2018: Started 14 games in his junior season and earned All-Big Ten honors (second team coaches, third team media) for the second-consecutive season after leading the team with 12.5 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks … Finished with 44 total tackles, a single-season career high, along with three forced fumbles … Ranks second among all Big Ten players with 16.5 sacks over the past two seasons ...Recorded a career-high four tackles for loss and tied his career-high with two sacks against Duke (9/8) … Forced fumbles in back-to-back games on the road against Iowa (11/10) and Minnesota (11/17), becoming the first Northwestern player to accomplish that feat since he did so last season versus Illinois and Kentucky … Recorded half a sack against Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship (12/1) … Registered three total tackles and a forced fumble against No. 17 Utah (12/31) in the Holiday Bowl, along with a sack to move into a tie for third place in program history with 21 career sacks.
2017: Started all 13 games at defensive end ... Named to All-Big Ten Defensive Team, second-team by the media and third-team by the coaches ... Led the Big Ten with eight sacks in the regular season, seven of which came during conference play ... Became only the fifth sophomore since to lead the Big Ten in sacks since 2005 ... Already ranks ninth in program history with 13.5 career sacks in just 26 career contests ... Posted four career-highs in win over Iowa, with six tackles, four solo tackles, two tackles for loss, and two sacks for a total of 24 yards ... Tallied two or more tackles in nine games, with four or more in wins over Iowa and Illinois ... Recorded his first career forced fumble versus Duke ... Ranked second on the team in forced fumbles with three ... Finished the season with a career-high 11.5 tackles for loss for a total of 62 yards, ranking him second on the team ... Had at least one tackle for loss in 11 of 13 games ... Recorded his team-best ninth sack of the season on the final play of the second quarter in the Music City Bowl ... Matched his career high with six tackles, forced his fourth career fumble and set a new career highs with five solo stops and two pass breakups ... Academic All-Big Ten.
2015: Redshirted his true freshman season ... Named Defensive Practice Player of the Week three times (Michigan, Nebraska, and Illinois).
High School: Named the No. 1 prospect in Massachusetts by Scout, 247Sports and Rivals ... 2014 Massachusetts Gatorade Player of the Year ... Three-star prospect rated as the nation's 43rd-best defensive end by Scout ... 2014 USA Today Second Team All-USA ... Semper Fidelis All-American (East captain) ... 2014 Boston Globe Division One Player of the Year ... Massachusetts Coaches Association All-State Team ... 2014 ESPN Boston Mr. Football ... Two-time Catholic Conference most valuable player ... Recorded 53 tackles, including 21 for loss and 16 sacks in 2014 ... Helped Hawks finish 12-0 with a Division One Super Bowl championship ... Had seven tackles, two sacks and a 35-yard field goal in the Super Bowl game ... Tallied 141 tackles, 33 sacks and four blocked kicks in career for Xaverian Brothers ... Captained both the football and lacrosse teams ... Two-time Boston Herald All-Scholastic honoree ... Honor Roll recipient.
Personal: Born Joseph Matthew Gaziano in Scituate, Mass. ... Son of Frank and Mary Ellen Gaziano ... Father, Frank, and uncle, Joe, played football at Lafayette College ... Attended same high school as NFL quarterbacks Tim and Matt Hasselbeck and former NBA player Dana Barros ... Chose Northwestern over Boston College, Syracuse, Big Ten foe Rutgers and others ... Major is communication studies.