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.