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg), linebacker Billy Silva (San Diego, Calif./St. Augustine), wide receiver Sam Simmons (Kansas City, Kan./F.L. Schlagle), defensive end Salem Simon (Cleveland, Ohio/Benedictine), offensive tackle Mike Souza (Kaneohe, Hawaii/Punahou) and punter J.J. Standring (Chicago, Ill./St. Rita).
The Iowa Recap
Nov. 10, 2001 -- Playing its first game without All-America running back Damien Anderson, the Wildcat offense was stymied and never got on track in a 59-16 setback to Iowa. Like the previous week's game against Indiana, Northwestern quickly fell behind and never recovered in suffering its second straight double-digit point loss.
The Hawkeyes dominated the first quarter, piling up 170 yards in total offense and scoring the game's first three touchdowns, all on 4-yard runs. Northwestern gave its faithful some hope, however, when freshman Jarvis Adams (Tallahassee, Fla./Godby) picked off Hawkeye quarterback Brad Banks and returned the interception 44 yards to the Iowa 29-yard line. One play later, Zak Kustok found Sam Simmons open in the end zone for his fourth score of the season. That play cut the Iowa lead to 21-7. The momentum from that turnover and score was short-lived, though, as Iowa reeled off 31 straight points to take a commanding 52-7 lead. Following their first-half TD, the Wildcats forced the Hawkeyes to punt on their next possession, but that would be Iowa's only punt of the day. The Hawkeyes scored on their next five series to put the game out of reach.
Junior Kevin Lawrence (Montreal, Quebec/Avon Old Farms, Conn.), who replaced Anderson in the starting lineup, totaled 51 rushing yards on nine carries before leaving the game in the third quarter with a knee injury. His replacement, sophomore Torri Stuckey (Robbins, Ill./D.D. Eisenhower), led NU with five receptions for 30 yards added 17 rushing yards. Kustok endured his roughest outing of the year, completing 9-of-20 passes for 86 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.
Northwestern Head Coach Randy Walker
2000 Dave McClain Big Ten Coach of The Year
Randy Walker is in his third season at Northwestern after spending the previous nine years (1990-98) at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. In just two years with the Wildcats, Walker directed a stunning turnaround. After a 3-8 season in 1999, he engineered a complete overhaul of the Wildcat offense and the result was an 8-4 record, an Alamo Bowl berth and a share of the 2000 Big Ten championship.
Walker was recognized for his efforts last season by both his peers and the media, as he was named Dave McClain Big Ten Coach of the Year and the Region 3 Coach of the Year by the AFCA. Walker owns a 74-52-5 career record in 12 seasons and a 15-17 mark at Northwestern. Prior to gaining his first head coaching job at Miami in 1990, Walker spent one year as an assistant at Miami (1977), 10 years as an assistant at North Carolina (1978-87) and two years as an assistant at Northwestern (1988-89).
Walker came to Evanston with an impressive coaching resume already intact. The 47-year-old Walker departed Oxford as the winningest head coach in school history. His mark at Miami of 59-35-5 (.621) is even more impressive when you consider the coaching greats which Miami has produced: Paul Brown, Woody Hayes, Ara Parseghian, Bo Schembechler ... and the list goes on.
Walker graduated from Miami in 1976 with a bachelor's degree in social studies education and earned a master's degree in educational administration from his alma mater in 1981. He starred for Miami as a fullback, leading them to three-straight Tangerine Bowl victories. Upon graduation, Walker was drafted by the Cincinnati Bengals, but returned to Miami to help as a graduate assistant and the next year became a full-time assistant in charge of running backs under Dick Crum. When Coach Crum departed for North Carolina, Walker joined him and spent the next 10 seasons as a Tar Heel. He coached various positions, ending up as the offensive coordinator. From there, he spent two seasons as Northwestern's running backs coach (1988-89) and, in 1990, took over as the head coach at Miami.
Remembering Rashidi
On Friday, Aug. 3, Northwestern suffered a tragic blow as senior safety Rashidi Ayodele Wheeler (Ontario, Calif./Damien) died while running a summer conditioning drill on campus. In his memory, the Wildcats are wearing a patch on their uniform with his initials, RAW. Also, for the first time in Northwestern football history, Wheeler's jersey number (#30) was retired. Wheeler's locker in the John Evans Club locker room is also being preserved with a glass case surrounding his jersey and helmet. Wheeler started 12 games at strong safety in 2000 and registered 88 tackles (59 solos) and three pass deflections.
Big Ten Conference Standings
2001 Standings Conference Games All Games Illinois 5 1 .833 8 1 .889 Michigan 5 1 .833 7 2 .778 Ohio State 4 2 .667 6 3 .667 Michigan State 3 3 .500 5 3 .625 Purdue 3 3 .500 5 3 .625 Wisconsin 3 3 .500 5 5 .500 Indiana 3 3 .500 3 5 .375 Iowa 3 4 .429 5 4 .556 Penn State 2 4 .333 3 5 .375 Northwestern 2 5 .286 4 5 .444 Minnesota 1 5 .167 3 6 .333
Bowling Green Ties
Two assistant coaches involved in Saturday's game have long associations with their foes on the opposite sideline. Bowling Green assistant head coach and offensive coordinator Gregg Brandon served as the Wildcats' receivers coach from 1992-96 and as their receivers coach and recruiting coordinator from 1997-98. One of Brandon's most highly decorated pupils was all-time leading receiver D'Wayne Bates. On the Wildcat sideline, running backs coach Jeff Genyk is a graduate of Bowling Green. He played quarterback for the Falcons (1978-81) and then served as a graduate assistant coach in 1982. Genyk also serves as the Wildcats' recruiting coordinator.
Injury Ends Damien Anderson's Collegiate Career
Senior Damien Anderson has announced that he will have surgery to repair his dislocated left shoulder, thus ending his collegiate career. He injured the shoulder in the third quarter at Indiana on Nov. 3. Anderson is expected to have surgery this week. For more information on Anderson' season and career, see page eight of the game notes.
Damien Finishes Sixth On The Big Ten Rushing Chart
With his career complete, Damien Anderson is now the sixth all-time leading rusher in Big Ten history. He fell 515 yards shy of the coveted 5,000-yard mark. The following is a look at the entire Big Ten top 10:
Rank Yards Name Years Played
1. 7,125 Ron Dayne (Wis.) (1,220 attempts) 1996-99
2. 5,589 Archie Griffin (OSU) (924) 1972-75
3. 5,299 Anthony Thompson (IU) (1,161) 1986-89
4. 4,887 Lorenzo White (MSU) (1,082) 1984-87
5. 4,654 Darrell Thompson (Minn.) (936) 1986-89
6. 4,485 Damien Anderson (NU) (953) 1998-01
7. 4,472 Anthony Thomas (Mich.) (924) 1997-00
8. 4,393 Jamie Morris (Mich.) (809) 1984-87
9. 4,212 Tico Duckett (MSU) (836) 1989-92
10. 4,178 Tyrone Wheatley (Mich.) (688) 1991-94
Turnovers Tell The Story
Once again, Northwestern is proving that if you win the turnover battle, the odds of winning a football game climb significantly. This season, the Wildcats are 4-0 when suffering fewer turnovers than the opposition and 0-4 when commiting more than the other school. Against Purdue on Oct. 27, the turnovers were even (one apiece) and NU lost a narrow decision (32-27). Versus Penn State on Oct. 20, the Wildcats suffered just one turnover, but it proved to be costly as PSU played an error-free game. Since coming to NU, head coach Randy Walker is 12-1 when turning it over fewer times than the opponent. The Wildcats still rank 52nd nationally in turnover margin despite suffering seven turnovers in their last two outings. Last year, NU had five games without a turnover. This season, Northwestern has recorded at least one turnover per game.
61-1-1
Head coach Randy Walker is nearly unbeatable when his teams carry a lead into the fourth quarter. Since Walker began his head coaching duties at Miami University in 1990, he has compiled a 61-1-1 record when leading at the end of the third quarter. At NU, Walker is 12-0 with a fourth-quarter lead. The Oct. 20th game versus Penn State did, however, end his unbeaten mark (11-0) when leading at halftime as the Wildcats' coach. The Penn State game also marked the first time that, with the score tied (28-28) heading into the fourth quarter, a Walker-coached team lost a contest with the scored tied after three quarters. Earlier this season, the Wildcats came close to losing just the second fourth-quarter lead of Walker's career when Michigan State overcame deficits of 17-14 and 24-20 on Sept. 29. Northwestern pulled out the game 27-26 with a last-second field goal.
Cardiac 'Cats Not Living Up To Nickname Of Late
Over the last year-and-a-half, Northwestern deservedly earned its "Cardiac 'Cats" tag. On back-to-back weekends in 2000, the Wildcats threw a "Victory Right" pass to beat Minnesota on the game's final play before edging out Michigan the following week with a 54-51 victory. The winning score in the Michigan game came with 20 seconds remaining. They also pulled out a double-overtime win at Wisconsin.
In 2001, Northwestern pulled out a gut-wrenching victory over Michigan State on Sept. 29, which became its second "ESPN Instant Classic," game in as many years.
But in the last few weeks, the Wildcats' magic has disappeared, and for the first time in Randy Walker's Northwestern coaching tenure, the 'Cats have failed to win games that were decided by seven points or less. Northwestern fell to Penn State 38-35 before dropping a 32-27 decision at Purdue. Walker is now 7-2 in games decided by seven points or less at Northwestern.
Zak Attack -- Unitas Golden Arm Award Finalist
The orchestrator of the Big Ten's number-two offense is senior quarterback Zak Kustok. Kustok, who was named one of five finalists for the Unitas Golden Arm Award two weeks ago, developed into one of the nation's most consistent and dangerous signal callers in 2000. Kustok's lowest single-game completion percentage during the regular season was 51.2 percent (21 of 41 at Wisconsin). Until the season-opening 24-for-49 (49.0 percent) effort at UNLV, he had completed 50 percent or more of his pass attempts in 12 consecutive regular-season contests. Prior to a sub-par 9-of-20 effort against Iowa, Kustok had completed 153 of 255 passes (60.0 percent) in his previous seven games. Last month against Minnesota, he set a career-best single-game completion percentage of .688 (22-of-32).
Another trait of Kustok's is his ability to keep mistakes to a minimum. Prior to suffering his first interception in eight games against Michigan State, Kustok attempted 277 straight passes without being intercepted-the longest streak of his career. He has tossed just seven interceptions in 324 attempts this year, but four in his last two games.
Dating to the 1999 season, Kustok has thrown at least one touchdown pass in the Wildcats' last 22 games. Kustok added another notch to his belt at UNLV when he rushed for a career-high three touchdowns. He also tossed a pair of TD passes, giving him a hand in all five NU TD's. Against Duke, he threw for 318 yards-four yards shy of his career high-and ran for 33 yards. Versus the Spartans, Kustok rushed for 105 yards and totaled 336 yards in total offense. On Oct. 20 against Penn State, he set career bests for total offense (413, third-best in NU history) and rushing yards (115) and equaled his rushing TD mark with three. Kustok ranks 16th nationally in total offense with a 271.3 ypg average. Besides total offense, he ranks first in the Big Ten in the category "points responsible for." Nationally, he ranks 14th in the "points responsible for" category. Besides the Unitas Golden Arm Award, Kustok was a contender for the Davey O'Brien Award, which honors the nation's top quarterback. Kustok ranks second in passing TDs at NU, fourth in completions and fifth in passing yardage. With his 115-yard rushing effort against Penn State, Kustok surpassed the 1,000-yard mark for career rushing. He now has 1,151 career yards and is the only quarterback in NU history to top the 1,000-yard mark. He also has 20 career rushing TD's, which ranks fourth on NU's all-time list.
Anderson/Kustok 10,000-Plus and Counting
The quarterback/tailback tandem of Zak Kustok and Damien Anderson became the Wildcats' top total offensive duo in school history Oct. 13 against Minnesota. With Anderson now sidelined with his shoulder injury, Kustok's figures will be the only numbers boosting the total in the season's final weeks. Entering this weekend vs. Bowling Green, Kustok and Anderson have a combined 10,771 career yards. During the middle 1990s, when Northwestern captured two Big Ten crowns, quarterback Steve Schnur and tailback Darnell Autry combined for 9,335 yards-the previous best by a Northwestern duo. Kustok presently ranks third all-time in NU total offense with 6,286 yards while Anderson finishes sixth with 4,485 yards. Len Williams holds NU's career record with 8,029 yards.
Sam is in the Books
Sam Simmons (Kansas City, Kan./F.L. Schlagle), who was slowed in Northwestern's first two Big Ten games with a broken right ring finger, followed up his Big Ten Co-Special Teams Player of the Week performance (vs. Minnesota) with a career-best showing vs. Penn State. Simmons caught seven passes for a career-high 168 yards and one touchdown. The 168-yard performance was the 10th-best single-game figure in NU history. Simmons has been held in check the past three weeks, catching two passes for 11 yards at Purdue, totaling five receptions for 55 yards at Indiana and one catch for 29 yards vs. Iowa, although it went for a touchdown.
He currently ranks seventh on the Wildcats' career receiving yardage chart (1,505 yards) and is six receptions shy of reaching 100 on NU's all-time receptions list. Simmons presently ranks eighth on the all-time reception list with his 94 career catches.
Triple Trouble
Northwestern's three leading receivers -- Kunle Patrick (Brooklyn, N.Y./Poly Prep Country Day), Sam Simmons and Jon Schweighardt (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton-Warrenville South) -- have combined for 127 receptions and 1,499 receiving yards. The trio is responsible for 60.8 percent of NU's receptions and 70.0 percent of its receiving yardage. Patrick leads with 47 receptions, while Schweighardt has moved into second place with 41 catches on the team reception list after grabbing a career-high eight passes (84 yards) at Indiana. Simmons has a team-best 614 receiving yards. The trio also has 10 of the team's 14 aerial scores.
Injury Casualties
In the past few weeks, the Wildcats have taken a hit on the injury front. Besides losing Damien Anderson with a shoulder injury, Northwestern has suffered six season-ending leg injuries. Roger Jordan (League City, Texas/Clear Creek) has a stress fracture in his right femur, Matt Anderson (Belvidere, Ill./Belvidere) suffered a right knee injury in the Penn State game and became the third defensive lineman to suffer a season-ending injury, Gilles Lezi (Laval, Quebec/Cegep du Vieux) broke his left fibula at Purdue, Marvin Brown (Pueblo, Colo./Central) is out with a knee injury, Noah Herron (Mattawan, Mich./ Mattawan) suffered a fracture in his foot last week in practice, and Kevin Lawrence suffered a lateral meniscus tear in his right knee against Iowa.
In The Trenches
Generally regarded as one of the nation's better units, NU's offensive line is anchored by a veteran group that features four players who garnered preseason honors: right guard Jeff Roehl (Orland Park, Ill./Carl Sandburg), center Austin King (Cincinnati, Ohio/Purcell Marian), left guard Lance Clelland (Reisterstown, Md./McDonogh) and left tackle Leon Brockmeier (Tallahassee, Fla./Lincoln). Right tackle Mike Souza (Kaneohe, Hawaii/Punahou) is the other returnee and he owns 36 career starts, the most among the five. Combined, the unit has 143 career starts. In September, King was one of 21 players named to the 2001 Rimington Award watch list, which honors the country's top center.
Youth Movement
With its defense suffering some hits to injury, Northwestern defensive coordinator Jerry Brown has had to unleash some of his freshmen in recent weeks. Fortunately for Brown and the Wildcats, the youngsters are responding positively, despite their lack of experience. Three weeks ago at Purdue, two freshmen, Herschel Henderson (Houston, Texas/Clear Lake) and Luis Castillo (Garfield, N.J./Garfield), made their collegiate debut. Henderson, playing safety, was especially impressive, recording four tackles and a quarterback hurry. Another true freshman, Dominique Price (Jeffersontown, Ky./Dupont Manual), made his first collegiate start at strong safety that day. He totaled seven tackles and a forced fumble. Price followed up his Purdue performance with a career-high 11 tackles, his second career interception (17 yard return) and a pass deflection.
Linebackers Lead The Way
Northwestern's top three tacklers are its three starting linebackers. Following a solid effort against Iowa that included 15 tackles, Kevin Bentley (North Hills, Calif./Montclair Prep) holds a one-tackle edge over middle linebacker Billy Silva, 112 to 111. In the latest NCAA defensive report (for games through Oct. 27), Silva ranked 11th nationally in total tackles and Bentley was 16th. Silva is one of 12 semifinalists for the Bronko Nagurski Defensive Player of the Year Award. Junior Pat Durr (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles) has 89 hits, including eight for a loss.
'Cat Tails ...
* Redshirt freshman Jarvis Adams made a successful return to the field after missing the previous three games with a high ankle sprain. He notched an impressive interception and recorded three solo tackles.
* True freshman Trai Essex (Fort Wayne, Ind./Paul Harding) caught his first collegiate touchdown reception in the fourth quarter versus Iowa.
* Redshirt freshman quarterback Tony Stauss (Racine, Wis./Horlick) entered Saturday's game vs. Iowa late in the third quarter and went 11-of-14 for 50 yards and his first TD pass, the 3-yard strike to Essex.
* The Wildcats' roughest quarter for reaching the endzone is the second: they are getting outscored 73-33. NU tallied its first second-quarter TDs of the year in game six versus Penn State. NU's slow starts in recent weeks is evidenced by the fact opponents have scored 95 points in the first quarter.
* Northwestern started the season 3-0, its best start to a campaign since 1962.
Up Next
The Wildcats close out the regular season at Illinois on Thanksgiving Day (Nov. 22). Kickoff is at noon.