I'm Lazy

I must confess that I have not nearly kept up with the pace I was hoping to maintain for this blog. I was hoping to be most of the way through introducing the defense at this point, and yet, I haven't started. Because of this I decided to go with a different post style for the defense. I'll be putting up shorter, "what to watch for style posts" rather than the 2009 vs. 2010 posts. They will probably have less analysis and will probably be slightly less interesting, but it's the only way I can keep myself motivated to post at the rate I need to. I'm lazy, and these posts take way longer than I expected. Sorry.

2009 vs. 2010: The Superbacks

From Zimbio.com

Unless you a regular watcher of Northwestern football, you are probably asking, "What the heck is a superback?" And you are certainly justified in asking that because absolutely no one else has a position by that name. Basically, the term encompasses the fullback, tight end, and H-back positions.
Last Year: We basically had four superbacks last year: Mark Woodsum, Brendan Mitchell, Josh Rooks, and Drake Dunsmore. Because these people filled very different roles, I will break it down player-by-player.
Mark Woodsum was essentially a fullback. Because Northwestern runs a spread offense, they rarely use a fullback, except in occasional short-yardage situations. Because of this, Woodsum did not accumulate many stats and got most of his plays on special teams. That being said, he was responsible for one of the most exciting plays of the year when he caught a pass from Demos on a broken punt for a first down against Penn St. I also must mention that I once got to play tackle football against him in the annual Bonehead Bowl (a marching band tradition). Story time: I forced a fumble against him for a touchdown, (well, technically I just deflected a backwards lateral and dove on it in the endzone, but "forced fumble" sounds way more awesome) and we ended up winning. Anyways, thanks for playing, Mark. That was awesome.
Brendan Mitchell was a senior who played tight end primarily. He did not see a ton of playing time, but was on the receiving end of the game-tying, wide receiver reverse pass in the Outback Bowl.
Josh Rooks played the other tight end position as a junior. He did not do a whole lot statistically, but he did quite well as a blocker and on special teams.
Drake Dunsmore was the most exciting superback last year, as well as the youngest, a sophomore. His position is also the most difficult to describe. He is usually considered a tight end, but he also plays as a slot receiver. It's kind of a Dallas Clark-esque role. He played in all 13 games pulling in 47 receptions for 523 yards (second best amongst Big 10 tight ends) and 3 touchdowns. Furthermore, he was on the receiving end of probably the most exciting play of the year, a long run-after-catch for a touchdown in the Outback Bowl where he broke several seemingly easy tackles.
This Year: Woodsum and Mitchell both graduated, but Rooks and Dunsmore are returning and most likely reprising their respective roles. Dunsmore has received a great deal of national attention, being named one of the top 10 tight ends in the country by Rivals.com. He is definitely a player to watch. Woodsum's fullback role will be filled by Aaron Nagel, a junior transfer from Notre Dame who converted from linebacker. I have no idea whether anyone will fill Mitchell's spot, but if so, my best guess is that it will be filled by redshirt freshman John Plasencia.
Improvement?: I will say yes, simply because Dunsmore figures to play an expanded role in the offense, and, quite frankly, he is my favorite player on the team.

2009 vs. 2010: The Offensive Line

From the North by Northwestern website

Let me start by saying this post may be fairly short because I, unfortunately, am not terribly good at analyzing an offensive line. So I apologize in advance for the brief, and no doubt unsatisfying, analysis.
Last Year: I will break down the line from left to right. At left tackle, we had Al Netter. Netter is entering his junior year and started all 13 games last year, as well as all 13 games his redshirt freshman year in '08. Furthermore, he was an honorable mention for All-Big 10 last year.
We saw multiple people in the left guard position. Desmond Taylor was a senior who opened the season in the starting position and started five games, but he struggled with injuries and illnesses throughout the season. Junior Keegan Grant played some, and redshirt freshman Brian Mulroe started the Outback Bowl after returning from injury.
Ben Burkett started all 13 games, and has, in fact, started all 26 games for which he's been eligible, beginning with his redshirt freshman season in '08.
Starting every game at right guard was Doug Bartels. He is a former walk-on who has started 21 consecutive games.
Finally, we saw some competition at right tackle. Kurt Mattes was a senior who started six games but occasionally had problems with injuries. The freshman Neal Dieters started the other seven games and won NU's offensive newcomer award.
Well, then, how did the line perform throughout the season? Overall, I would say pretty average. Their pass protection, overall, was pretty good. Kafka was only sacked once for every 18.2 pass attempts, a pretty good number when you consider how long Kafka often sat in the pocket. However, I cannot help but fault the line for some of our running difficulties. I rarely saw big, gaping holes for our backs to run through. But in the line's defense, often they did create holes, and the backs simply failed to find them.
Next Year: I will again break down the line left to right. Barring injury, Netter should reclaim the left tackle spot. Various publications have listed him as a preseason All-Big 10 nominee, usually second or third team.
Left guard could either be Grant or Mulroe. I expect a competition. Mulroe is projected to start at one guard position, according to his bio, so it's merely a question of which one.
Center: This should definitely be Burkett. He was named to the Rimington Trophy watch list for the second year in a row. Definitely a player to watch.
Right Guard: There is a lot of competition here. Bartels is an obvious contender for the position, as is Mulroe. Dieters also figures to move into this position and compete for the job.
Right Tackle: Patrick Ward seems to have this position locked up. He was a true freshman last year who saw little playing time, but Fitz seems to like him.
Improvement: I think this is a definitive yes. This unit has a lot of experience, which is a very good thing. The level of competition also indicates that there is a great deal of depth, meaning the team does not need to live in fear of injury. I expect a good year from the O-line.

2009 vs 2010: The Wide Receivers

From Dailyme.com

I need to start with a bit of a disclaimer. The wide receiver position is incredibly difficult to predict for Northwestern. It seems every year excellent wide receivers rise out of nowhere only to then graduate, leaving the position in apparent shambles. But, in phoenix-like fashion, new wide receivers rise from the ashes to perfectly fill the rolls of their predecessors. It's a cool cycle, and I'm not going to complain, but it makes my job of predicting the upcoming year difficult. You might actually be better off ignoring everything I'm about to write. That being said, I'd appreciate if you didn't.
Last Year: We saw outstanding performances out of two receivers: Andrew Brewer and Zeke Markshausen. Brewer entered NU as a quarterback, but did fairly miserably at the position his freshman year. He was then transferred to wide receiver, but put up no stats in '07. He played a small role in '08, but didn't break through until '09. Finally living up to his potential, Brewer was Northwestern's go-to deep threat, ending the season with 925 yards (39th best in the country/4th Big 10). He also averaged a very good 16.2 yards per catch, a notably good number considering Northwestern's favorite pass was a short route into the flat. That 16.2 was the 51st best in the country and 5th best in the Big 10 (stupid Iowa had to take 2 of the top 5 spots...). Markshausen is a former walk-on engineering major who had exactly 1 catch before last season. How many did he have last season? 91. 91! That's a 9000% improvement! He went from total anonymity to the best receiver in the Big 10 in terms of receptions (number 10 in the country). However his yardage and touchdown numbers were not as nearly as impressive as Brewer's simply because the two played very different roles. While Brewer beat guys deep and made occasionally beautiful catches, Markshausen was simply the epitome of consistency, running short routes that drove other teams, and fans, crazy (just ask my friends at Iowa). While these two were certainly the primary targets in the passing game, three other receivers made notable contributions. Sidney Stewart looked very good at times, showing excellent athleticism. He really broke out at the end of the year with 94 and 97 yards, against Wisconsin and Auburn, respectively. Jeremy Ebert played a fairly small role but generally looked good. He also broke out at the end of the year, albeit to a lesser degree. Demetrius Fields was a freshman who put up numbers very similar to Ebert's, although he put up most of his stats at the beginning of the year. Generally, I felt fairly confident with the ball going to him. All-in-all, the entire receiver corps looked very good last year. They were by far the most pleasant surprise on the team .
This Year: This is where it gets difficult. The top targets will apparently be Ebert and Stewart, and they will almost certainly fill roles very similar to Zeke and Brewer, but I have no idea which receiver will fit which role. My inclination would be Ebert fills Brewer's role, because I believe he has better speed than Stewart, but I don't think I'd even bet a penny on that guess (except I hate having pennies so I might just want to get rid of it). I would expect Demetrius to have an impact as well, but I'm not sure what role he'll play either. My tentative guess is that he'll run a lot of routes across the middle. I also expect a few throws to Drew Moulton, who will be playing his first season after redshirting last year. I know little about him, but he looked decent in the spring game.
Improvement?: Psh, I don't know, but I would guess yes. And if that is true, then that is a very, very good thing. I have few complaints about our receivers last year, so any improvement would be outstanding. I expect an improvement simply because our incoming top-targets have more experience than the top receivers had entering previous years. Again, though, I won't pretend I know more than I do. I'm just as curious about how this position will turn out as any of you are.

2009 vs. 2010: The Running Backs

From the North by Northwestern website

Last Year: If you read my recap of the 2009 offense, you probably got a pretty good idea of how I felt about our running backs. Let's just say my opinion was less than favorable. No one on the team who carried the ball more than 10 times averaged even 4.0 yards per carry; the quarterback was second on the team in rushing yards and first in rushing touchdowns; and no 'Cats player managed a 100 yard rushing games. Arguably, one of the reasons for this failure of the running game was Northwestern's strategy of running back by committee. The 'Cats did not have a feature back, instead having Arby Fields, Scott Concannon, Stephen Simmons, and Jacob Schmidt split the workload. Arby was a true freshman who looked good at times, but often showed a frustrating inability to find holes in the line. Concannon was actually the running back who filled me with the most confidence, but I cannot say with certainty why. His stats weren't terribly impressive, with the exception of his solid 73 yards in our comeback against Indiana. He simply showed an ability to pick up extra yards I did not see in our other guys, making him our best short yardage threat. Simmons showed some serious promise, particularly in the first two games. He then, unfortunately, suffered an injury and played a much more limited role in the offense. Finally, we have Jacob Schmidt. I hate to admit it, but I don't even remember his performance enough to give a good comment. He simply failed to leave an impression. However, if memory serves, he was a primarily short-yardage back who ran like a fullback. The misfortunes at running back obviously did not go unnoticed by the Northwestern coaching staff. The Wildcats used running back increasingly little toward the end of the season, a fact clearly seen in the Outback Bowl when Northwestern ran their running backs 15 times while throwing 78 times.
This Year: Each of the aforementioned running backs is returning, so expect more of the same. However there will be one major difference: Fitz hopes to have a feature running back. This feature back figures to be Arby Fields. Hopefully with a year under his belt and with more responsibility, he'll be able to live up to his potential. With the other backs, I don't expect much difference from last year's performance; although hopefully a more experienced O-line will improve their numbers. There's also another guy on the depth chart by the name of Tyris Jones. I know absolutely nothing about him other than the fact that he used to be a linebacker, so please don't ask.
Improvement?: I think I can confidently say yes. While I wouldn't expect huge numbers from our running backs, they have nowhere to go but up. A year of experience will surely help, and hopefully the guys will be luckier in terms of health. We really are relying on an improvement as I anticipate the offense being more focused on the run game than they were in '09.

2009 vs 2010: The Offense

From Offtackleempire.com

Yesterday, I took a look at Northwestern's 2009 offense and analyzed their biggest issues. Today, I would like to compare this year's lineup to last year's and try to decide whether it will be an improvement. There are a lot of question marks, so predicting how we will look next year will be a tad difficult, but let's give it a try, position-by-position.
Quarterbacks
Last Year:  Mike Kafka was the man at quarterback last year, with a lot riding on his performance. He threw the ball 492 times, good for 7th most in the country, and 1st in the Big 10. All things considered, he did an admirable job in the role. Many had questions about his passing ability entering the year, remembering his 217 rushing yards against Minnesota in 2008, a Big 10 record for a QB in a single game. However, Kafka underwent a metamorphosis, becoming primarily a pocket passer. He met his trial early, as the running game failed to back him up. After much contemplation, my judgment is that he succeeded in his new role. He threw for  3430 yards, 14th in the country, despite being out for much of the games against Penn St and Iowa. He was only 61st in QB rating, however, almost certainly because of the lack of TDs, as analyzed yesterday. He did not completely ignore his history as a rusher though, putting up 295 yards rushing and 8 touchdowns, the latter stat being the best on the team. All that Kafka did well and all he did poorly is perhaps best displayed by the Outback Bowl. On the plus side, he managed to throw the ball 78 times for 532 yards and 4 touchdowns while rushing for 34 yards and a touchdown. Unfortunately, I also need to offer a description of his struggles: In this one game, he threw 31 incompletions and 5 interceptions, almost half of the interceptions he threw all year.  Nonetheless, through all the good and bad, he was fun to watch, one of the most interesting QBs in America. (P.S. Can you find all the Kafka puns? Hint: there are 6)
This Year: Kafka has graduated and is now a member of the Philadelphia Eagles. His position will be taken over by the junior, Dan Persa. Persa faces many of the same questions Kafka did entering the starting role. No one questions his ability to run, but we have yet to see an excellent passing performance. In limited time last year, Persa ran for 167 yards and threw for 224 yards and 2 touchdowns. His passing numbers are highly inflated, however, due to his sole 72 yard completion against Towson. Despite the lack of numbers, I am highly optimistic about Persa in the role. He is a hard working individual who has won the "Top Cat" conditioning award two years running. I have heard nothing but good things about his progression as a passer. Nonetheless, I expect more option-style running than we saw last year. If Persa goes down, filling the position will be Evan Watkins, a redshirt freshman pocket passer. He failed to impress in the spring game, but the scrimmage generally does not accurately represent how the players will look by the first game.
Improvement?: Probably not, but probably not a big step down either. Kafka was often very good, and I was generally confident when he entered the game. 'Cat fans need to remember, however, that his passing game was fairly poor before his senior year; in many ways, he looked like Persa did last year. Dan is a hard-working individual and a heck of a leader. I have little doubt he will be able to do all that is asked of him, or that he will work hard until he can.

Wow, this post is getting far longer than expected, so I think I will end it here. My next post will start with the running backs.

A Look at the 2009 Wildcats' Offense

The 'Cats offense was very up-and-down last season. Overall, they were a fairly solid 34th in the country in total offense (4th in the Big 10) in terms of yards, but when looking at points, the Wildcats were a much weaker 71st  (7th in the Big 10). Why, then, did the Wildcats fail to turn their yards into points? One possible answer is the breakdown of those yards. Northwestern threw for a very solid 3725 yards last year, good for 12th in the country, and 1st in the Big 10. However, for all the yards Northwestern picked up through the air, they had a disappointing number of touchdowns, with 20 (50th/4th). I must admit I'm somewhat at a loss as to why this phenomenon occurred, but I have a couple possible explanations. First, Northwestern's offense is a spread. For those who do not know, this is essentially an offense that spreads wide receivers all the way across the field in an attempt to create space. When a team is in the red zone (and thus in a good position to potentially score a touchdown), there is less space to open up, thereby making the spread less effective. This theory is supported by the fact that Northwestern ranked only 94th in the country in red zone offense last year (a dreadful 10th out of 11 in the Big 10).
 Another possible explanation for the lack of passing TDs and total points is that the 'Cats ran the ball more in red zone situations, a less than ideal situation when looking at the running last year's running game. Oh, the dreadful, woeful running game. Where do I even begin? We finished 89th (9th) in rush yards last year while averaging only 3.0 yrds/carry (111th!/10th). The latter fact is even more embarrassing when considering we ran the ball 34th most (3rd) last year. While I'm throwing out embarrassing statistics, let me point out our longest rush went for 25 yards, the worst longest rush of any team in the FBS. All of these statistics simply must improve for next season, since Wildcat offenses are typically built around the running game. When a team throws the ball 78 times in a game, as NU did in the Outback Bowl, it says something about the running game, and what it says isn't pretty.
Of course, I've been fairly negative in this post. There was a lot to like about the Northwestern offense at times. The passing game, for instance, was often very sharp. And the running game showed some improvement throughout the year. Obviously, for a team to finish 8-4 in the regular season, something about the offense must be good. However, the problems were frequently much more obvious, and hopefully, they will be fixed for the upcoming season.
For my next post I will be examining the 2010 offense and trying to answer whether it will be an improvement over the 2009 offense.

Purple Storm: An Introduction

Hello, and welcome to Purple Storm, a Northwestern sports blog having no affiliation with the controversial military operation against Panama  or the Hong Kong action film. My name is John Michael Kelly, a Northwestern sophomore and marching band member who has an unhealthy infatuation with college sports (particularly my beloved 'Cats). My hope for this blog is that it will provide interesting analysis of Northwestern sports.
Coming soon: An introduction to the Wildcats' offense for the 2011 season.