A season opener is always a revealing game, but Northwestern's curtain raiser with Western Michigan is more intriguing than usual.
WildcatReport offers these four things to watch as the Wildcats battle the Broncos at Ryan Field.
The passing game's efficiency: Everyone knows that the Wildcats' passing offense was the worst in the Big Ten and 119th nationally, so eyes will be focused on how much improvement was made. Justin Jackson will get his yards on the ground, but Northwestern's offensive improvement will hinge on the passing game. Will Clayton Thorson make good decisions and make accurate throws, or will he hesitate and use poor mechanics under duress? Will the addition of Solomon Vault, Marcus McShepard and a healthy Flynn Nagel to the wide receiver corps give the Wildcats more speed and enable them to get separation? Will newcomers such as Charlie Fessler, Riley Lees and Cameron Green (at superback) emerge as legitimate targets? The answers to those questions will begin to be formulated against WMU.
The offensive line's push: We heard a lot over the summer about the 400 personal records the Wildcats set in the weight room during the offseason, and how this team was focused on getting physically stronger upfront after getting pushed around in their three losses last year. Well, Saturday will be a good indicator of just how much more physical Northwestern offensive line is. Western Michigan's defense was shaky last season and teams scored 28.3 points and gained 413.7 yards per game against it. Can the Wildcats just pound the ball between the tackles against a MAC team and control the game? Can they get a push in short-yardage situations?
Montre Hartage's big moment: Hartage is going to be busy on Saturday. If you were WMU quarterback Zach Terrell and you want to throw the ball, would you throw to the side of Matthew Harris, a senior cornerback with 28 starts and 31 PBUs under his belt, or to the side of Hartage, who is making his first career start? Exactly. Hartage has drawn rave reviews for his athleticism and aggressiveness in practice, but coaches never really know what they have until the bullets fly. Will he meet the challenge that Terrell and future NFL wide receiver Corey Davis present? Will he make any mental errors? How will he react if he gets beat for a big play? We will find out on Saturday. In fact, three of the Wildcats top four corners (Hartage, Alonzo Mayo and Trae Williams) are unproven, so these questions apply to all of them.
NU's swagger: Last year's season-opening win over Stanford set the tone for the whole year for the Wildcats. The fast, physical defense that earned that upset victory carried the team all season. This time, the script is flipped. Northwestern is the favorite, playing a very good team from a lesser conference? How do the Wildcats handle the higher expectations this time around? How will they wear the burden of being the favorite? Will they play with confidence and impose their will on the Broncos?
Matchup: Western Michigan (0-0) vs. Northwestern (0-0)
Time: 11:00 a.m. CT
Place: Ryan Field, Evanston, Ill.
TV: ESPNU
Radio: WGN 720 AM, wgnradio.com, WNUR
Links
Inside Information: Western Michigan ($)
