I'll start with the negatives. This is a painful game to "what-if" about. Had we won this game we would not only be being discussed as one of the best teams in the Big Ten, we'd be in the discussion of best in the country, and would be considered a national championship contender. To even consider how close that came to being the case is almost mind-blowing. A win here would have been a program-definer, the kind of game that moves a team from the level of the good teams to the level of the great or even elite teams. One of these weeks, we'll get that win, but unfortunately this was not the time.
Now the positive: We held our own against one of the best teams in the country, and the nation watched. Let's be clear, this game was no fluke. We played very, very nearly at the level of the Buckeyes. We have a terrific team. On top of this, our game was the most watched game in the nation this week. Despite the loss, this was a game that got us a great deal of exposure and respect. The nation is beginning to realize we truly are a good team, and we're here to stay.
Now let me break down this homecoming, beginning with the weekend as a whole, then the game in particular.
Weekend Atmosphere
Mike and Mike: The first taste of this homecoming weekend came Friday when Mike and Mike's morning show broadcast from Deering Field. Full disclosure: I slept through it, but to my amazement, a number of people did not. To see a crowd of people lining up already joining in this ESPN-heavy homecoming at 5:00 AM was pretty a awesome sight, and a great way to start the weekend.Pep Rally: Friday night was the homecoming pep rally, again on Deering Meadow. This was the most-attended homecoming pep rally Northwestern had held and was filled with some very excited alumni.
College Gameday: Wow, I was blown away here. I knew a number of students would attend, but I underestimated just how many and how early they would arrive. To my delight there was a very rowdy, purple crowd with some fantastic signs. And they did a great job of drowning out the few OSU fans who attended. It cast our university in a great light, and hopefully the huge success will convince ESPN to continue to attend some smaller venues in the future.
Student Section at the game: Ryan Field's student section holds 5000 people, and some students were still turned away. Northwestern has an undergraduate population of just over 8000. That means 60%+ of the student population attended this game. That is unheard of at NU, a place where I became accustomed to students not even knowing whether we were playing a game on a given weekend. On top of this, many of those 5000 students were waiting in line for seats during a severe thunderstorm. And during the game itself, the student section was absolutely rocking. Here's to hoping this becomes the new normal at NU.
Non-student seating: The one negative of the weekend atmosphere. Unfortunately, a large percentage of Ryan Field was filled by OSU fans. To an extent, this is understandable. After all, there are far more OSU alumni in Chicago than there are NU alumni. Still, it's a bit disappointing to see this happen even on our homecoming. On the plus side, however, the Northwestern faithful easily drowned out the Buckeye fans all game. The energy from even the non-student fans was something I had not before seen at Northwestern.
The Game
Trevor Siemian: Overall, Trevor had a very solid game. He completed 13 of 18 attempts for 245 yards and 2 TDs, looking good in passes in every range and even demonstrating some athleticism. I really only have two complaints about his play. First, he held on to the ball far too long, getting sacked five times. That simply cannot happen. Second, Siemian threw a very bad interception. I had been saying all year that Trevor's tendency to throw into coverage would come back to haunt him when facing good secondaries, and this came true. While he only really made one mistake, it was a costly one. Still, despite these complaints, Siemian performed quite well.
Kain Colter: OSU did a good job of defending the option, and, as a result, Colter struggles in the run game, going for only 16 yards on 8 carries. Regardless, he did get into the endzone. He performed well in the passing game, however, both as a quarterback and a receiver. As a quarterback, he primarily threw underneath all game, completing all 12 passes he attempted, but for only 98 yards. He also stayed in at receiver for most plays where Siemian lined up at QB. While he only recorded one catch, it went for a touchdown, and his lining up in the slot seemed to create coverage nightmares for the Buckeyes all game.
Venric Mark: Boy, it's good to have him back. While he still did not look quite 100% to me, he played a lot, and he did it well. Statistically speaking, his game was below last year's standards, running for only 60 yards on 17 carries, but he got those 60 yards in impressive fashion, as he broke tackles along with his usual shiftiness. I believe he will only get better in the run game in coming weeks. He also contributed well in the passing game, catching 4 passes (ironically, that's more than he ever caught in a game when he was a wide receiver). He took those catches for 43 yards, most coming on an extremely impressive 41 yard reception. He only took one kickoff return, but he took it for 38 yards. As he continues to get healthy, he should take on a bigger portion of the return game.
Green and Trumpy: These two saw their roles greatly reduced with the return of Venric, taking a combined 8 carries for 26 yards. I hope we will find a way to better incorporate them into the offense alongside Venric, as they provide a different look and can still be valuable to this offense.
Receivers: As was expected, Northwestern got a lot of receivers involved. OSU had little trouble locking down Northwestern's leading receivers, but the 'Cats simply offered too many looks, and, as a result, the NU quarterbacks had little trouble finding open receivers all game. Furthermore, these receivers did not record a single drop, a major accomplishment given last year's trend.
Jones and Jones: Christian and Tony were the primary objects of focus for the OSU secondary, and the Buckeyes limited their targets. Neither had a bad game, as Christian recorded 2 catches for 34 yards and Tony had 3 for 23. Their primary value in this game, however, was distracting the OSU secondary while other receivers went virtually unnoticed en route to big games.
Rashad Lawrence: As I expected, Lawrence had a breakout game. In fact, he more than doubled his previous single-game best for yardage, recording 8 catches for 149 yards. He looked sure-handed and elusive, looking like he had the talent to be a team's first receiver. Given that he's the 'Cat's third option, or maybe fourth when considering Vitale, this unit should continue to give secondaries fits all year.
Mike Jensen: With Venric back, Jensen may be no higher than Northwestern's 6th receiving threat, but he did not look like it. Jensen had a great game, finding the open holes in the OSU secondary and recording 2 catches for 37 yards. He also made a huge special teams play, blowing up punter Cameron Johnston on a fake punt.
Cameron Dickerson: I hope I'm making my point about how stacked Northwestern's receiving corps is. Dickerson, NU's 5th or 6th wide receiver option, and 7th or 8th receiving option overall, got involved in this game, getting free for a big touchdown catch.
Dan Vitale: Vitale had another solid game, catching 4 balls for 36 yards, including one in which he hurdled a defender for a first down. He also took his first career carry, but took it for only 2 yards.
The Defensive Line: I think it's safe to say our defensive line was the primary reason we lost this game. There were bright points, to be fair. Tyler Scott continues to impress, particularly in a play in which he got to Braxton Miller and forced, and recovered, a fumble. Ifeadi Odenigbo, too, has been successfully pressuring the quarterback, and was responsible for forcing Miller into a bad pass that went for an interception. However, there were significant problems with this line. Most notably, in Sean McEvilly's absence, the defensive tackles are struggling mightily, and the 'Cats have failed to get pressure up the middle. This resulted in Miller having far too long in the pocket, as well as Carlos Hyde finding holes up the middle too easily.
Run Defense: I touched on this with the defensive line, but the 'Cats are having major problems against the run, as Carlos Hyde ran for 168 yards and 3 touchdowns. I still think Northwestern has a great linebacker crew, but with the major push opponent offensive lines are being allowed, they're being thrown off their game. The Wildcats need to make a change, but, at this point, it's unclear what that should be. Loading the box leaves Northwestern's secondary understaffed, which is a problem given the Northwestern corners' inexperience.
Pass Defense: The secondary actually looked shockingly good in this game. Braxton Miller completed only 15 of 26 passes for 203 yards, while throwing an interception. This Northwestern secondary also held a team that was second in the nation in passing touchdowns to not a single score through the air. Dwight White and Matt Harris split time at corner and both did an admirable job. The future for this 'Cats secondary may be much brighter than I had feared.
Jeff Budzien: Back to being money with a 3-3 day.
Redzone Offense: Alongside defensive line play, this was the biggest reason NU failed to win this game. The 'Cats scored touchdowns on only 3 of their 6 redzone trips. The reason for this is two-fold. First, the option game was not working. Typically, Northwestern likes to use Colter in red zone situations, with the option. In these scenarios, Colter can either punch it in himself or pitch it out to a back. The Buckeye defense kept either option from being successful in this game. Second, with Colter's bread and butter taken away, Fitz and McCall turned to Siemian in the redzone. Siemian is most successful with the secondary spread deep, an option that is not available on a sub-20 yard field. The coaches need to work out a better redzone strategy. Personally, I'd like to see Vitale be a bigger part of the passing game near the goal line.
Officiating: The elephant in the room was the questionable spot on Colter's QB sneak. Initially, I thought Colter got it, and it seems the world agreed. However, I have now viewed the play an unhealthy number of times, and I am about 60% sure the right call was made. Kain finished with the ball slightly behind Ian Park, who was, at most, just beyond the marker. Besides, the referee who made the call had a substantially better view than did any camera. What bothers me more was Carlos Hyde's run being reviewed and called a touchdown. There was certainly not incontrovertible proof the ball crossed the plane. The Buckeyes most likely would have punched it in anyway, but, still, that's frustrating.
Venric Mark: Boy, it's good to have him back. While he still did not look quite 100% to me, he played a lot, and he did it well. Statistically speaking, his game was below last year's standards, running for only 60 yards on 17 carries, but he got those 60 yards in impressive fashion, as he broke tackles along with his usual shiftiness. I believe he will only get better in the run game in coming weeks. He also contributed well in the passing game, catching 4 passes (ironically, that's more than he ever caught in a game when he was a wide receiver). He took those catches for 43 yards, most coming on an extremely impressive 41 yard reception. He only took one kickoff return, but he took it for 38 yards. As he continues to get healthy, he should take on a bigger portion of the return game.
Green and Trumpy: These two saw their roles greatly reduced with the return of Venric, taking a combined 8 carries for 26 yards. I hope we will find a way to better incorporate them into the offense alongside Venric, as they provide a different look and can still be valuable to this offense.
Receivers: As was expected, Northwestern got a lot of receivers involved. OSU had little trouble locking down Northwestern's leading receivers, but the 'Cats simply offered too many looks, and, as a result, the NU quarterbacks had little trouble finding open receivers all game. Furthermore, these receivers did not record a single drop, a major accomplishment given last year's trend.
Jones and Jones: Christian and Tony were the primary objects of focus for the OSU secondary, and the Buckeyes limited their targets. Neither had a bad game, as Christian recorded 2 catches for 34 yards and Tony had 3 for 23. Their primary value in this game, however, was distracting the OSU secondary while other receivers went virtually unnoticed en route to big games.
Rashad Lawrence: As I expected, Lawrence had a breakout game. In fact, he more than doubled his previous single-game best for yardage, recording 8 catches for 149 yards. He looked sure-handed and elusive, looking like he had the talent to be a team's first receiver. Given that he's the 'Cat's third option, or maybe fourth when considering Vitale, this unit should continue to give secondaries fits all year.
Mike Jensen: With Venric back, Jensen may be no higher than Northwestern's 6th receiving threat, but he did not look like it. Jensen had a great game, finding the open holes in the OSU secondary and recording 2 catches for 37 yards. He also made a huge special teams play, blowing up punter Cameron Johnston on a fake punt.
Cameron Dickerson: I hope I'm making my point about how stacked Northwestern's receiving corps is. Dickerson, NU's 5th or 6th wide receiver option, and 7th or 8th receiving option overall, got involved in this game, getting free for a big touchdown catch.
Dan Vitale: Vitale had another solid game, catching 4 balls for 36 yards, including one in which he hurdled a defender for a first down. He also took his first career carry, but took it for only 2 yards.
The Defensive Line: I think it's safe to say our defensive line was the primary reason we lost this game. There were bright points, to be fair. Tyler Scott continues to impress, particularly in a play in which he got to Braxton Miller and forced, and recovered, a fumble. Ifeadi Odenigbo, too, has been successfully pressuring the quarterback, and was responsible for forcing Miller into a bad pass that went for an interception. However, there were significant problems with this line. Most notably, in Sean McEvilly's absence, the defensive tackles are struggling mightily, and the 'Cats have failed to get pressure up the middle. This resulted in Miller having far too long in the pocket, as well as Carlos Hyde finding holes up the middle too easily.
Run Defense: I touched on this with the defensive line, but the 'Cats are having major problems against the run, as Carlos Hyde ran for 168 yards and 3 touchdowns. I still think Northwestern has a great linebacker crew, but with the major push opponent offensive lines are being allowed, they're being thrown off their game. The Wildcats need to make a change, but, at this point, it's unclear what that should be. Loading the box leaves Northwestern's secondary understaffed, which is a problem given the Northwestern corners' inexperience.
Pass Defense: The secondary actually looked shockingly good in this game. Braxton Miller completed only 15 of 26 passes for 203 yards, while throwing an interception. This Northwestern secondary also held a team that was second in the nation in passing touchdowns to not a single score through the air. Dwight White and Matt Harris split time at corner and both did an admirable job. The future for this 'Cats secondary may be much brighter than I had feared.
Jeff Budzien: Back to being money with a 3-3 day.
Redzone Offense: Alongside defensive line play, this was the biggest reason NU failed to win this game. The 'Cats scored touchdowns on only 3 of their 6 redzone trips. The reason for this is two-fold. First, the option game was not working. Typically, Northwestern likes to use Colter in red zone situations, with the option. In these scenarios, Colter can either punch it in himself or pitch it out to a back. The Buckeye defense kept either option from being successful in this game. Second, with Colter's bread and butter taken away, Fitz and McCall turned to Siemian in the redzone. Siemian is most successful with the secondary spread deep, an option that is not available on a sub-20 yard field. The coaches need to work out a better redzone strategy. Personally, I'd like to see Vitale be a bigger part of the passing game near the goal line.
Officiating: The elephant in the room was the questionable spot on Colter's QB sneak. Initially, I thought Colter got it, and it seems the world agreed. However, I have now viewed the play an unhealthy number of times, and I am about 60% sure the right call was made. Kain finished with the ball slightly behind Ian Park, who was, at most, just beyond the marker. Besides, the referee who made the call had a substantially better view than did any camera. What bothers me more was Carlos Hyde's run being reviewed and called a touchdown. There was certainly not incontrovertible proof the ball crossed the plane. The Buckeyes most likely would have punched it in anyway, but, still, that's frustrating.
Bottom Line
Let me put this game into context. Northwestern's 2008 team was one of Northwestern's better teams in recent history. They lost to an OSU team not much better than this one 45-10. And it is no fluke this game was so close. This is a very good Northwestern team with the potential to still have a fantastic year. Sure there are some kinks to works out, but we have enough upside to compete with every other team we are left to face. In fact, I believe we are better than every team remaining on our schedule. However, our next toughest game is only three days away. Time to rebound and kick off the win streak that will lead us to a 13-1 season.
