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The Daily Northwestern's Gameday, Dec. 31, 2010 edition
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When Northwestern completes its 2010 campaign Sat-urday against Texas Tech, it will mark five full seasons since Randy Walker died of a heart attack just months before the 2006 season was set to begin. Although
several years and victories have since passed, the way he lived and died has kept his memory alive.
“I think for everybody in our program, Coach touched lives and we think about him daily,” coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “He's a guy that influences everybody he had a chance to touch. His influence was just unbelievable.”
When Walker was named the head coach of the Wildcats fol-lowing the 1998 season, he was given the reins of a program with a very uncertain future. After decades of misery, NU made it to the 1996 Rose Bowl and the 1997 Florida Citrus Bowl under coach Gary Barnett.
Yet, two of the most successful seasons in Cats' history were followed by two seasons that ended with losing records, and by the time Barnett departed, it was doubtful whether NU would ever be able to replicate its success from the mid-1990s, particularly with star linebacker Fitzgerald no longer on the team.
By the time he passed away in 2006, Walker had answered all doubts, transforming the Cats into consistent winners. His teams
played in bowl games in four of his seven years at NU.“Gary Barnett did a great job of coming in and getting the team
to Rose Bowl and winning the Big Ten in 1995 and 1996,” said Walker’s wife, Tammy Walker. “He made a really big breakthrough getting the program recognized and that it is possible. Randy's role was to come in and add some consistency to it and I think he did.”
When the Cats brought Walker into Evanston, they were hir-ing a consistent winner. From his days as a high school running back through his days coaching at his alma mater Miami (Ohio), Walker won wherever he went, due in large part to his tremendous work ethic.
When Walker arrived at Miami (Ohio) as a player, he could lift more than anyone on the team, according to Tammy, even though he was just 5-foot-8.
“He was in tremendous shape and as a player, worked at it very hard,” Tammy Walker said. “He would very rarely miss a day of workout. He might miss Christmas but that was about it.”
According to Tammy, Randy Walker worked hard to get the most of his talent.
“Some people have incredible talent,” Tammy Walker said. “Although he was talented, I don't think he thought he had incredible talent, but if he worked really hard he'd be able to make a difference.”
Make a difference he did, as he led the Redhawks to a 32-1-1 record in his last three years, with three straight Tangerine Bowl victories.
His coaching career was no different, as he had great success at North Carolina as an offensive coordinator and running backs coach, before heading to Miami (Ohio), where he became the win-ningest head coach in school history, surpassing legends like Bo Schembechler, Woody Hayes and Ara Parseghian.
Walker got the most out of his teams by demanding maximum effort from his players. Sometimes described as a drill sergeant, there was no doubt that Walker worked his players hard.
“What you saw is what he was,” Tammy Walker said. “He was pretty hard-nosed, he worked the players hard, but they knew espe-cially as they got older and closer to him that he was loyal to a fault, he would have done anything for his players.”
That care for his players was hardly unconditional, according to his wife.
“He was very tough and he was pretty black and white,” Tammy Walker said. “These are the rules, this is what you do, you always knew where you stood for him, even though he was tough, it was easy in a way.”
According to Tammy, Randy Walker was hard-nosed as a coach and a father. The only one who was ever treated with kid gloves was the family dog.
“The only exception was our dog,” Tammy Walker said. “Our dog got away with a lot of stuff that our kids and players would have never gotten away with.”
When Walker came to NU, it didn't take him long to find the same success that had marked his entire career. In just his second season with the Cats, he led them to a share of the Big Ten title.
“It was obviously a very fun season,” Tammy Walker said. “He'd probably be the first to tell you that at the beginning of the season, he didn't think it would happen, but it was just one of those teams where things just came together and they found a way to win even when it didn't look like they were going to.”
Yet, after winning the conference title in 2000, things took a turn for the worse in Evanston. On Aug. 3, 2001, senior safety Rashidi Wheeler collapsed during a conditioning drill and later died. The Cats went just 7-16 in the two seasons following Wheeler's death.
Yet, Walker's teams were able to recover from that low, winning at least six games in each of his final three seasons at NU. After leading the Cats to the Sun Bowl in 2005, the team's fourth bowl game in just six seasons, Walker appeared to have the team back in the right direction.
“He was awesome,” Fitzgerald said. “He was a guy who would drive you to be the best you could be on every single rep and coached attitude every day. I'd like to think there's a lot of Coach in me and our entire staff.”
And as tough a coach as he was, many of his players loved him, according to Fitzgerald and Tammy Walker. Indeed, it was Walker's honesty that helped convince a young wide receiver out of Farm-ington Hills, Mich. to come to NU. Five years later, Sidney Stewart remembers that honesty well.
“He was real,” Stewart said. “He would look you in the eyes, he wouldn't tell you what you wanted to hear, he told you the truth, and that's what I respected about him.”
Just two months before his death, Randy Walker had signed a contract extension with NU that would have kept him in Evanston through the 2011 season. His wife said he loved coaching the Cats, in large part due to the character of the student-athletes.
“He loved it here and he wasn't looking for anyplace else,” Tammy Walker said. “He could've made more money at other places so there's tradeoffs wherever you are, but the things that he valued were here.”
Although he had been diagnosed with a heart virus two years earlier, it was wasn’t thought to be life-threatening.
“They thought he was doing very well,” Tammy Walker said. “He was on medication but that was it, he was not restricted physically.”
In fact, Walker had been hiking in Arizona in the week leading up to his death and had always worked out as often as possible, according to his wife.
One day after returning from a wedding in Arizona, Randy headed into the office, did some yard work in the afternoon, and then went upstairs to take a shower, where Tammy later discovered his body.
His death came as a complete shock to the NU community, including those who were closest to him.
“I don't know if I could even put into words,” Fitzgerald said. “It was surreal almost and something I hope I never have to go through again.”
On a day soon after his death, his son Jaime Walker arrived at the Walker household, which was just four blocks from Ryan Field. Jaime, who was working as an assistant director of football operations at the time, went up to his mother and told her there was someone at the door.
There was more than just one person at the door; rather an entire football team stood there, and when Tammy got to the front door,
The Daily NorthwesternFriday, december 31, 2010
Randy Walker’s legacy, a 5-year retrospective
See Walker, page 5NU coach Pat Fitzgerald, who stepped into the shoes of randy Walker after Walker’s unexpected death, carries on his legacy.
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Northwestern (7-4, 3-4 Big 10) vs.Texas Tech (7-5, 3-5 Big 12)
GAMEDAY The Daily Northwestern Friday, November 19, 20104
NO
RTH
WES
TER
N
4
54
93
95
41
57
02
45
16
54
28
70
63
65
72
75
8
5
11
18
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18 QB Evan WATKINS4 RB Adonis SMITH11 WR Jeremy EbErT5 WR Sidney STEWArT8 WR Demetrius FIEldS9 SB Drake duNSMorE
75 LT Al NETTEr72 LG Brian MulroE65 C Ben burKETT63 RG Keegan GrANT70 RT Patrick WArd
Northwestern Offense
54 DE Dartwan buSH93 DT Colby WHITlocK95 NT Pearlie GrAvES41 DE Sam FEHoKo45 LB Tyrone duNcAN57 LB Brian bIrd
20 LB Bront bIrd4 CB Derrick MAyS28 CB LaRon MoorE5 S Tre’ PorTEr16 S Cody dAvIS
Texas Tech Defense
By Jnnah Rosenblumthe daily northwestern
It’s not quite Santa coming down the chim-ney, but members of Northwestern’s football family received a special treat when they learned their Wildcats would be competing in the TicketCity Bowl on New Year’s Day.
Not only does the bowl invitation give the players get a chance to compete in the historic Cotton Bowl – it also gave them a chance to return home for Christmas before flying back to Evanston to begin game-week preparations.
“(It) couldn’t fall at a better time for us, to allow our guys to go home for the holi-days,” coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “With our academic calendar we were really hoping and excited to play on Jan. 1, and having this opportunity is going to provide that for us.”
The Cats’ holiday break may be a result of their poor showing in their last two games of the season. Had NU been able to defeat Illinois or Wisconsin, the team likely would have received an invite to play in the Insight Bowl, held on Dec. 28, or the Texas Bowl, which is played on Dec. 29. If the Cats had made it into either of those two bowls, they likely would have spent Christmas preparing for their bowl game -- instead, the team got to go home for the holidays.
This year, in particular, NU was in need of a break. The Cats essentially worked non-stop from August through December, from summer ball at Camp Kenosha, through a non-conference schedule that began in early September, and finally culminating in a gru-eling conference slate that took them through the end of November.
Usually, the Cats get to go home for Thanksgiving, but this year they had to remain in Evanston to prepare for their Nov. 27 matchup with Wisconsin.
“It’s real nice,” Persa said of going home for the holidays. “We’re used to kind of going home for Thanksgiving and we didn’t get to do that this year. Going home for Thanksgiv-ing, seeing the family, getting a nice quick break from football is always good.”
Without a Thanksgiving break, it’s been a while since some NU players last went home. Wide receiver Sidney Stewart said he hadn’t been home since late July.
“I can’t wait, I’m looking forward to it,” Stewart said after an early December prac-tice. “I haven’t been home in a long time.”
In particular, Stewart is looking forward to meeting a new member of his family. The senior said his older sister gave birth to a baby daughter this summer, but he only got to meet his niece once before heading back to school.
“I’ve only seen her once,” Stewart said. “I’ve seen pictures here and there but I can’t wait to hold her. She was too young for me to hold back then.”
At a Dec. 5 press conference, Fitzgerald said that the Cats would probably stay in Evanston through Dec. 20, and then head back home for several days, before reconven-ing in Evanston on Dec. 26.
With such a short window of time at home and so much he wants to do, Stewart said he would be sure to use his time well.
“I’ll wake up before everybody in my house wakes up,” Stewart said. “I’ll get up at 6:30, work out, be done around 10, spend the rest of the day around them. That’s my plan.”
For Fitzgerald and his wife, Stacy, earning a New Year’s Day bowl invitation meant they would be able to spend Christmas at home.
“It makes life a little bit easier,” Stacy Fitzgerald said. “It’s just really nice to be able to wake up in your own house and have Christmas with your family, like my family and Pat’s family on Christmas Day.”
Stacy said, however, that the holiday break was likely more meaningful for the players and their families then it is to herself and Pat.
“It’s probably more special for the players’ families because we travel with the team, even if we had left before Christmas, we would still be together as a family on Christ-mas,” Stacy Fitzgerald said. “The families of the players like having their boys home on Christmas Day instead of having to go see them at the bowl game.”
Home for the Holidays
Wildcat 2011TicketCity BowlT-Shirts are here!
Order now fromNorris Bookstore.
www.bookstore.northwestern.edu
Northwestern (7-4, 3-4 Big 10) vs.Texas Tech (7-5, 3-5 Big 12)
Friday, November 19, 2010 The Daily Northwestern GAMEDAY 5
TExa
S TEcH
BurNiNg QuesTioNs
Key maTchups
94
98
90
42
44
41
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10
27
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66
74
19
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17
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1112
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20 LB Bront bIrd4 CB Derrick MAyS28 CB LaRon MoorE5 S Tre’ PorTEr16 S Cody dAvIS
42 DE Kevin WATT98 DT Corbin bryANT90 DT Jack dINArdo94 DE Vince broWNE41 OLB Quentin dAvIE44 MLB Nate WIllIAMS
51 OLB Bryce McNAul26 CB Jordan MAbIN28 CB Justan vAuGHN10 S Brian PETErS27 S Jared cArPENTEr
Northwestern Defense
12 QB Taylor PoTTS 11 RB Tramain SWINdAll25 WR Baron bATcH65 WR LaAdrian WAddlE78 WR Lonnie EdWArdS73 TE Justin KEoWN
66 LT Deveric GAllINGToN74 LG Mickey oKAFor19 C Lyle lEoNG86 RG Alex TorrES17 RT Detron lEWIS
Texas Tech Offense
25
After getting burned on the ground in its past two games, the Northwestern defense is likely grateful to be seeing an aerial attack. Unfortunately for the Wildcats, that passing offense went for the sixth most yards per game in the NCAA. Wide receiver Lyle Leon will keep junior cornerback Jordan Mabin and the rest of the Cats’ secondary busy as he gar-nered a team-high 808 receiving yards on 64 receptions. Leong has proven to be quarterback Taylor Potts’ favorite target in the red zone leading to 17 touchdown receptions,
second-most in the Football Bowl Subdivision. After intercepting two passes last season, Mabin is still looking for his first pick of this year.
Junior wide receiver Jeremy Ebert finished the season with a Big Ten-leading 919 receiving yards. However, since junior quarterback Dan Persa ruptured his Achilles in the NU’s 21-17 win over Iowa, Ebert has become a far quieter component of Cats’ offense, accumulating just 70 yards on five receptions with no touchdowns. Still, Ebert has a solid opportunity to reestablish himself against a Texas Tech sec-ondary that finished last in the Big 12. Safety Tre’ Porter will
look to limit Ebert and the rest of the NU passing attack while building on his seven passes defended and six passes broken up, both second-best for the Red Raiders.
Has Watkins developed over the past five weeks?Junior offensive lineman Al Netter likened the practices leading up to a bowl game as “a spring-
ball-type deal.” That may be exactly what Watkins needs after losing both of the games he started after taking over for the injured Persa. Offensive coordinator Mick McCall has a strong track record of molding quarterbacks during spring ball, developing Mike Kafka and Persa into strong throwing arms over the past two offseasons. Now he’ll need to do the same with Watkins who threw four interceptions and fumbled three times in the matchups with Illinois and Wisconsin. The strides Watkins has made over the past month will be a crucial indicator to whether the Cats can eradicate their 61-year streak without a bowl win, or if they’ll suffer a third-straight blowout to end the season.
can the Nu defense bounce back from their tackling woes?After holding Iowa to 17 points and keeping running back Adam Robinson in check, the NU
defense got brutally exposed in losses to Illinois and Wisconsin, surrendering 118 points and 1,118 yards. Coach Pat Fitzgerald has attributed much of those defensive struggles to poor tackling, citing 31 missed tackles against Illinois. With a month of practices since the Badger beat down, the Cats have had time to address their tackling miscues. Though Texas Tech may not present the same rushing threat as the Fighting Illini or the Badgers, it’s no great conclusion that a team that can’t tackle rarely wins, regardless of the offense it’s facing.
Jordan Mabin Lyle Leong
Jeremy Ebert Tre’ Porter
Insight Bowl – Iowa (7-5, 4-4) vs. No. 12 Missouri (10-2, 6-2) – Tuesday at 9:00pm
The Hawkeyes limp into the bowl matchup, com-ing off three straight losses including an embar-rassing 27-24 loss to Minne-sota. However, Missouri similarly enters the bowl game think-ing about what could have been. The Tigers seemed poised for a run to a BCS bowl until dropping con-secutive contests to Nebraska and Texas Tech. Missouri has since rallied from those defeats, winning its final three games and brings to Arizona one of the best defenses in the nation. The Tigers rank sixth in the Football Bowl Subdivision in points allowed and average more than three sacks per game.
Texas Bowl – Illinois (6-6, 4-4) vs. Baylor (7-5, 4-4) – Wednesday at 5:00pm
This game could be a fun one as both the Fight-ing Illini and the Bears are capable of putting on a show offensively while at times playing some very lax defense. Illinois will play in its first non-BCS bowl since 1999, yet just its third bowl total since that year – the Illini played in the Sugar Bowl in 2002 and the Rose Bowl in 2008. Redshirt freshman quarterback Nathan Scheelhaase has developed immensely over the season as a dual threat, leading the Illini to rank 34th in the FBS in points per game and 13th in rushing yards. Still, as losses to Michi-gan and Minnesota proved, Illinois can be scored upon with ease at times. Bay-lor’s dynamic quarter-back Robert Griffin III could certainly cause Denard Robinson-sized problems for the Illinois. He enters the game with more than 3,000 yards passing, 1,000 yards rushing, and 30 total touchdowns. But don’t forget, Baylor surren-dered more than 40 points in six games this season.
Outback Bowl – Penn State (7-5, 4-4) vs. Florida (7-5, 4-4) – Saturday at noon
This ain’t Tim Tebow’s Florida anymore, and the Gators have struggled with the transition offensively. They scored a touchdown or fewer three times this season and have tried out three different quarter-backs with minimal success. Still, the Gators have rid-den a strong defense to a 7-5 season and have held their opponents to fewer than 20 points seven times. This will be the final game at Florida for coach Urban Meyer, who will retire at the season’s conclusion. Penn State made its own quarterback transition from Daryll Clark, but Matt McGloin has demonstrated himself to be a decent replacement. The Nittany Lions also boast a strong rushing attack led by Evan Royster, who holds the school record for career rushing yards. Penn State has won four of its last six games with the only two losses coming to co-Big Ten champs Ohio State and Michigan State.
Capital One Bowl – No. 9 Michigan State (11-1, 7-1) vs. No. 16 Alabama (9-3, 5-3) – Saturday at noon
Michigan State played well enough to earn a BCS bid. Unfortunately for the Spartans, so did Ohio State and Wisconsin, leaving Michigan State on the outside looking in. Their consolation prize: A date with the defending national champions who possess one of the nation’s best defenses. The Spartans can’t afford to mope as they will have their hands full with the Crimson Tide. The Alabama defense allowed just over 14 points per game, but an inexperi-enced secondary could provide a golden opportunity for junior quarter-back Kirk Cousins. The Alabama secondary will be especially vulnerable in the bowl game
as it will be without safety Mark Barron, who tore his pectoral muscle in the Crimson Tide’s loss to Auburn. Still, Alabama brings a ferocious running attack led by Mark Ingram and Trent Richardson, both of whom have shined at times throughout the season.
Gator Bowl – Michigan (7-5, 3-5) vs. No. 21 Mis-sissippi State (8-4, 4-4) – Saturday at 12:30pm
This bowl matchup should showcase two powerful rushing offenses as both teams rank among the top 15 in the FBS in rushing yards per game. Michi-gan of course fea-tures the multi-talented Denard Robinson at quarterback, who averaged more than 325 yards of total offense per game including more than 130 on the ground. The Bulldogs possess their own dual-threat quarterback in Chris Relf with running back Vick Ballard also guiding the Mississippi State ground attack. Despite the two teams’ offensive similarities, Michigan has been routinely exposed as a weak defensive team, giv-ing up more than 33 points per game. With the exception of a 27-16 win over Purdue, the Wol-verines have given up 34 points or more in each of their last seven games.
Rose Bowl – No. 5 Wisconsin (11-1, 7-1) vs. No. 3 TCU (12-0, 8-0) – Saturday at 3:30pm
The cliché of what happens when an unstoppable force meets an immov-able object may have never been more applicable than in this year’s Rose Bowl. The Badgers bring their power running game to Pasadena to match up
with the nation’s top defense in points allowed. Wisconsin has looked seemingly relentless down the stretch, posting 70 on Northwestern and 83 on Indiana. The Badgers feature a three-headed mon-ster at running back with John Clay, James White and Montee Ball combining for nearly 3,000 yards rushing. Quarterback Scott Tolzien has also ben-efitted from the superb play of Wisconsin’s offen-sive line in passing for 2,300 yards, including a Big Ten-record 74.3 percent completion rate. However, the Badgers may have finally met their match in the Horned Frog defense, which allowed just 11.4 points per game this season. Though not playing in a BCS conference, TCU had little trouble with its two BCS opponents, defeating Oregon State 30-21 and Baylor 45-10.
Sugar Bowl – No. 6 Ohio State (11-1, 7-1) vs. No. 8 Arkansas (10-2, 6-2) – Jan. 4 at 7:00pm
Ohio State was shaken up by the news last week that five of its players, includ-ing star quarter-back Terrelle Pryor and running back Dan Herron, would be ineligible for the first five game of next season. However, all five of those players remain eligible for the Sugar Bowl, so the Buckeyes will still be at full-strength when they take on the Razorbacks. How big of a distraction of the NCAA sanctions have been, we’ll find out next Tuesday. Arkansas boasts one of the nation’s best passers in Ryan Mallett, leading Arkansas to the third most passing yards in the FBS. The Razorbacks have won their past six games, aver-aging 42.5 points over the winning streak. Ohio State however, presents a huge defensive test for Mallett and crew as the Buckeyes have allowed barely more than 150 yards passing per game this season. Ohio State fans would love to get their first bowl win over an SEC team after fail-ing the previous nine times. If the Buckeyes can forget about their sanctions until they actually take effect, Ohio State just might be able to get the monkey off its back.
GAMEDAY The Daily Northwestern Friday, November 19, 20104The Daily runs down the big bowl games
Friday, November 19, 2010 The Daily Northwestern GAMEDAY 5
Fearless Forecasters
BOWLWEEK
Northwestern vs. Texas Tech
35-21 Texas Tech The season disintegrated
with Persa's achilles
54-42 Texas Tech No Persa, no win. know
Persa, know win.
41-27 Texas Tech everything's bigger in the lone Star state, except NU
offense without Persa
31-20 Northwestern mazel tov Northwestern,
your 61-year bowl drought is over.
37-23 Texas Tech like with the cubs, until
it happens, it’s not gonna happen.
31-21 Texas Tech
(12) missouri vs. iowa 23-17 missouri 24-14missouri 29-23 missouri 9-2 iowa 24-17 missouri 33-27 iowa
illinois vs. baylor 35-31 baylor 27-24illinois 35-24 illinois 38-14 illinois 38-19 baylor 27-23 illinois
(16) alabama vs. (9) michi-gan State 31-24 alabama 27-20Penn State 38-20 alabama 31-14 alabama 27-24 michigan State 20-17 michigan State
Florida vs. Penn State 21-17 Penn State 45-38mississippi State 35-33 Florida 27-10 Penn State 21-20 Penn State 27-26 Penn State
(21) mississippi State vs. michigan 33-24 mississippi State 30-27TcU 35-28 michigan 34-31 mississippi State 27-13 mississippi State 35-31 mississippi State
(5) Wisconsin vs. (3) TcU 28-27 Wisconsin 24-21Ohio State 56-31 Wisconsin 27-24 TcU 37-24 Wisconsin 24-21 Wisconsin
(6) Ohio State vs. (8) arkansas 31-28 Ohio State 55-3Oklahoma 45-36 Ohio State 31-20 arkansas 28-24 Ohio State 28-23 arkansas
connecticut vs. (7) Oklahoma 38-20 Oklahoma 24-23Stanford 48-28 Oklahoma 35-21 Oklahoma 45-21 Stanford 35-17 Oklahoma
(4) Stanford vs. (13) Virginia Tech 31-24 Stanford 56-45 auburn 21-14 Virginia tech 42-31 Stanford 23-21 Oregon 34-30 Stanford
(2) Oregon vs. (1) auburn 38-35 Oregon 21-10 Nebraska 38-31 auburn 28-21 auburn 30-13 Nebraska 30-27 auburn
Colin Becht Ben Geier Sarah Kuta Jonah Rosenblum Andrew Scoggin Rodger Sherman
they went into the opening bars of the NU fight song.“I looked out the window, and I saw all these guys
standing out there,” Tammy Walker said. “I knew who they were but I couldn't figure out why they were here, so I walk to the front door and then they just start singing the fight song and I obviously start crying.”
The emotion didn't stop there. It continued into the 2006 season, in which the Cats' first game came against Miami (Ohio). In an emotional affair, coach Fitzgerald led NU to a 21-3 victory in Oxford.
“That first game, there's no question, we were at Miami and you could cut the emotion with a knife,” Fitzgerald said. “Just trying to lift Coach up in the
way that we played and the way that we worked.”Some might expect that Tammy Walker would've
wanted to get as far away from Evanston as pos-sible following her husband's death. Instead, she did the exact opposite, taking a job in the NU athletic department.
In addition to helping with alumni relations and donor relations, she has also done some informal work for NU, helping mentor Stacy Fitzgerald, wife of Pat Fitzgerald, on what it's like being the wife of a Division I football coach.
“I remember back in the beginning, I'd call her all the time,” Stacy Fitzgerald said. “(I'd) ask her what am I supposed to do, am I supposed to be here, am I supposed to be there, what am I supposed to wear, what am I supposed to do, who should I be talking
to. She was wonderful.”Tammy Walker remains a big fan of the football
team and of NU sports in general. She says she simply couldn't imagine walking away from the football field.
“Well, the thing is it was such a big part of my life, to just walk away would have been more difficult,” Tammy Walker said. “It would have a left big void.”
It wasn't always easy for Tammy. She said that in the early days following Randy's death, she had a hard time watching the players enter the field, since Randy was no longer there to lead them onto the gridiron.
“When the team runs out onto the field, I just didn't watch that,” Tammy Walker said. “That was hard at first, but really during the games when Randy was coaching, I was watching the football game, I
wasn't really watching the coach, so once the game started, you really just get lost in the game.”
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Walker, who still calls her-self the team's number one fan, will be making the trip to Dallas to see if the Cats can finally win their first bowl in 61 years against Texas Tech.
“It would be great if they won,” Tammy Walker said. “More than anything, Randy would say it would be nice if they won. They have a monkey on their back and they just need to win, and get if off their back so it won't be talked about so much.”
“They certainly have come close so many times but it just hasn't happened, but maybe this year, it would be awesome.”
By Colin Bechtthe daily northwestern\
After consecutive blowout losses to Illinois and Wisconsin, Northwestern might have wanted to just hit the reset button. According to junior offensive tackle Al Netter, that’s exactly what the Wildcats got to do.
“The great thing about bowl season is the 15 practices leading up to the games,” Netter said. “We look at it as a spring-ball-type deal. We go back to our base fundamentals and that gelling that an offense goes through in spring ball and the beginning of camp.”
With an offense that has struggled to find its foot-ing after losing junior quarterback Dan Persa to a ruptured Achilles tendon and a defense that became porous to the run late in the season, the Cats used their extra practices to return to the basics.
“I've been here for close to five years but we went all the way back to my freshman year base fundamental kind of stuff, like learning how to run routes, learning how to make breaks, learning how to come off the ball, learning how to catch the ball, see the ball, little things like that,” senior wide receiver Sidney Stewart said. “So we can build and by the time we get down to Dallas, we'll be able to hit our game plan full stride.”
NU (7-5, 3-5 Big Ten) will take on Texas Tech (7-5, 3-5 Big 12) on Saturday in the inaugural TicketCity Bowl, played at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas.
Crucial to the Cats success against the Red Raiders will be the development of redshirt fresh-man quarterback Evan Watkins, who has taken the majority of the snaps since Persa’s injury. In his two starts, Watkins threw for just 258 yards and one touchdown with four interceptions and three fumbles.
“Mentally he’s obviously further along than he’s been,” coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “Physically
he’s further along just because he’s had more reps. Now he’s just got to get the poise.”
Watkins said that through the bowl practices, he’s become more confident in trusting his reads and instincts.
“We’ve been executing clean balls, and that’s kind of just trusting yourself and what you see,” Watkins said. “If I do that, we’re good.”
Luckily for Watkins, he’ll be going up against the Big 12’s worst passing defense as Texas Tech gave up more than 300 yards through the air per game.
“We haven’t been very good on the defensive side of the ball all year,” Texas Tech coach Tommy Tuberville said.
Adding to the disarray of the Texas Tech defense, defensive coordinator James Willis left the program unexpectedly on Sunday to pursue other coaching positions. He will not coach the Red Raiders in the TicketCity Bowl.
“I wish James the best of luck but it is impor-tant for football team to keep pressing forward,” Tuberville said. "We have a great defensive staff here that will carry the load along with my assis-tance as we prepare for Northwestern.”
Fitzgerald said that though Willis’ departure may be chaotic for the Red Raiders, it’s creating more confusion for the Cats.
“The advantage goes to them,” Fitzgerald said. “The guy that we’ve scouted and broken down is no longer there.”
For NU’s skill position players, preparing for Texas Tech’s defense has already been a challenge because of the Red Raiders’ propensity to switch around defensive matchups midgame.
“They move guys around a lot,” Stewart said. “I never know who is going to be playing over me.” Whether it's 21 (defensive back Jarvis Phillips), whoever it is, five (safety Tre’ Porter), they'll move him in nickel, they'll move him around.”
The Cats are looking to create some confusion
of their own for Texas Tech by adding to the playbook.
“We’ve got some new packages that I think will make some playmakers get the ball more,” Watkins said.
NU will benefit offensively from getting players back from injuries. Fitzgerald said junior run-ning back Jacob Schmidt is “back in the mix” after suffering an ankle injury against Michigan State while redshirt freshman running back Mike Trumpy will be “a game-time decision.”
“If we have Trump, then that’d be awesome, but if not, we have guys that are going to step up – Adonis (Smith) and Steph (Simmons),” Watkins said. “I’m not worried about that.”
On defense, junior linebacker Bryce McNaul will be ready to play. McNaul‘s return should help bolster an NU defense that gave up more than 100 points and 1,000 yards between the Illinois and Wisconsin games.
“What happened at the end of the year is an anomaly,” Fitzgerald said.
The Cats were especially vulnerable to the run, surrendering 519 yards rushing to the Fighting Illini and 329 yards to the Badgers.
“We just haven't been gap-sound as we usually are,” senior defensive tackle Corbin Bryant said. “A lot of teams are running schemes where they create extra gaps on the outside… We've been able to look at the film from the past couple weeks and give guys the information they need to get through those types of things.”
Texas Tech however will present less of a chal-lenge to NU’s run defense than to the secondary. The Red Raiders attempted 46.75 passes per game compared to just 34 rushes.
Asked what to expect from Texas Tech, Fitzger-ald said, “Offensively, tempo, tempo and more tempo. They play fast.”
Compared to the Big Ten, in which only Indi-ana attempted more than 400 passes this season,
the Red Raiders will present a new look to the Cats.
“It is a different offense and different weap-ons than they are used to,” Texas Tech wide receiver Lyle Leong said. “It’s definitely going to be challenge.”
Quarterback Taylor Potts has a plethora of receiving resources at his disposal. In addition to Leong, whose 17 touchdown receptions are second in the Football Bowl Subdivision, Detron Lewis has 79 catches for 803 yards and six other Texas Tech receivers have 25 receptions or more.
The Cats of course have the added pressure of playing with their 61-year bowl win drought hanging over their heads.
“It's a lone negative, I guess, that you can say about our program,” Fitzgerald said. “That's defi-nitely a monkey we want to get off our backs.”
For a program that has come a long way since the days of the late 1970s and early 1980 when the Cats lost a Division I-record 34 straight games, NU still hasn’t been able to clear the last hurdle of its dark path by winning a bowl game.
“A bowl win would take the program to another level,” senior linebacker Quentin Davie said. “To win our bowl game our last year would set things up great for years to come, for people to expect great things from Northwestern.”
Adding to the difficulty of that task, NU will be playing a Texas team in the Lone Star State. The Red Raiders have even already played a game in the Cotton Bowl this season, defeating Baylor 45-38 in October.
“We are used to playing there, and we know the field,” cornerback LaRon Moore said. “It is good to end in Dallas where we have a lot of support. Every time we have been there, we have had a good turnout with fans and things like that, so it is going to feel like another home game for us.”
Northwestern looks to be rested, refreshed for bowl
Coach Walker leaves indelible mark on NU programFrom Walker, page 1
