Oct. 24, 2009
OBSERVATION: The 'Cats rally from 25 down to escape Indiana by a point.
DISCUSSION: This was the largest comeback in school history, but not the most-memorable feat of Saturday afternoon. This was: the 'Cats fashioned their remarkable rally without starting running back Stephan Simmons; without starting linebacker David Arnold; without starting cornerback Sherrick McManis, who sat out all of the second half; with a walk-on named Ricky Weina playing in McManis's stead; without starting safety Brendan Smith; with Brian Peters, Smith's replacement, playing with his left hand fully wrapped; with Brad Phillips, the other starting safety, so banged up that he was both a game-time decision and occasionally sidelined by the pain coursing through his battered body; and with defensive end Corey Wootton also limited to part-time duty by a nagging ankle sprain.
It is easy snicker and roll the eyes when coaches talk about their boys' collective grit and how proud they are that those boys kept clawin' and scratchin' and fussin' and feudin' through all the adversity they faced. It is always easy to do that, but in this case that reaction would be wrong. Pat Fitzgerald, after this one, had every right to say, "To our young men's credit, they kept on fighting. . . I'm proud of our fight."
OBSERVATION: Feel free to say the 'Cats have suffered a rash of injuries.
DISCUSSION: "It's just part of the game. I'd love to be able to give you an answer why. It's part of the game," Fitzgerald said when asked about this. "You look across the board, Indiana's beat up too. It's a battle of attrition. Right now, we're playing 12 football games. You want a great study. Study how the injuries have gone up since we starting playing 12 football games. That's a study for you. I think it's really difficult to play 12 football games with 85 scholarships. That's just my humble opinion. It's really hard. These guys are out there battling, doing everything they can to play, and it's a violent, contact sport. How do you get your team physically ready to play each week (and) not to bang them too much so they don't get hurt? It's tough. It's a battle of attrition."
OBSERVATION: After building a 28-3 lead with 7:32 still remaining in the first half, the Hoosiers fail to score again and manage just five more first downs and 109 net yards of offense.
DISCUSSION: The 'Cat defense, quite simply, gave its team a chance to win.
OBSERVATION: Wootton, who is also still rounding into shape after off-season knee surgery, gets his first sack of the season.
DISCUSSION: "It's been a hard road for him this year. But the great thing about Corey is his attitude has been unbelievable," Fitzgerald later said. "For a young man with the expectations he has for himself, I could not be more proud for him. I said, 'Finally, there it is.' He started laughing. It was good to see him get that first one."
"It was definitely good to get that out of the way," said Wootton himself. "I've had that on my shoulders for a couple of weeks now. But it feels good to get it out of the way just to give me confidence.
OBSERVATION: With the 'Cats down 11 at halftime, Wootton rallies his teammates with a rousing speech.
DISCUSSION: "He's always into it and he always gets everybody jacked up," said wide receiver Zeke Markshausen.
"He was big. Very emotional, got us back in the game," added running back Scott Concannon. "He did a great job of telling us what we had to do and how to get there . . . He told us this is a pivotal game of the season and we needed to go out and turn it around or the season may not go where we wanted it to. We all took his words and tried to make it a reality on the field."
"I was just trying to get the guys fired up," said Wootton himself. "Trying to tell them we were in this game, we were going to win this game. I just felt it was the right time. I just spoke from my heart and the guys responded well. . . I've done it before, but this one meant more. This was one of the most-important games we played this season. It was really a defining game for us."
OBSERVATION: With the 'Cats down 11 in the third quarter, Weina blocks a punt for a safety.
DISCUSSION: "I just came off the edge, they didn't block me, so I laid out and blocked it," he later said. "It hit me up on the arms. I was surprised how fast I got in there."
OBSERVATION: Weina is a redshirt sophomore from Union Grove, Wis., who out of high school received no scholarship offers and was drawn to Northwestern by both its academic reputation and acceptance of walk-ons.
DISCUSSION: "Ricky's really been, because of injuries to our other corners, getting a ton of reps in practice," said Fitzgerald. "We just felt very comfortable with the job that he's been doing in practice. . . There was no hesitation to put Ricky in the game. He's got great speed. He's got great feet. Ricky really stepped up when the opportunity presented itself."
OBSERVATION: On his 51-yard touchdown reception, which pulled the 'Cats to within two early in the fourth quarter, wide receiver Andrew Brewer looks a bit, well, uncertain after collecting the ball.
DISCUSSION: "I honestly didn't know where he (the Indiana defender) was," he later explained. "I thought as soon as I caught it I was going to get hit. I thought he was right behind me, so as soon as I caught it, I didn't want to be the guy who catches it and then gets stripped. So I was definitely securing it, then realized he wasn't there. So I kept running and was able to squeak in the end zone. I know (quarterback) Mike (Kafka) would have beaten me up in the locker room if I didn't get in the end zone for him."
OBSERVATION: The 'Cats open their game-winning drive with three consecutive rushes by Concannon, who is finally back from an early-season concussion. He responds with runs of 15, 11 and six yards.
DISCUSSION: "We kind of knew their scheme, what they would do with the defensive line," he later explained. "We just tried to overpower them at the point of attack. That was our goal. We felt we could do it and we hadn't really done a huge amount of it earlier in the game. We just went to it, changed up a few blocks here and there. It really seemed to open up the hole."
Were you saving that tactic up?
"I wouldn't say we were saving it up. We were trying some things throughout the game and finally we found something that worked."
OBSERVATION: Concannon enters this game with 50 net yards on 16 carries. On this afternoon alone, he nets 73 on 16.
"Scotty's been waiting for his opportunity," said Fitzgerald. "He's primarily been a special team's player for us. His opportunity presented itself with some injuries and, unfortunately for him, he's been injured. But he saw an opportunity and he took advantage of it. That's kind of who we are right now. I said to the media yesterday, when I sat down with the TV folks, 'You might want to get your chart up dated because I'm not sure who's going to be playing on every rep. But I've got a feeling you're going to have some new names who made some plays.'"
Added Markshausen: "He's shifty. We call him 'Cutcannon.' He makes some insane cuts. . . He can be a great back for us."
OBSERVATION: Stefan Demos wins it for the 'Cats with his 19-yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining.
DISCUSSION: "It's my job to make it," he says succinctly.
OBSERVATION: Demos does not look especially thrilled.
DISCUSION: The Hoosiers second touchdown was set up by a 35-yard return of a 31-yard Demos punt and their fourth came on a 93-yard return of a Demos kickoff. That is why he will here admit: "I should be more happy than I am, but I feel pretty responsible for the early deficit. Obviously that punt return they had was big. It led to points for them, field position. Obviously that kickoff return for a touchdown, that's all on us. Coach can take the blame all he wants. I don't believe that at all. We had a plan and we needed to execute it."
OBSERVATION: Four games remain in the season and the 'Cats remain in the hunt for a bowl.
DISCUSSION: Said Fitzgerald: "You get to the last month, that's what you work for 11 months of the year. You work for one month, to make it be significant."