| Northwestern Wildcats Football News: |
| On Saturday, the Wildcats geared-up in full pads for the first time since Nov. 27, and filled Trienens Hall with excited intensity. While the practice consisted of full-team and 6-on-7 drills, individual competitions boosted morale between squads.
The "board drill" -- which pits one offensive and one defensive player against each other with a flat 12-foot wooden board beneath them -- was the highlighted individual showdown. The first player who pushes the other to the end of the board wins. After a warm-up round, 10 players matched up against each other for a best-of-five series. Barry Cofield (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) defeated Ryan Keenan (Westlake, Ohio/Saint Edward) in the first bout. The offense won the next two showdowns, as Erryn Cobb (Woodridge, Ill./Downers Grove North) bested Adam Kadela (Dublin, Ohio/Dublin Coffman) and Dylan Thiry (Louisville, Ky./Trinity) edged David Ngene (Humble, Texas/Humble). In a marathon battle, Bryan Heinz (Lone Tree, Colo./Highlands Ranch) outlasted Brandon Horn (Farmington, Mich./Detroit County Day) to lock the score at 2-2. That produced the most heated match up of the contest, with Trevor Schultz (Battle Creek, Mich./Harper Creek) defeating Trevor Rees (Pearland, Texas/Pearland) to give the defense a 3-2 victory. The offense stormed back in the next individual drill, winning four out of five one-on-one showdowns, which pitted a wide receiver and a defender. Marquice Cole (Hazel Crest, Ill./Hillcrest) earned the defense's only win of the drill. |
| Event | Date | Tickets | Venue |
|---|---|---|---|
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Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Syracuse Orangemen Football
|
11:59 pm
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Ryan Field
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Duke Blue Devils Football
vs. Northwestern Wildcats Football
|
11:59 pm
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Wallace Wade Stadium
|
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Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Southern Illinois Salukis Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Ryan Field
|
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Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Ohio Bobcats Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Ryan Field
|
|
|
Iowa Hawkeyes Football
vs. Northwestern Wildcats Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Kinnick Stadium
|
|
|
Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Michigan State Spartans Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Ryan Field
|
|
|
Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Purdue Boilermakers Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Ryan Field
|
|
|
Indiana Hoosiers Football
vs. Northwestern Wildcats Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Memorial Stadium-IN
|
|
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Minnesota Gophers Football
vs. Northwestern Wildcats Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Metrodome
|
|
|
Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Ohio State Buckeyes Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Ryan Field
|
|
|
Michigan Wolverines Football
vs. Northwestern Wildcats Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Michigan Stadium
|
|
|
Northwestern Wildcats Football
vs. Illinois Fighting Illini Football
|
11:59 pm
|
Ryan Field
|
| More Northwestern Wildcats Football News: |
| When Randy Walker was hired as the Wildcats' head football coach in 1999, one of his priorities for the program was to field a competitive Big Ten program each year.
Like most Division I-A programs, Northwestern aspires annually to win a conference title and compete for a national championship. But those are lofty expectations for even the most tradition-rich programs, and with the current landscape of college football, that can be unattainable in certain years. One thing Walker felt was attainable each year, however, was a six-win season and an ensuing bowl trip. The past two years, Northwestern has notched six regular-season victories and earned a postseason invite. Last year, a 12-game schedule that was punctuated with a tough-to-swallow loss at Hawaii, kept NU from going bowling for a second straight year. "There are several factors that dictate how successful you can be," says Walker, "but I've always felt that getting to a bowl game is something that our program can shoot for on a regular basis. The past two years, we've been playing for something in November, and that's what has pleased me the most, especially after our very challenging 2001 and 2002 seasons. "I see no reason why we can't put ourselves in that position again. We've had another strong winter conditioning program and our players are doing the things you expect from a successful team. We certainly have some holes to fill, but what encourages me is that we have experienced players returning at every position group, led by a four-year starting quarterback." |