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2018 Notre Dame Opponent Preview: Northwestern

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Head coach Pat Fitzgerald has done superb work at Northwestern, including a 10-3 finish last year.
Head coach Pat Fitzgerald has done superb work at Northwestern, including a 10-3 finish last year. (Associated Press)
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Judging a football schedule in the preseason cannot be based too much off of what happened the year prior.

All one has to do is look at the roller-coaster tendencies of Notre Dame the past 20-plus years, from 9-3, 5-7, 9-3, 5-6, 10-3 and 5-7 during the six-year span from 1998-2003, to 10-3 and 3-9 in 2006-07, to 10-3, 4-8, 10-3 the past three campaigns.

When evaluating and ranking Notre Dame’s 2018 opponents, the recent history does factor in, but not as much as:

• Overall personnel/talent.

• Returning experience.

• Timing of the game (after a bye week or following a marquee opponent).

• Where the game is played/intangibles.

At No. 6 in our countdown is Northwestern.


At Northwestern — Nov. 3

Series Record: Notre Dame leads, 37-9-2.

Most Recent Meeting: On Nov. 15, 2014, Northwestern rallied from a 40-29 fourth-quarter deficit to post a 43-40 overtime victory at Notre Dame Stadium. The upset snapped a four-game losing streak for the Wildcats during which they averaged only 12.5 points per game. Meanwhile, it was the second of what would be four consecutive defeats for the Irish to end the 2014 regular season.

What made the outcome more difficult to swallow was Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly’s decision to go for two points instead of kicking the extra point when the Irish extended their lead to 40-29. A converted kick would have made it 41-29 — a three-score advantage instead of the two Northwestern needed to knot the game at 40 and give itself a chance in overtime.

Northwestern’s Rivals Class Rankings 2014-18: No. 67 (2014), tied for No. 55 (2015), No. 46 (2016), No. 55 (2017), No. 59 (2018)

Notre Dame’s Rivals Class Rankings 2014-18: No. 11 (2014), No. 11 (2015), No. 13 (2016), No. 13 (2017), No. 11 (2018)


2017 Record/Summary: 10-3

A dismal campaign appeared to be in the making after a 41-17 loss at Duke in game 2, and then consecutive setbacks to top-10 ranked Wisconsin (33-24) and Penn State (31-7) in the first two league games, dropping the Wildcats to 2-3 overall.

The Wildcats then proceeded to post their longest winning streak ever to close out a season — eight in a row. That is the longest current run among Power 5 Conference teams entering the 2018 season, and third overall to Central Florida (13) and Florida Atlantic (10). Highlighting the run was two factors.

First, since the inception of overtime into college football in 1996, Northwestern last year became the first team ever to win three consecutive overtime games (Iowa, Michigan State and Nebraska).

Second, the 24-23 Music City Bowl victory versus Kentucky marked the first time ever Northwestern captured back-to-back bowl games (defeating Pitt a year earlier in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl).


2018 Outlook

Six starters return on both offense and defense, with the defensive end unit possibly the top strength. Junior Joe Gaziano led the Big Ten in sacks last season with nine, while Samdup Miller added 5.5 as a true freshman.

All-time Northwestern rushing leader Justin Jackson has graduated, but stout and veteran lines on both sides of the ball headline this year’s unit. The X-factor is how well quarterback Clayton Thorson (7,548 career yards passing, 44 touchdowns) can function after suffering a torn ACL in the Music City Bowl win. How ready he will be for the season opener at Purdue on Aug. 30 is uncertain.

Although the Wildcats hired three new position coaches this winter, the continuity on 13th-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald's (87-65 overall) staff as remained with offensive coordinator Mike McCall and defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz each entering their 11th seasons under him.

Like Navy under head coach Ken Niumatalolo, Northwestern has cultivated a winning culture by maximizing its strength despite receiving minimal fanfare when it comes to recruiting rankings.


Will Notre Dame Be Favored, The Underdog, Or Is It A Toss-Up?

Fitzgerald has achieved stellar work at Evanston, three times leading the Wildcats to 10-win seasons since 2012 — just as many as Notre Dame.

He also won the two most recent outings against the Irish, first as a star linebacker for the 1995 unit that won a share of the Big Ten title (17-15 victory at Notre Dame in the opener), and then as the head coach in the aforementioned 2014 contest.

If Thorson can rebound from the ACL tear, Northwestern can make a bowl again despite a tougher schedule overall. Plus, Notre Dame has had a recent history of struggling the week after facing Navy’s triple-option, including last year’s 38-20 loss at Stanford.

Talent-wise, though, we project the Irish to be at least a one-touchdown favorite on the road.

Our 12 to 1 countdown, from our perceived weakest 2018 foe to toughest, so far has No. 12 Ball State, No. 11 Vanderbilt, No. 10 Syracuse, No. 9 Pittsburgh, No. 8 Wake Forest and No. 7 Navy.

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