After further review: Northwestern 35 Auburn 19

WildcatReport's Tim Chapman, a former high school football head coach, breaks down the Wildcats win over Auburn in the VRBO Citrus Bowl.

Mike Hankwitz called a great defensive game. Auburn couldn’t get anything going offensively. Their only two scores came on a big pass play stemming from a miscommunication in the Northwestern secondary, and another on a drive that came when the Wildcats were already up 22 points in the fourth quarter.

The Tigers, who had been a lot better running the ball than throwing it this year, only managed 61 yards on the ground at 2.3 yards a clip. Yes, it was without star RB Tank Bigsby, but it was the fifth-lowest ground output in the last 106 games by the run-happy Tigers. They were only 2-for-13 on third down conversion attempts and managed just 16 first downs in 24 minutes of possession. Simply said, the Cats forced the Tigers to give the ball back to the purple offense often, while only having to take it away once, proving how impervious this Wildcat D was.

So, too, did Mike Bajakian. Northwestern’s offense came in ranked 71st in offensive efficiency, while Auburn was 49th on defense. When the rubber pellets settled on Friday afternoon, NU scored 35 points, two touchdowns better than their average, and racked up 457 total offensive yards. They scored 14 points in the first quarter and then another 14 in the fourth, showing Bajakian’s ability to prep for success, then adjust and apply those features when it was necessary. They averaged 5.3 yards per play and turned the ball over zero times.

Cam Porter gained 98 yards rushing, while Ramsey threw for 291, with three TDs and zero interceptions. He also spread the ball around to eight different receivers, with seven of them making multiple catches and four making three or more. Auburn had trouble stopping the Cats when they needed to, as NU went 10-of-21 on third- and fourth-down combined, and cashed in with three touchdowns in four red-zone opportunities, the last being a clock-kill drive to end the game.

It was a great senior send-off. Four of the five Wildcat touchdowns were scored by Northwestern seniors. QB Peyton Ramsey was on-point and played mistake-free football, throwing and running effectively and accounting for four of the five Northwestern scores. TE John Raine led all receivers with six catches, while he, and WRs Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman and Riley Lees accounted for all the Northwestern receiving touchdowns and were responsible for 14 of the 24 catches. “The Firm” of LBs Paddy Fisher, Blake Gallagher and Chris Bergin were, once again, the top three tacklers, while S JR Pace was No. 4. DE Earnest Brown IV had a tackle-for-loss and several pressures and DT Joe Spivak recorded the lone sack for the Wildcats on the afternoon. Even on the O-line, seniors Gunnar Vogel and Nick Urban held the athletic Tiger front to just one sack and only 10 yards of lost territory. In the final game of the year, these Wildcats, most of whom played the final game of their NU careers, did so in style.

Can we please never suffer through a Flemming/Gilmore broadcast again? Seriously, what was with the love fest with Bryan Harsin, Bo Nix, Big Kat Bryant and Auburn in general? We get that the “Worldwide Leader” has it in with the SEC, but for so much of this game the broadcasters ignored how well the Wildcats were playing while putting the spotlight on the team that never had a lead throughout the contest.

The interview with Hardin, Auburn’s new coach, lasted nearly half of the second quarter, and the only thing that Rod Gilmore gave to the broadcast was a cure for insomnia. Play-by-play man Dave Flemming wasn’t far off. Both guys went to Stanford, so the love affair with the 6-4 Tigers, who got handled by a Northwestern team with a much better story, was inexplicable.

Where do we go from here? One of the problems with such a senior-laden performance in the bowl game means that there can be some pretty big questions about the outlook for next season. Technically, they all have the opportunity to return, and though the broadcast team referenced the possibility of Ramsey coming back, it’s likely that many of these seniors, with a Northwestern degree in hand, will move on.

So that means going into 2021, four of the top six rushers may be gone, along with the quarterback, eight of the top 12 pass-catchers, six of the top seven tacklers and 78% of the TFLs, as well as 72% of their sack production. Oh, and their four-year kicker as well. Some of them may come back, but much needs to be settled going into 2021.

This program has turned the corner. The Wildcats have won four straight bowl games, and five of their last six. They’ve been to more Big Ten Championship Games than 77% of the conference, and are one of only two programs in the Big Ten West to win multiple division titles (Wisconsin is the other).

People want to talk about recruiting as a measuring stick, but Northwestern hasn’t finished near the top of the conference in that regard, yet they still have the seventh-most wins among Big Ten teams over the last decade. They’re tied (with two other Big Ten West teams, by the way) for the best bowl-winning percentage over the last five seasons, and they have had 15 players make it in the NFL over the last five years. This year, they have a likely first-round pick in OT Rashawn Slater, and two more likely draftees in CB Greg Newsome II and LB Paddy Fisher. As long as head coach Pat Fitzgerald stays — and we fully expect him to — this program will continue to get better.

Offensive game ball: #12 Gr QB Peyton Ramsey. The grad transfer accounted for four total touchdowns: three passing and one impressive 30-yard tuck-and-run, when he saw a lot of green turf ahead of him and made a dash for the end zone. He completed 69% of his passes, and nearly all of his incompletions were strategic. He threw for 291 yards and ran for another 50. This was clearly his best game as a Wildcat.

Defensive game ball: #42 SR MLB Paddy Fisher. The entire front seven could be credited here, but with 12 tackles (six solo) and a tackle for loss, Fisher led the way. He also led the way as Northwestern’s motivational leader all week. But it wasn’t just this game; it’s been this way for four years. Since stepping onto the field as the starter at Mike linebacker in 2017 as a redshirt freshman, Fisher has helped anchor one of the better defenses in the country.

Special Teams game ball: #36 Gr P Derek Adams. Adams once again excelled for the special teams unit, knocking four punts at a 45-yard average, including a 60-yard boomer. He landed one inside the 20 and another went into the end zone for a touchback, allowing for no return. He’s continued the recent tradition of grad-transfer success at punter for the Wildcats, and word is that he’s likely going to take advantage of the NCAA COVID-retention rule this year and continue the fun in ‘21.

Wildcat Warrior: #81 SR WR Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman. It was more than his three catches for 61 yards, including the Wildcats’ first (and most important) touchdown, a corner route to Ramsey’s left, an over-the-shoulder catch for a 35-yard score. More than that, Chiaokhiao-Bowman was a workhorse. He made two incredible catches that were ruled incomplete, but only in the technical sense and certainly not for lack of effort. There was also an instance in the third quarter where he fought hard after his initial progress had been stopped and earned a first down on third-and-7, muscling through multiple defenders. Five plays later, his quarterback repaid the favor and ran 30 yards for the touchdown that really put the game out of reach and started the internal hymn of “nah-nah-nah-nah, hey-hey, goodbye!” to the Auburn Tigers. All this work enabled “the Barber” to cut the Tigers and celebrate a fourth straight bowl victory, all which have come during No. 81’s five years in Evanston.

Hank celebrating his monumental 400th win. In his very last game as a coach, defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz — once again — successfully led his defense to an impressive performance. And contrary to most other coaches who seek to escape the ritual of the Gatorade shower, Hank turned and faced it, as if to say, “Let me have it!” This is the same way his defenses approached all opponents in every matchup: strap up, line up and go head-first into the action.

Northwestern’s sublime defense didn’t seem to get much credit during the Citrus Bowl broadcast, but later that night, after watching Ohio State put up 49 points to destroy Clemson in the Sugar Bowl, the media and social media started to realize how good Hankwitz’s defense was in limiting the Buckeyes to just 22 points two weeks before. It’s about time people took notice.

Winning his milestone 400th game in his final contest was a fitting send off for Hankwitz, who spent the last 51 years on college sidelines. When he was interviewed on the field after the Citrus Bowl, he characteristically deflected all of the attention to his players. He said that the relationships he built with his players over the decades are what mattered the most to him — and, as he explained, you can’t put a number or price tag on that.

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.