After further review: Northwestern 29 Illinois 10

We bring you the 3-2-1 on Northwestern's 29-10 win over Illinois to retain the Land of Lincoln Trophy for a fifth straight year, and hand out some hardware.

Northwestern got back to their identity: a running-first offense complimented by a first-rate run defense. Given their personnel the Wildcats really didn’t have a choice, but once they started running, they never stopped. NU toted the rock a season-high 65 times for 378 yards, averaging 5.8 yards per carry, and they crossed the goal line three times by way of the run. Illinois’ defense was respectable coming in, but on Saturday, the Wildcats made the noise and made the Illini look, just, ill.

Northwestern ran through the Illinois defense for some big hitters, but mostly they just ran over them -- and ran the clock in the process. The Cats possessed the ball for almost 42 minutes, more than two-thirds of the game. Helping that lopsided time of possession were NU’s high conversion rates. They went 7 for 11 on third down and 4 of 6 on fourth down to keep drives alive and burn the clock. They earned 22 first downs, and 17 of them came on the ground, giving their defense a chance to rest and prepare on the sideline.

This advantage helped the Wildcat D yield just 160 yards of total offense ,with only 14 of them coming on the ground. That’s 140 yards below the Illini’s season average. Illinois picked up just two first downs rushing the football and lost a total of 46 yards on run plays thanks to eight tackles for loss and three sacks from the Wildcats. Northwestern limited the Illini to (a tie for) their lowest point total of the season, beating the men in orange at their own game by creating two turnovers. In doing so, they won the “Hat” (Land of Lincoln Trophy) for the fifth straight year -- the longest streak in program history over the Illini.

Northwestern was committed to running the football- no matter who did it! Coming into the game, the Wildcats were down three running backs on the depth chart. As a result, they had to switch a true first-year DB and a walkon WR over to the backfield, joining their third different starting quarterback this season. They were down an offensive tackle and had no passing game to keep the Illini defense honest. But once it was all said and done, NU had two players (QB Andrew Marty and RB Coco Azema, a converted safety) top the century mark for the first time since 2016 and beat up an Illinois defensive front seven that had been playing pretty well coming into the game.

The Cats were just eight yards away from having three 100-yard rushers, as Drake Anderson finished with 92 on the day. It was really like watching an old-school single-wing offense where anyone could have gotten the ball. On one scoring drive alone, they gave the ball to five different carriers. And nearly every one of those backs ran with purpose and focus, the same that was instilled in them by their offensive coaching staff this week. The great thing? They bring back almost everyone who’s been responsible for this recent ground surge to the team for next season.

QB Andrew Marty is the leader of this offense. Though he was used more as a running back Saturday, Marty's style of play has really charged this offense. As we’ve touched on before, he took the offense last week and said “I’ve got this.” As a passer, he completed 6-of-10 passes for 55 yards, which included a beautifully thrown touchdown pass to Riley Lees (as well as another to Trey Pugh in the first quarter that was dropped). He also threw an interception, but it came on a fourth-down play where, if it wasn’t completed, it would have been a turnover anyway. And, yes, it was a poor read that allowed the defender to gauge his eyes and make a break on the out route (when the correct read should was to hit the vertical route down the sideline). But it didn’t end up hurting the Wildcats or Marty’s confidence.

When he ran the ball, Marty ran with purpose, skillfully using his 6-foot-3, 230-pound frame to his advantage. He worked for extra yards every time, which made the next down that much easier to convert. There were several third- and fourth-down calls where it looked like Marty might be stopped short, but he kept his legs churning and his momentum forward to get the yards his team needed.

Aside from that interception and another in the end zone that was overturned because of an Illinois penalty, there weren't many flaws in Marty’s game. Again, what was most impressive was the champion’s look in his eyes that NU hasn’t really seen at quarterback all season. Through his play, his leadership and his spirit, he’s truly started campaigning for the “Marty Party” in 2020.

How is it that Andrew Marty showed less than the other quarterbacks in practice this year? We believe coach Pat Fitzgerald when he claims that Marty just “didn’t practice that well” throughout the year. And this strikes us as odd, because when Marty has taken the field the last couple of weeks, he has looked like someone who’s been itching to get this chance and would do whatever it took to capitalize on a given opportunity. There was the suggestion that Marty is just “a gamer,” at which Fitzgerald scoffed. How could someone be a poor practice player -- enough to land him fourth on the depth chart for most of the season -- but then step it up four notches during the season? This enigma has us baffled and wondering if there is more to this story.

How often have they worked on the end-around to Jace James? We ask this because they ran it twice, and twice it did not work. In fact, it looked pretty bad. James got his first carry in the second quarter and only gained a yard. He tried it again in the fourth quarter and actually lost yardage running it into the boundary, but that one was erased from the record books due to a holding penalty on Pugh. That’s something we didn't really see from now-former offensive coordinator Mick McCall -- the ingenuity to design, coach and execute a trick play that could occasionally garner a big gain and a shot at momentum. We see it from a lot of other teams (hell, even Rutgers had a nice-looking trick play), but just nothing inventive from McCall. Fortunately, that wasn’t necessary Saturday, but let’s agree to throw this play into the heap, melt it down and recycle it into something better.

This is a team of grinders. Northwestern came in with two wins and more injuries than touchdown passes. They were down to their fourth quarterback, their third-, fourth- and fifth-string running backs, a backup offensive tackle, third-team defensive ends and third-team defensive backs. Yet they came into a bad-weather game against an upward-trending Illinois team on the road, and they fought their way to a convincing victory. They didn’t flinch once. They didn’t get over excited at the sight of atypical offensive success. They weren't intimidated by an Illinois team that seemed to be trending up.

Instead, they buckled up and played their best game of the year, and they did so with a limited roster. No excuses, no help, no blame -- they rolled up their sleeves, got to work and imposed their will on the Illini for a 29-10 victory, securing the Hat for the fifth straight year. Many Illini fans probably looked at this particular Northwestern team and felt that they would finally get the best of them and win the campaign in Champaign. But the Wildcats personified the “you’re gonna have to fight me for it” attitude of their head coach and earned the win over their arch-rival.

Offensive game ball: the entire NU Offensive Line

We could easily give this award to quarterback Marty or Azema, who both had impressive games running the football and combined for four touchdowns. But when you look at the rushing numbers for them and the rest of the team, and you remind yourself of the front seven they were going against, it’s a no-brainer to give this to the front five. Center Jared Thomas, guards Sam Gerak and Nick Urban, and tackles Rashawn Slater and Ethan Wiederkehr worked that Illini front seven and created space for their four different (newer) backs to gain 378 rushing yards. The Wildcats were only tackled for a loss two times and not sacked once. Granted, they had only about 16 pass plays called (just 10 passes thrown), but considering the Illini were near the top third in the country in sacks, to come away without giving up any letdowns in such wet conditions is an impressive feat for an offense that faced some holistic adversity this year. The line earned this award with a flat-out dominating performance.

Defensive game ball: DE Trent Goens

The fifth-year senior DE went out with a bang, registering a season-high six tackles, with three TFLs and a quarterback hurry, to go with a pass batted down in the last game of his Wildcat career. Goens seemed unblockable for most of the game, continually wrecking the line of scrimmage and working with his linemates to bottle up the normally electric Reggie Corbin and hold him to -10 yards rushing for the game! Goens made an impact in his final game in Purple-and-White and fittingly was the first to bring the Hat onto the field in celebration after the Wildcat victory.

Special Teams game ball: ST Joe Bergin

In his final game as a Wildcat, the elder Bergin exemplified the No. 1 on his jersey, totaling three tackles, one of them coming in solo fashion, on special teams. But even on plays where he did not get onto the stat sheet, he and his special teams mates did a wonderful job of getting downfield in wet conditions (which typically favors the return team), keeping their feet and corralling a potentially explosive returner. And because Bergin was, in essence, the captain of the kick- and punt-coverage units, he earns the game ball here.

Wildcat Warrior: RB Coco Azema

Brought to Northwestern as a defensive back and not expected to play much even on that side of the ball, Azema stepped up to add some depth to the Wildcat backfield. He did more than that, finishing with seven carries for 123 yards (17.6 ypc avg) and looking pretty smooth doing it. Even on his first carry, he took the handoff on the outside-zone play, stuck his foot in the ground and cut to get upfield for yardage, causing an eruption from his teammates on the sideline. But this was just the beginning. In the second half, he had runs of 16, 8 and 62 yards, which opened even more eyes. But these weren’t even his best moments...

The best moment of the game for Azema and the Wildcats came when they were up 23-10 with about two minutes to go. It was 4th-and-8 and the Wildcats were looking to eat some clock and above all protect the ball. Azema took the handoff on an outside-zone run, stuck his foot in the ground, turned the corner and was one-on-one with Illinois safety Stanley Green. Taking full advantage of this opportunity, Coco went loco, running Green into the ground and breaking through for a 24-yard touchdown run. The excitement and joy for Azema was palpable through the TV screen. He not only topped the century mark for the day, but he scored the first Wildcat touchdown of his career. Most importantly, the TD iced the game and sealed the deal to keep the Hat in Evanston for another season. It was perhaps the most fitting ending to a bizarre season. It was sweet as Coco, if you'll pardon the pun.

Tim Chapman is a teacher and former Michigan high school football coach who is currently working on a book titled "ChampioN Underdog" about the 1995 Northwestern Rose Bowl team. Follow him via Twitter: @Champion_Lit. Email him at nufbhistorian@gmail.com.