Defensive line a critical need for Cats
Northwestern coaches are out crisscrossing the country, trying to put the finishing touches on their Class of 2023, as well as find some transfers to plug holes for the upcoming season.
Defensive linemen are certainly among their top priorities. The position group has become a critical need for the Wildcats the last couple of weeks.
On senior day, a 41-3 loss to Illinois on Nov. 26, a total of six defensive linemen played their last games as Wildcats: Adetomiwa Adebawore, Henrik Barndt, Jason Gold Jr., Taishan Holmes, Ryan Johnson and Devin O'Rourke.
Since then, two more underclassmen announced their intention to enter the transfer portal and continue their careers elsewhere: freshman Austin Firestone and junior Jordan Butler. (So did Gold, but we already knew that he was leaving one way or the other.)
That’s a total of eight defensive linemen leaving Evanston. (The Wildcats also lost another one in October, when four-star 2023 defensive end when Ashton Porter announced his decommitment.)
To counter all those defections, the Wildcats have three incoming defensive linemen in their Class of 2023 that are expected to sign on Dec. 21: three-star defensive tackles Tyler Gant and Dylan Roberts, and four-star defensive end Michael Kilbane.
Then there’s the case of four-star defensive end commit Mason Robinson. He is still technically listed as a member of the Wildcats’ class, but he is taking an official visit to Penn State this weekend and is expected to flip to the Nittany Lions. He also picked up an offer from Notre Dame this week.
If the Wildcats lose Robinson – which is the outcome Mattress Mack would bet on in this scenario – they would have three defensive linemen coming in, and eight going out. That means that head coach Pat Fitzgerald needs to land five more high schoolers or transfers just to get back to the level of what was a thin position group last season.
Right now, there are only six scholarship defensive linemen on the roster. Four are defensive ends: Sean McLaughlin, a returning starter; Jaylen Pate, a graduate who played in eight games last season; Aidan Hubbard, a sophomore who played in 11; and Jaiden Cameron, a junior who is buried on the depth chart and didn’t see the field. And there are just two defensive tackles: sophomore Najee Story, who played in all 12 games; and Brendan Flakes, a true freshman who appeared in two games.
In addition to those returnees, there are three walkons: Carmine Bastone (six games), PJ Spencer (four) and Peyton Warford (did not play) to help with depth.
No matter how things fall, Fitzgerald and his staff have their work cut out for them. There aren’t many 2023 prospects left, though a few current commits to other schools could emerge if they don’t sign their LOIs during the early signing period.
Compounding an already difficult task, Northwestern currently doesn’t have two key coaches to help identify and woo targets. Defensive line coach Marty Long and defensive coordinator Jim O’Neil were both fired at the end of the season.
Defensive tackle was one of the problem areas for the Wildcats in 2022 as injuries hit the position hard. Holmes, who was an opening day starter, Johnson and Gold were each limited to just six games because of injuries. That’s why walkons like Bastone and Spencer played as much as they did. It’s also a big reason the Wildcats finished 111th in the nation in rushing defense.
If there is a silver lining here, it’s that Northwestern has a chance to land some D-linemen in the portal who may be able to come in and improve the position group quickly. But it's not going to be easy.