Northwestern 2020 Season Preview: Receivers

Third in a series of Northwestern position-by-position breakdowns going into the 2020 season.

More: Quarterbacks l Running backs

While Northwestern wants to pound the ball on the ground, make no mistake: they have to be better throwing the ball than they were a year ago. The Wildcats ranked 130th (last) in the NCAA in passing efficiency, 129th in passing touchdowns and 127th in passing offense during last year’s 3-9 anomaly. But if we put things in perspective, we can see it may have been more circumstantial than anything.

There were some serious problems at quarterback last season. Then again, it could be a chicken-or-egg issue, as receivers often struggled to get out of their routes, causing problems for the QBs’ read progression.

Let’s also factor in that Northwestern ran against some pretty good pass defenses last season. Seven of their 12 opponents were ranked in the top-half in pass efficiency defense, four of them in the top 22.

There were also some debilitating injuries that took away the Cats’ top returning pass-catcher, as well as limiting what few speed threats they had on the outside, and in the open field.

But it’s a new year, and with a slew of the same receivers returning, as well as an exciting new offensive coordinator to orchestrate the pass offense. Let’s see what we have to look forward to from the 2020 aerial assault.

One thing that new OC Mike Bajakian has shown is that he knows how to get production out of his pass-catchers. Five of them averaged over 15 yards per reception with similar talent at Boston College last season. He also got really good production out of his tight ends, with three of them hauling in 14 or more passes and averaging 18, 14, and 11 yards per catch, respectively.

The Wildcats have some experienced depth returning, while adding in some hidden young talent. They lost leading receiver Bennett Skowronek to injury after the third game last year, and then for good, when he decided to grad-transfer to Notre Dame. They also lost J.J. Jefferson and Kyric McGowan later in the season, and TE Trey Pugh was out for the first two-thirds of the year. The reps that backups got in in practice and on game days last season should also help them bring a little more confidence into 2020.

The Wildcats do have some speed guys like McGowan, Jefferson and Malik Washington, as well as middle receivers like Riley Lees, Berkeley Holman and Bryce Kirtz, who all fit that slippery, middle-crosser mold of Northwestern receiver. In this offense, they don’t necessarily have to be fast, just steady, with the ability to force secondaries to back out of the box a bit and respect the threat of the pass.

We know it’s a broken record, but as head coach Pat Fitzgerald always says, these receivers must win their “one-on-ones.” This means getting off the line, running their routes with more precision and winning 50-50 balls. In short, they need to be more reliable. Only 36% of NU’s first downs came from throwing the ball last year. As a team, they averaged just nine yards per catch, worst (130th) in the country. They were one of only three teams not to average 10 yards per reception. To put that into perspective, the 100th-ranked team had 2.5 yards more per catch than the Wildcats.

They need a big-play guy – or two or three. They have to compensate for their overall lack of size, so explosion was something the Wildcat receivers worked really hard on this offseason. They averaged 4.5 yards per pass attempt last year, which means quarterbacks were forced to throw to their check downs, underneath and in front of the sticks. You can’t blame this number on the O-Line, either; they only gave up 23 sacks, ranking a respectable 55th nationally.

Finally, they have to fix the drops. Many of them were due to a lack of focus, partially stemming out of offensive frustration. But coaches will tell you that’s no excuse. Wide receivers coach Dennis Springer has, at times, given us some pretty good products (see Jeremy Ebert, Austin Carr, Flynn Nagel, et al), but there have also been holes in production that caused many to point the finger at the veteran coach. It’ll be interesting to see what kind of synergy he and Bajakian have in their first year working together.

Bajakian and Fitzgerald want to establish a solid running game, but in order for them to do that, this corps of receivers has to help. It’ll likely be by committee, but that’s essentially how this proposed offense works. If they can get five guys to haul in 15 or more passes, and improve their red-zone efficiency, it’ll go a long way toward pulling this offense out of the ditch.

NU was 127th in pass offense last year, ahead of only Navy, Army and Georgia Southern – and they all run the triple option and throw the ball just a handful of times a game. So unless the Cats intend on running the ball 90% of the time, their aerial numbers need a huge shot in the arm.

Receivers can help their QB by taking more precise routes to getting open. This means making the necessary sight adjustments and using their football IQ to out-smart the defense in stemming their routes. Improving on their anemic 4.5 yards-per-attempt average will help maximize the running game.

They’ll also need better pass production in the red zone, where they scored touchdowns on just 52% of their possessions. If they can give this offense a dual threat of scoring inside the 20, the Cats could score enough points to help their stalwart defense.

It all starts with senior WR Riley Lees (6-foot, 201 pounds; 12 starts in 2019). Lees really emerged as a leader toward the end of the season, finishing with 51 catches for 430 yards (8.1 ypc) and two touchdowns, tops on the team in all three categories. He caught at least five passes in seven different games, including eight against Purdue.

But Lees needs to be more of a big-play guy, as his ypc numbers have declined each year (13.1 to 9.7 to 8.1 last year). It would also serve NU well if he can be more of a scoring threat, as he has just six receiving TDs in his three-year stint so far in Evanston. Lees really caught fire in the final four games, with 23 catches for 238 yards (10.3 ypc), two TDs and connections of 27, 40, and 34 yards. If he can duplicate what Nagel did in his senior year, it’ll cap off an impressive career for the former high school quarterback from Libertyville (Ill.).

Senior WR Kyric McGowan (5-foot-10, 200 pounds, 8 starts) has had trouble establishing himself as a consistent receiver. He hauled in 10 catches when lined up wide last year, averaging just 8.3 yards per catch. His longest reception was for 16 yards against UNLV, and only three catches went for more than nine yards; he had eight of them the year before.

McGowan does give the Wildcats some speed and may be used more effectively on fly-sweeps and misdirection plays, which Bajakian incorporates well in his offense. McGowan averages nearly seven yards per carry on 31 career rushes, so that’ll be something to watch for.

Senior WR Ramaud Chiaokhiao-Bowman (6-foot-2, 203 pounds, 9 starts) has played in all 26 games the last two seasons and will be counted on to fill the physical void that “big man” Skowronek has left. Chiaokhiao-Bowman had 17 receptions for 188 yards (11 ypc), and though most of his stats came in just three games last season, it was against some pretty good pass-efficiency defenses in MSU (53rd), Iowa (17th) and Indiana (48th). RCB, who also serves as the (unofficial) team barber probably has the best hands of the group, and the guts for over-the-middle and comeback routes, making him one of the most reliable third-down, “sticks” receivers the Cats have.

Redshirt junior TE Trey Pugh (6-foot-4, 250 pounds, 3 starts) has had his career derailed by injuries, with just five receptions for 38 yards in 13 total games the last two seasons. Granted, injuries have hampered him, but even when he has been in the lineup, he’s appeared a bit wary, with drops being a problem. He’s certainly athletic with a lot of upside, and the belief is that Bajakian can help him to a productive 2020.

Wide receivers

Fortunately, the competition should be fierce this season. Junior WR J.J. Jefferson (5-foot-10, 170 pounds, 1 start) is prime for a breakout year, after a 12-catch, 12.9-ypc, 2-TD showing in 2019. Likely their fastest receiver, “Triple J” – who will wear No. 3 this season – is a big-play threat. His 50-yard TD reception versus UNLV was the team’s longest of the season, and the year before he had receptions of 36, 34 and 68 yards, with two TDs. He played in just seven games last year, getting injured against Iowa. So with a full season of work, and two years of solid experience behind him, expect Jefferson to be movin’ on up this season.

Junior WR Berkeley Holman (5-foot-11, 193 pounds, 1 start) is another guy who should see more of the spotlight. Though he caught just nine passes last year, he had the highest yards-per-catch average on the team (13.8), with a 33-yard reception, and two more that went for 20 apiece. He has good hands and started to find cracks in coverage toward the end of last season. He can be another big-play guy the Cats are looking for, to complement Lees and others.

Junior WR Jace James (6-foot, 192 pounds, 2 starts) may be the most under-represented guy in the receiving corps. He quietly nabbed 10 catches for a 9.2-yard average and two TDs last season, which tied for the team lead. Seven of his receptions and both touchdowns came against West foes Iowa, Purdue and Minnesota. He has sure hands and gives Northwestern another strong, possession receiver.

Sophomore WR Malik Washington (5-foot-9, 190 pounds) had six receptions a year ago but averaged just 4.2 yards-per-catch. Though smaller in stature, he has good speed and decent strength. His output wasn’t much to write home about, but there has to be reason why the coaches gave him a lot of reps in practice and why he saw action in 11 games, burning his redshirt last season. It’ll be interesting to see what role he plays in this new offense.

A lot of anticipation surrounds redshirt first-year WRs Genson Hooper-Price (6-foot-5, 213 pounds) and Bryce Kirtz (6-foot, 175 pounds). They were two of the most promising recruits in the 2019 recruiting class, but the coaching staff electing not to play them last season implied they weren’t ready to play last year. Kirtz had an active spring and looks to be a good slot-type receiver with good route-running ability and steady hands. Hooper-Price is intriguing because he gives the Wildcats the height (and some speed) they’ve been missing at receiver for so long. If one or both of these prized recruits emerge this season, the passing game will get a big boost.

Another redshirt freshman to watch is WR Wayne Dennis Jr. (6-foot-3, 190 pounds), a big, physical target. Whispers out of camp said that Dennis could be ready to make an impact.

Sophomore kick coverage superstar/jack-of-all-trades WR Raymond Niro III (5-foot-10, 183 pounds) is a guy to keep an eye on, too. He carried the ball 11 times for a 9.2-yard average last year, but has yet to catch a pass in two seasons, getting mainly a snap or two in mop-up time at receiver. He’ll continue to be a special-teams standout.

Walkon WRs Preston Bacon (6-foot-2, 195 pounds), Braeden Heald (5-foot-11, 191 pounds), Will Lansbury (6-foot-2, 204 pounds) and Jack Kennedy (6-foot, 188 pounds) complete the roster of receivers.

Tight ends

There’s a lot of interest in FAU grad-transfer John Raine (6-foot-2, 235 pounds), who caught 38 passes (9.0 ypc) for the Owls, including six TDs, last season. He had a nice performance against Ohio State, where he snared six balls, one of them for a TD. The honorable-mention All-Conference USA choice had his best performance in FAU’s Boca Raton Bowl victory over SMU, earning seven receptions for 73 yards and a TD. Still, he was the second option, opposite All-American Hunter Bryant, so let’s see how he does in Bajakian’s offense, which could often employ two TEs.

Junior Charlie Mangieri (6-foot-4, 252 pounds) led all Wildcat TEs in receptions last year, with five for 21 yards, but proved to be a pretty good blocker on the line. His size could make him a solid red-zone option, assuming Bajakian schemes him well for such opportunity.

There’s also redshirt first-year Thomas Gordon (6-foot-5, 231 pounds), who saw action in a few games last season but kept his redshirt and might provide a better mid-field receiving target than Mangieri. Junior Alex Oelsner (6-foot-4, 247 pounds) has appeared in three games over two years but will likely see limited action.

TE Hunter Welcing (6-foot-3, 235 pounds) is an intriguing three-star recruit that enrolled early and took part in spring practice. He fits the mold of TE that Bajakian likes to use but is on the mend after an ACL tear. Marshall Lang (6-foot-4, 225 pounds) also comes in as a long target out of Ohio power Cincinnati St. Xavier.

WR Jack Moses (5-foot-11, 170 pounds) is a preferred walkon who was Welcing’s quarterback at Lake Zurch (Ill.) and makes the switch to WR.

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.