Hull, Northwestern run wild over UMass
EVANSTON-There wasn't much suspense in this matchup between Northwestern and UMass, two teams that came into the game with a combined record of 2-17.
The Wildcats were the heavy favorite, so the only real drama was whether they would cover that gargantuan 40-point spread that Las Vegas had bestowed upon them. They came awfully close, beating the Minutemen 45-6 and proving once again that the bookies know more than anyone else.
The win was Northwestern’s first since Sept. 14 and snapped a seven-game losing streak, the program's longest since 2013.
And they have Evan Hull to thank for it. The true freshman running back ran for 220 yards and four touchdowns in his first career start to lead the Wildcats to their first win since Sept. 14.
This game certainly didn’t look like a blowout early as Northwestern played as badly as they have all season through the first 20 minutes. But the Wildcats eventually snapped out of their funk in the second quarter and then scored the last 38 points of the game to coast to the win.
There wasn't much interest in this clash between Northwestern's offense, ranked 129th in the country, UMass's defense, ranked dead-last at 130th, and the crowd reflected that. The official attendance was 29,447 at Ryan Field, but taking the "2" off of that total might give you a more accurate picture.
Here are our takeaways from the win that lifted the Wildcats’ record to 2-8:
Evan Hull took control of the running back position: With Isaiah Bowser and Kyric McGowan out with injuries, Northwestern turned to Hull to start this one. The Minnesotan, who was a late addition to the 2019 recruiting class, responded with the best performance by a running back since Justin Jackson in the 2016 Pinstripe Bowl, and he came within seven yards of cracking the 10 in school history for rushing in a single game.
Hull scored on a six-yard TD run for Northwestern’s first offensive touchdown halfway through the second quarter to get himself rolling. He then had himself a drive to remember, running the ball three times for 80 yards to give the Wildcats a 14-6 edge. On second-and-6 from the NU 9, Hull popped one right up the middle for 48 yards. He did the same thing three plays later and took it 38 yards for the touchdown.
Hull added a 46-yard TD in the fourth quarter when he took a handoff from Andrew Marty – the Wildcats’ third quarterback of the day – and tiptoed down the sideline for the score. He added a 31-yarder with 9:06 left to cap his day.
Drake Anderson hadn’t gotten many carries in recent weeks, and the fact that he didn’t start this game in favor of Hull was telling. Anderson entered the game on Northwestern’s third series and fumbled on his fifth carry. He recovered the miscue but got pulled and didn’t make another appearance. Late in the game, the Wildcats put converted receiver Ray Niro in at running back, and he ran for 45 yards and a TD.
Anderson seems to have taken up permanent residence in Fitzgerald’s doghouse. "You gotta take care of the football," the coach said plainly.
Northwestern’s offense looked as bad as it has all season early in the game: And that’s saying something.
The Wildcats couldn’t get into any kind of rhythm out of the gate against a horrid UMass defense that was allowing 53.1 points per game. They went three-and-out on their first possession. Then, as they have done so often this season, they turned the ball over on their next two drives.
Aidan Smith had his pass tipped and then intercepted by blitzing LB Xavier Steele to halt a Wildcat drive at the UMass 29. On the very next possession, Smith made an ill-advised throw across the field to Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman that was picked off by Josh Wallace at the UMass 16.
That was two costly turnovers deep in UMass territory in what was then a 3-0 game in the Minutemen’s favor. Fitzgerald said he toyed with the idea of pulling Smith, but he stuck with his junior signal caller.
Jason Whittaker came in for a couple plays and got two carries as sort of a Wildcat QB, and Marty played in the fourth quarter in mop-up duty. Fitzgerald said that Hunter Johnson was "banged up" last week and held out of the game.
Smith, who also had a fumble that was recovered the Wildcats, finished 7 of 13 for 76 yards passing. All seven of his completions went to Riley Lees.
The defense made the play that turned the game around: UMass had driven 71 yards in 12 plays and was attempting a 30-yard field goal that would give them a 6-0 lead on the first play of the second quarter. Northwestern’s defense had other ideas.
Joe Gaziano got a big push up the middle and blocked Cooper Garcia’s kick. It squirted to the side and bounced right into Chris Bergin's hands, and he raced 85 yards down the sideline for the score, with an escort by Cameron Ruiz and JR Pace. The Wildcats, who had been thoroughly outplayed to that point, had a 7-3 lead they would never relinquish the rest of the game.
Even though UMass went right down the field and kicked a field goal on the following drive to cut the lead to one point, that play tipped the scales permanently in Northwestern’s favor. From that point on, the Wildcats controlled the game and were never really threatened again. By halftime, the Wildcats led 21-6, and they blew it open early in the final period.
"It was a big play," said Fitzgerald.
The Wildcat defense came up with another momentum-turning play in the third quarter, when Blake Gallagher stepped in front of a Randall West pass and weaved his way 36 yards to the UMass 12 to set up a field goal to give NU a 24-6 lead.
Northwestern’s defense got pushed around early in the game, but they eventually restored order and came up with the big plays that have been lacking all season.
After four games without a takeaway, the Wildcats now have four in the last two games.
We shouldn’t get too excited about this win: While a 39-point pounding was gratifying for a team that needs any kind of a positive outcome, this emphatic win should be put in perspective.
For one, UMass is perhaps the worst team in FBS and often looked like it. If West had made a couple accurate throws early in the game, when he had receivers open for what could have been touchdowns, the Minutemen could have taken a two- or three-score lead in the second quarter.
The Minutemen also gifted the Cats a kickoff recovery when Bergin raced down and covered Drew Luckenbaugh's 33-yard kickoff before a UMass special teamer even touched it. It went down as an onside kick in the official scorebook, but it was just another mistake by the Minutemen.
The Wildcats still made enough errors to drive Fitzgerald crazy. There were the two early interceptions by Smith. Berkeley Holman fumbled a handoff on a reverse. Both Smith and Anderson fumbled, but luckily, the Wildcats recovered both of them. There was a snap that sailed over Andrew Marty’s head in the fourth quarter.
Fitzgerald said his offense was “dog-you know what” early in the game and he was exasperated by the turnovers that have plagued his team all season.
“We can’t turn the ball over like we do and expect to win Big Ten games,” he said.
The Wildcats have two remaining Big Ten games, against 9-0 Minnesota and bowl-bound Illinois, to close out the season.