As Notre Dame football continues to push towards the college football playoff, Saturday night’s trip to Northwestern might be a sneaky tough hurdle to clear. The Wildcats are substantial underdogs, but they always get up for Notre Dame; always. That’s partially because the Wildcats honestly believe that their program could or should be on par with ND.
The two institutions are very similar and both programs stress academics much more than your typical college football program. Both NU and ND have been known to part ways with players who don’t make the grade.
Let’s go through the FYIs on this one. As expected, Notre Dame has been installed as considerable favorites in this one. If you’re going to wager on this game, potentially with a Bonus at Betchain, you’ll typically be given any where from six and half to eight points if you take the Wildcats. Be wary of this fact if you’re wagering on Notre Dame- they are 9-11 in November road games straight up during the Brian Kelly era.
Kickoff is Saturday November 3rd at 6:15 p.m. central. ESPN has the television coverage while WGN has the local radio broadcast. In short, it’s the most interesting and compelling college football game to be played in Chicagoland since 2013 (when undefeated Ohio State and ESPN College Gameday came to Evanston)
Series History:
“This is our last game in the series, and maybe down the road we’ll be able to rekindle a two game set,” said Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald.
“There’s nothing in the works right now (to extend the series beyond Saturday night) but I think it’s great for college football, and it’s good for both of our programs (to renew this rivalry).”
Notre Dame, which last played in Evanston in 1976, is 37-9 all time against Northwestern, but the Wildcats have won the last two, both of which were big time upsets that came out of absolutely nowhere. Northwestern won 17-15 in 1995 to kickstart their Cinderella run to the Rose Bowl and 43-40 again in overtime in 2014, when they were riding a four game losing streak and finished the season below .500.
Tommy Rees Connection:
Of all the connections between the two programs, Tommy Rees is probably the most prominent. He’s the Fighting Irish QB Coach, who also has a very prominent place in the Notre Dame football record book. He’s among the most prodigious passers in school history, and the Lake Forest native grew up a Northwestern fan, going to games in this stadium.
He was also recruited by NU, and served as a grad assistant on Fitzgerald’s staff in 2015. We had an exclusive with him, covering all these topics, so check that out at this link.
#3 Notre Dame football (8-0) preview:
The major team news/injury concern for this week revolves around linebacker and leader of the defense Drue Tranquill, who suffered an ankle sprain in the 44-22 win over Navy in San Diego. The X-Rays came back negative, so he’s questionable to probable, not doubtful for this game.
“It’s Drue Tranquill. He may be jogging when we get back to the hotel. He’s just a unique individual. I wouldn’t count him out for Northwestern,” Notre Dame football coach Brian Kelly said.
Perhaps we will know more tomorrow when Kelly meets the media.
It’s hard to decide which Notre Dame football player has raised the bar of the 2018 season more- quarterback Ian Book or running back Dexter Williams. When both of these guys took over their respective skill positions, the offensive backfield play improved, and the overall unit itself surged.
And with that improvement, the outlook for the entire season became much more bullish. They have no room for error though when it comes to reaching the playoff (first set of rankings come out tomorrow night). The Irish have to run the table because their schedule, which looked very formidable on paper in August, is filled with traditional powers who are took major steps down this season.
It’s obviously not their fault, but Stanford, USC, Florida State and Virginia Tech simply aren’t Stanford, USC, Florida State and Virginia Tech this season. The win over Michigan is really nice though, and aging like a fine wine every week.
Now, after the win over Navy, the Fighting Irish must adjust back to a more conventional team/away from a triple option opponent.
“We’re done with Navy. We’re going to work on Northwestern,” said Kelly. “We’re probably going to have to make some adjustments.”
RV Northwestern Wildcats (5-3, 5-1) Preview:
If there is one person who is confident about the Wildcats pulling off the upset, it’s their starting tailback/feature back:
“somebody has to beat ‘em, so it might as well be us,” recently minted Northwestern RB1 Isaiah Bowser on playing #3 undefeated Notre Dame next week.
— Paul M. Banks ? (@PaulMBanks) October 27, 2018
Since Bowser assumed the role the Wildcats have finally established somewhat of a ground game. They entered the Rutgers game second to last in the nation in rushing offense, but since then the offensive line play has dramatically improved. Now comes a major test.
“I think they know what’s at stake,” NU cornerback Montre Hartage said of his teammates as they head into this massive clash.
NU should have placekicker Drew Luckenbaugh, one of the more interesting and fascinating players in college football, back from injury for this one. More on him at this link.
For Northwestern, this season could be defined not by this game, but by what happens in the Big Ten race after it. The Cats control their own destiny when it comes to winning the Big Ten West division, and should Purdue (who are slightly favored) beat Iowa on Saturday, they are very likely to end up in Indianapolis for the conference title game.
Prediction: Notre Dame football 27, Northwestern 13
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, regularly appears as a guest pundit on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
He also contributes sociopolitical essays to Lineups.com and Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.