Northwestern's football program announced its official 2025 slate this afternoon and, with an opener at Tulane and a modern-day Big Ten conference gauntlet, it's a doozy. Eight of the 12 teams on the schedule are bowl teams in 2024, and two of them are in the College Football Playoff.

The Wildcats once again will have more home than road games over the course of the season, and will play seven games in Evanston or Chicago. Five will be played at Lanny and Sharon Martin Stadium on campus, while two will be at Wrigley Field. The Wildcats will get their miles in with a trip to New Orleans to start the season and stops in State College, Penn., and Los Angeles to play Penn State and USC, respectively.

They aren't trophy games, but it still feels wrong to see a schedule without Wisconsin or Iowa. It will be the first season Northwestern has played without facing the Badgers or Hawkeyes since 1928.

WildcatReport is here to take you through each game of the 2025 slate.

2024 record: 9-4, will play Florida in the Gasparilla Bowl.

All-time series record: 3-1 Tulane

Last result: 20-13 Tulane in 1956

The Green Wave have continued to roll under new coach Jon Sumrall, who took over after program legend Willie Fritz's departure. Sumrall won nine games in his first season, with an AAC title game appearance, and two of those four losses to Kansas State and Oklahoma.

This game is a vestige of the home-and-home that would have seen Tulane come to Evanston in 2020. COVID cancelled that front end, but the trip to New Orleans in 2025 has stayed on Northwestern's slate.

Prodigal Tulane quarterback Darian Mensah just announced his transfer to Duke, but Sumrall has vowed to remain head coach. So long as he's there, the trip to the Big Easy will be anything but.

2024 record: 4-8 (FCS)

All-time series record: 1-0 Northwestern

Last result: 24-7 Northwestern in 2014

Western Illinois has been struggling mightily of late, going winless in 2022 and 2023. But new head coach Joe Davis, previously the offensive coordinator at Eastern Illinois, may have sparked something. The Leathernecks finished 4-8 last season after winning just four games in total from 2019-23.

The Wildcats are 2-0 against FCS opponents under David Braun, and while the Necks are on an upward trajectory, Northwestern should pick up a win after their Week 1 road trip.

2024 record: 13-0, ranked No. 1, with a bye in the first round of the CFP

All-time series record: 1-0 Northwestern

Last result: 14-10 Northwestern in 1974

Duck and cover, it's Oregon. Head coach Dan Lanning and mountains of Nike-fueled NIL money have hyper-charged the former Pac-12 team into Big Ten champions in their first year, and the favorite to become national champions.

Tenured quarterback Dillon Gabriel will be out of eligibility and onto the NFL, and there's always a chance that Lanning follows him. But even if neither are Ducks next season, this will still be the longest shot of the season for the Wildcats.

There will be some novelty, though, as Northwestern hosts the almost assuredly highly-ranked Ducks at their temporary, lakeside facility at Martin Stadium.

2024 record: 5-7

All-time series record: Tied 3-3

Last result: 50-38 UCLA in the 2005 Sun Bowl

The Wildcats have a bye week to lick their likely wounds after facing Oregon, and they'll host another former Pac-12 team in UCLA when they return to action. The Bruins were written off by many after a 1-5 start, but they rallied around new head coach Deshaun Foster to win four of their last six and nearly make a bowl game.

The Bruins will be looking for a new quarterback after the graduation of senior Ethan Garbers, who threw for 16 touchdowns and a Big Ten-leading 11 interceptions last season.

2024 record: 5-7

All-time series record: 0-0

There's a first time for everything, and the Wildcats will play the University of Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks for the first time in program history. The Warhawks have struggled mightily since an 0-10 season during the COVID-affected 2020 campaign, and a 10-26 tenure by Terry Bowden from 2021-23.

They hired Bryant Vincent from his role as New Mexico's offensive coordinator and leapt out to a 5-1 start this season, with their sole loss at then-No. 1 Texas. But they then lost their final six games of the season.

Running back Ahmad Hardy was No. 11 in the nation in rushing yards as a true freshman for the Warhawks but has entered his name into the transfer portal.

2024 record: 11-2, ranked No. 4, playing No. 10 SMU in the CFP

All-time series record: 16-5 Penn State

Last result: 41-13 Penn State in 2023

This marks Northwestern's second opponent in 2025 that is currently preparing for the 2024 playoff. Head coach James Franklin has yet to prove doubters wrong about his ability to win big games against Top 5 opponents, but he has more than a handle on the Wildcats of late.

After losing his first two games in the series in 2014 and 2015, Franklin's Nittany Lions have won the last three by 20 points, and that's with the 2022 matchup played in conditions bordering on a monsoon. Quarterback Drew Allar will be gone to the NFL Draft but Penn State doesn't rebuild, they reload, and the Wildcats are looking at their second all-but-guaranteed loss of 2025.

2024 record: 1-11

All-time series record: 53-35-1 Purdue

Last result: 26-20 Northwestern (OT) in 2024

Northwestern's first repeated opponent from 2024 is their fourth Big Ten game, and it comes in mid-October. Welcome to the modern Big Ten.

The Boilermakers were last in the Big Ten in 2024, the only winless team in the conference, and one of the worst teams in the FBS. They fired head coach Ryan Walters and brought in veteran coach Barry Odom from UNLV.

Odom will have to put in some serious work to bring in guys who can get the Boilers back up to speed. They have just 10 members in their Class of 2025 and have hemorrhaged stars like safety Dillon Thieneman and linebacker Yanni Karloftis, who are both among 23 players to put their name into the portal from last year's roster.

2024 record: 6-6, playing Boston College in the Pinstripe Bowl

All-time series: 10-7 Nebraska

Last result: 17-9 Nebraska in 2023

One of the most entertaining series for the Wildcats will return after a year off. Neither Nebraska nor Northwestern has won back-to-back games in this series since the Wildcats in 2017-18, but even though it might be Northwestern's turn, they'll have a hell of a test heading into Lincoln to play the Huskers under Matt Rhule and sophomore quarterback Dylan Raiola.

While Raiola led Nebraska back to a bowl game for the first time since 2016, his season was still a bit of a mixed bag. He broke 2,500 passing yards but nearly threw as many TDs as INTs, with 12 scores to 10 picks. The Huskers won five of their first six, then lost five of their last six.

The first time head coach David Braun went to Lincoln, the Wildcats scratched and clawed in an eight-point loss with their backup quarterback. They'll hope it looks more like that in 2025 than in 2021, when the Huskers ran them out of Memorial Stadium, 56-7.

2024 record: 6-6, will play Texas A&M in the Las Vegas Bowl

All-time series: 5-0 USC

Last result: 41-32 USC in the 1996 Rose Bowl

The long-awaited Rose Bowl rematch won't be as ballyhooed as many Northwestern fans may have hoped nearly 20 years after they played in the Grandaddy of Them. These two programs combined for just 10 regular-season wins in 2024.

Head coach Lincoln Riley's hot start on the West Coast with an 11-win season in 2022 and a Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Caleb Williams in 2023 may turn into a hot seat after a 6-6 season in 2024. The Trojans had a pair of eye-sore losses at Minnesota and Maryland this season, but they held serve at home pretty well, going 4-2 at the LA Coliseum with their two losses to playoff teams Penn State and Notre Dame.

Even with a bye week to recuperate after a trip to Lincoln, this one figures to be tough sledding for the Wildcats.

2024 record: 7-5, will play Alabama in the ReliaQuest Bowl

All-time series: 60-15-2 Michigan

Last result: 50-6 Michigan in 2024

The Wildcats will welcome the Wolverines for the first 2025 game at Wrigley Field. There were reports of Michigan lobbying for this game to be played at nearby Soldier Field, and it's nearly 20,000 more seats, but to no avail.

There was some optimism around the Big Ten that Michigan may be falling on hard times after a 5-5 start, but a 44-point thrashing of Northwestern, a stunning upset at rival Ohio State and signing Rivals' No. 2 Class of 2025 quarterback, Bryce Underwood, quickly silenced the doubters.

2025 will still be a prove-it year for head coach Sherrone Moore, but Michigan's trajectory is looking up.

2024 record: 7-5, will play Virginia Tech in the Duke's Mayo Bowl

All-time series: 56-37-5

Last result: 37-34 Northwestern (OT) in 2023

The second game at Wrigley could be Northwestern's best chance at breaking their winless streak on Clark and Addison. The Gophers bounced back a bit from their 6-7 season in 2023 with a 7-5 regular-season mark in 2024. But they seem to have lost the groove that head coach PJ Fleck found from 2019-22, when they won nine-plus games three times, were 3-0 in bowls and went 3-0 against the Wildcats with an average margin of victory of 23 points.

New Hampshire grad transfer Max Brosmer helmed the Gophers last season and is out of eligibility, so they likely are in the market for a new quarterback.

2024 record: 9-3, ranked No. 20, will play South Carolina in the Cheez-It Bowl

All-time series: 58-55-5 Illinois

Last result: 38-28 Illinois in 2024

After a game at the Friendly Confines in 2024, the Wildcats and Illini head back south to more traditional climes and will play at Illinois. Last time Northwestern was in Champaign, they won a rollicking 45-43 game that knocked Illinois out of a bowl opportunity.

But the Illini regrouped after that disappointing season, rattling off a 9-3 campaign in 2024 and retaking The Hat by two scores. The Wildcats may catch a break if Illinois quarterback Luke Altmyer doesn't return to the Illini, but even so, it will be a difficult challenge for the Wildcats to go on the road to retake the Hat.