EVANSTON-Coming into the season, Northwestern's defensive tackles were seen as one of their weak points.
Their lack of depth, on paper, was discussed ad nauseum in the preseason. The position group was made of four pairs in the summer: two scholarship tackles, two grad transfers, two walkons and two freshmen.
New defensive line coach Christian Smith and interim head coach David Braun, both of whom have playing experience on the defensive line, found an unexpected solution: a four-man rotation with unprecedented parity at Northwestern.
The winning pairs are a coalition of both scholarship and walkon players: Najee Story, Brendan Flakes, Carmine Bastone and PJ Spencer.
Together, they've played 85% of the interior defensive line snaps, and all are within a 30-snap margin of each other.
Since PFF started tracking snap counts at Northwestern in 2014, this is just the second time that they've had four different healthy defensive tackles above 20 snaps per game. The last time, in 2014, the margin between the top and bottom of the rotation was 13.5. Now, under Smith and Braun, it's just five.
Part of that is having players with the size and skill to be fungible; but it's also a function of not having a player poised to play on Sundays, right now. During several of the seasons in that stretch, Northwestern had NFL players like Adetomiwa Adebawore or Tyler Lancaster. It's only logical to for those guys to have heavy workloads and elevated snap counts.
But looking at the stats and the on-field results vs. preseason expectations, it seems that Smith and Braun have modernized Northwestern's style of play and reaped the rewards. If Northwestern had used the standard system from the former regime -- two true starters, or more often a lead starter with two others rotating in -- it's possible that the Wildcats could have stretched their line room too thin this season.
It's a tale as old as America's pastime: if someone struggles as a starter, see how they work from the bullpen. As the pitch count falls, velocity and execution improve. The same holds true for football. By rotating through four tackles, the Wildcats decrease their workload and increase their output.
Defensive tackle Carmine Bastone said the rotation has been special to be a part of, and that the cooperation and communication among the quartet have taken a leap forwards.
"We're all in it together," he said. "Coach Smith makes the rotation, and it really helps us stay healthy and stay at our best performance.
"It kind of brings us closer together. We're always on each other, making sure we're doing the right things because we're all going to be in that position later on."
In the new system, through six games, the Wildcats have allowed nearly 20 fewer rushing yards per game than last season, without significantly different personnel.
"We took it to heart that we were [called] a weakness to our defense and to our team," lead tackle Najee Story said. "We knew that we had a job to do this year. We had to show people that this is a new unit. We're going to play hard, play fast and play physical."
It's not just cycling through bodies that has brought on better results in the trenches. Story said that Smith's style has improved the line's efficacy in not just holding their ground, but penetrating into enemy territory.
"We're working our butts off and then it's about playing vertical," Story said about the year-to-year changes. "Sometimes [last year] we would play horizontal and then get knocked off the ball. When we play vertical and play in the backfield, it's harder for other teams to run the ball."
The Wildcats held Penn State, the 16th-best rushing attack in the nation by yards per game, to 134 yards when they came to Evanston. That's the lowest mark for the Nittany Lions this season.
Now they'll try to pull off a similar feat on the road against Nebraska, the 18th-best rushing team by yards per game. The additional wrinkle from the Huskers, though will, be quarterback Heinrich Haarberg, who presents a threat as a runner.
Removing Michigan from the equation, Haarberg has rushed for 112 yards and a touchdown, on average, over his last three games. Dual-threats are a consistent kryptonite for Northwestern defenses over the years. Duke's Riley Leonard torched the Wildcats for 316 total yards and two rushing touchdowns in Week 3.
Haarberg's arm talent is far from that of Leonard; he's yet to throw for 200 yards in a game. But he still changes the equation up front for how Northwestern will prepare.
"It's about doing our job," Story said. "We have to stay in our gap until the ball commits. We can't get ahead of ourselves. Then it's knowing that we have to then get all 11 hats to the ball, have to wrap up and make sure that he can't escape."
For Northwestern's defensive line, games like these are why they suit up on Saturdays. They relish the opportunity to play hat-on-hat and put their strength to the test.
"Personally, this is why I decided to come to Northwestern," Story said. "It's to play Big Ten football, to go against the run. Just knowing that any play can be your play, could be a ball in your gap, it gets you excited. It's you against the guy in front of you every play."
Bastone echoed Story. With the added depth and scheme of this year's defense, they can't wait to test themselves against one of the best rushing attacks in the country.
"It's exciting," he said. "You wish for games like this where it's in your hands.
"It's in your control with your brothers up front. I think we're ready to take on that task."
