Here are three things we learned from the Cats' season-ending loss at Wrigley Field, two questions we have moving forward and one bold prediction about the future as the Wildcats head into an important offseason after a disappointing 4-8 season in 2024.

1. Braun is ready for change.

As a disheartening 2024 season came to a close Saturday at Wrigley Field, Northwestern head coach David Braun vowed that better days are ahead. The good will he built up after a miraculous 8-5 record in 2023 has all been spent and he leaves 2024 with a career record a game below .500, 12-13. Wildcat fans, and Braun's new Athletic Director Mark Jackson, are hungry for wins. Braun promised changes to get Northwestern back to winning in 2025.

"How do we evaluate [this offseason] to compete while aligning with Northwestern values, that's true to who we are but also true to the goals and aspirations that we have?" Braun posited. "It's challenging, daunting at times, confusing, frustrating, but we have a chance to really reimagine the way we do things at Northwestern for the last 10 years, five years, three years, three months. It's all going to be flipped on its head."

There's plenty in Evanston that needs flipping after a fourth season in six years ended without a bowl appearance. Braun will first take aim at the transfer portal to get things heading in the right direction in Evanston. Northwestern has had a haphazard history of adding talent from the transfer portal since its seismic impact on college football roster construction. The Cats have been hamstrung by a terse admissions office and the University's quarter system. This offseason, however, Braun has Northwestern positioning themselves to attempt to make a splash in the transfer portal. Braun has new leeway to take on transfers from the early window in December to try and fill out a roster with numerous holes that proved to be too much to overcome.

An influx of talented players would certainly help Northwestern, but Braun must also look inward for the necessary improvement to get NU back on track. Far too often in 2024, a topic of conversation after a game was a head-scratching decision Braun made or didn't make. Last season, in his first ever season as a head coach, Braun had former head coaches Skip Holtz and Jeff Genyk on his staff to guide him on gamedays. In 2024, however, Braun was surrounded by a much more inexperienced staff that he handpicked, and he struggled with game management decisions frequently.

The issues reared their heads again on Saturday as Northwestern found themselves trailing 14-10 late in the first half. The Cats faced a third-and-5 from the Illinois 13-yard line with a little more than 30 seconds remaining. As the play clock wound down, Braun opted not to use a timeout and the Wildcats lost five yards on a delay of game. Quarterback Jack Lausch was then sacked on the ensuing third-and-10 for a loss of 8, meaning NU had lost 13 yards in just one snap. Luke Akers was sent on to attempt what was now a 44-yard field goal try that he pushed wide right, and a methodical Wildcat drive that marched deep into Illini territory ended with nothing.

"Operationally there is no excuse," Braun said. "It can't happen. Wish I had that one back. I thought we were going to get the ball off but it's inexcusable...I have to call that timeout."

It will be on offseason full of soul searching and improvement in Evanston, starting at the top. Braun is ready to add to the roster, and with a full season from start to finish under his belt as a head coach, he will also look to find ways to better help the hopefully revamped roster find ways to win games.

2. Northwestern needs a transfer quarterback.

Northwestern rotated a pair of local quarterbacks, Lausch and true freshman Ryan Boe, on Saturday, but the results were similar. It wasn't for a lack of chances, either, as Northwestern's pair of signal callers put the ball in the air a combined 61 times at a frigid Wrigley Field. Only 29 of those were completed, good for a paltry 47.5%, and an additional three were picked off by Illinois defenders.

Lausch set a career high in yards in his 10th career start with 287 yards via the air on 25-for-48 passing. He threw a pair of touchdowns but also a pair of interceptions, both at inopportune times on poor decisions. One came in the red zone and another after NU had cut the lead to 8 and was threatening in Illini territory again. It was another up-and-down game from Lausch, who despite having 10 starts under his belt, has been unable to iron out the decision-making and mechanical issues that continue to reappear and hurt both him and the team.

Boe struggled much more, but he deserves grace as it was his first college action. The Batavia, Ill., native completed only four of his 13 pass attempts for 42 yards and an interception. He was also crushed on a sack and lost the ball to set up an Illinois field goal in the fourth quarter.

When asked after the game if he intended to bring in a transfer quarterback, Braun began his answer with "I don't know." That seems to be the consensus from those around the program as to how Braun feels about the quarterback situation next season. But the continued inconsistent play out of Lausch and the inauspicious debut for Boe, the two presumed competitors for the job in 2025 that are currently on the roster, have to push Braun to add a proven veteran to the room.

Later in the press conference, Braun expanded a little on his thoughts on the quarterback situation and gave a more telling answer.

"Am I excited about Jack Lausch's progression? Absolutely," Braun said. "Are we excited about Ryan Boe? Yeah, his time will come... But what we owe this football team and our next crop of seniors is to evaluate everything."

Just because Braun brings in a transfer doesn't mean Lausch and Boe are afterthoughts. They should be given a chance to compete with a veteran transfer that is brought in, and if one of the returners improves and wins the job, then that's great news for Northwestern. Across college football this past offseason, Boise State brought in former five-star recruit Malachi Nelson as a transfer from USC as the presumptive starter. Nelson was beat out by returnee Maddux Madsen, who has the Broncos at 11-1 and one win away from a college football playoff berth. Bringing in a transfer while encouraging development from Lausch and Boe isn't unheard of and should be the Wildcats' plan. There's no need for Northwestern to give up on the local duo they played on Saturday, but Braun said it himself: he owes it to Northwestern to search the transfer portal for the best possible quarterback to lead the Cats in 2025.

3. The Cats will miss their seniors.

Senior Day with no bowl game to look forward to is always a sad day as the program says goodbye to many players who gave so much to the program, and Saturday at Wrigley was no different. Northwestern honored 16 seniors before the game, headlined by team leaders like receivers Bryce Kirtz and AJ Henning, safety Coco Azema and linebacker Xander Mueller. Azema, Kirtz and Mueller were all captains this past season and spent at least five seasons in Evanston, with Azema and Kirtz both playing six as Wildcats. Henning spent only two years at Northwestern after transferring in from Michigan, but left an outsized impact with his play and attitude.

"It means the world to me," Henning said of his time at Northwestern. "So much gratitude for this place and the brotherhood... I can't thank this place enough, this is home for me."

Notably absent from the senior day festivities was fifth-year senior and team captain Cam Porter, who could return next season. Should Porter return, the Wildcats will retain a key leader in the locker room on a team that figures to have a number of new faces. Still, Northwestern will miss the leadership and experience of the departing seniors who guided Northwestern through the highs and lows of the last two seasons.

"These guys are my boys' heroes," Braun said of his seniors. "As a dad, there's no one else I'd want them to look up to... Regardless of the results, they have so much to be proud of."

1. Why did Northwestern abandon the run?

All season, Braun harped on how important it was for Northwestern to run the football. The head coach lamented how struggles and a litany of injuries on the offensive line have limited the Cats' ability to run the ball, and consequently hamstrung the whole offensive operation. Well, on Saturday, Northwestern came out of the gates running the ball against the Illini with unprecedented success for the 2024 NU offense. On the Cats' opening drive, Northwestern was set up with first-and-goal from the Illinois 5-yard line after a 16-yard run from Porter. Despite top receiver Kirtz leaving the game with an injury earlier in the drive, offensive coordinator Zach Lujan dialed up two passes in the next three plays, both of which fell incomplete. The Wildcats settled for a field goal.

On Northwestern's next drive, the Wildcats were set up with first down from the Illinois 12 after a 17-yard run from Caleb Komolafe. Lujan again went to the air on first down and Lausch's attempt fell incomplete. After a 2-yard Komolafe run on second down, Lausch heaved a prayer into tight coverage on third down that was intercepted by Xavier Scott. Two successful Northwestern drives, that had gained a combined 76 yards on the ground, ended in just three total points because Lujan turned to his quarterback inside the 15 instead of leaning on a running game that was churning out yards. The running game that was averaging more than 8 yards per carry in the first two drives was completely abandoned when it was time to turn those drives into touchdowns.

Another particularly maddening sequence came on Northwestern's first drive of the second half. Illinois had just scored a touchdown to take a 21-10 lead. Porter carried on the first two plays of the drive for a combined 9 yards. Instead of going back to him, Lujan attempted a pass on third down, which was sniffed out by Illinois to force a Northwestern punt. Illinois scored again on the ensuing drive; and just like that it was 28-10.

Further, after carrying three times for 30 yards on the first two drives, Lausch handled just one non-sack carry for the rest of the game. Lausch was averaging a first down every time he carried the ball over the Cats' first two drives and Lujan didn't make quarterback run a focal point of the attack going forward.

Taking away the two sacks taken by Northwestern quarterbacks, the Wildcats ran for 136 yards on 27 carries. That's over 5 yards per carry. Instead of leaning into the run game early and often, Lujan attempted 61 passes with a pair of struggling quarterbacks, and with a top receiver who was injured on the game's opening drive. Lujan spent last offseason talking about being a coordinator who designs an offense around his players's strengths; Braun better hope that becomes a reality next season or he may have to find his third offensive coordinator in four seasons.

2. Can Northwestern's defense regain its dominance?

Through the first two months of the season, the Northwestern defense looked like one of the truly elite units in the country under first-year defensive coordinator Tim McGarigle. The wheels started to come off after a 40-14 defeat to Iowa on Oct. 26. Counting that game, Northwestern would allow at least 31 points to four of their final five opponents. The only team to not crack that mark was 1-11 Purdue. The defense showed cracks as the season went on and teams began to create big plays and find room in the running game against the Cats, two things McGarigle's unit was elite at shutting down early in the season.

It certainly could have been a case of an overworked unit that ran out of gas after carrying an outsized load for most of the season due to the offense's struggles, or opponents just figured out ways to attack McGarigle's defense that the NU coaches failed to adjust to adequately.

Barring an exodus via the transfer portal, Northwestern should have a high percentage of snaps returning on defense in 2025. The unit will be led, at least on paper, by five returning senior starters: defensive linemen Aidan Hubbard and captain Carmine Bastone, Mike linebacker Mac Uihlein, safety Devin Turner, who had two interceptions, including a pick-6 against Illinois, and cornerback Theran Johnson. That's a strong veteran core to build from, along with a number of young players who grew into bigger roles as the season went on. Braun and McGarigle will no doubt spend the offseason correcting what went wrong in the back half of 2024 and work to form the 2025 defense into a unit that resembles the group that smothered opponents over NU's first seven games this season.

Northwestern's top three receivers in 2025 will all be transfers.

As Braun readies to hit the portal hard this offseason, receiver will be at the top of his wishlist. With Kirtz and Henning exhausting their eligibility, Northwestern loses its two most reliable playmakers on offense and two guys who the Cats' quarterbacks could always count on. Henning ended up leading the team in catches, yards and touchdowns in 2024. The Frankfort, Ill., native grabbed 59 passes for 603 yards and four touchdowns.

Kirtz, who unfortunately dealt with injuries in 2024 as he did for a lot of his six-year Northwestern career, was right behind Henning with 39 catches for 598 yards, but was unable to get into the end zone. That combined production accounted for 46.7% of Northwestern's receptions in 2024, 53.8% of the Cats receiving yards and 57.1% of NU's receiving touchdowns. That's a lot to replace.

In addition to the two stalwarts outside, the Cats also lose their top two tight ends in Thomas Gordon and Marshall Lang. Of the returnees, Frank Covey IV led the way with 10 catches for 98 yards. True freshman Hayden Eligon II finished his first season with his best game against Illinois, but still only totaled just four catches for 83 yards on the year. Braun will look to add to those two in the Wildcat receiver room, and the good news for him is Northwestern has had tremendous success bringing in transfer pass catchers during the portal era.

Henning leads the way with his 104 catches, 1,021 yards and eight touchdowns over his two seasons as a Wildcat after transferring from Michigan. Also in Henning's transfer class was the Cats' 2023 leading receiver, Cam Johnson, who gave NU 54 catches for 715 yards and six scores in his final year of eligibility. Not to be forgotten, Stephon Robinson Jr. overcame a revolving door of quarterbacks to make 46 grabs for 625 yards and a pair of touchdowns for Northwestern in 2021. Even further back, tight end John Raine joined the program as a transfer before the 2020 season and earned honorable mention All-Big Ten as the Cats made their way to the Big Ten Championship.

Braun will add to the list of receiver transfer success stories in Evanston and pull all of the Cats' top three pass catchers in 2025 out of the portal.