Northwestern football runs roughshod over Minnesota in Big Ten West shutout

Northwestern dominated the trenches on both sides of the ball to take down Minnesota in Week 12 action. What did we learn from the Wildcats win?

By halftime, Northwestern running back Justin Jackson had already piled up 136 yards on the ground. He finished the day with 166 rushing yards, showcasing his underrated position as one of the best runners in the Big Ten. He was the leader of a strong performance by the Wildcats backfield.

Jelani Roberts, Corey Acker, and Jeremy Larkin each punched in touchdowns as Pat Fitzgerald’s team finished with 277 rushing yards as a group. In the process, Northwestern pulled off its first six-game winning streak since the glory days of the mid-1990s. They took down Minnesota 39-0 in early play on Saturday in Evanston to snatch their eighth win of 2017.

On a day marked by wind, rain, and near-freezing temperatures at Ryan Field, the game was tailor-made for running games to take over. In the end, the Wildcats were the better team on both sides of the ball when it came to the run game. In the process, Northwestern was able to hold the Golden Gophers to just 139 rushing yards when they had the ball, as the visitors averaged 3.7 yards per carry.

What else did we learn from this showdown?

While the weather cut down on the passing attempts, Clayton Thorsen still threw three touchdown passes and went 9-of-13 for 83 yards for the Wildcats. Northwestern, meanwhile, held Demry Croft in check when the Gophers had the ball. The Minnesota quarterback started out hot, completing his first two passes of the game for gains of 36 and seven yards.

Those were the only two passes Croft completed all game, though, as he finished 2-of-11 for 43 yards with three interceptions. Croft had the biggest struggles of anyone on the field. In general, the Northwestern defense did its part to ensure the winning streak would stay alive on Saturday. Pitching the shutout against the Golden Gophers, Northwestern held their visitors under 200 total yards of offense.

It was the first time that Northwestern had shut out an opponent since beating — who else? — Minnesota back in 2015. Now the Golden Gophers must beat rival Wisconsin in next week’s matchup in the Battle for Paul Bunyan’s Axe if they hope to gain bowl eligibility this season. Northwestern, meanwhile, will be headed to the postseason for a third straight year.

It is a testament to the level of consistency Fitzgerald has built up at his alma mater. Similarly, this showdown in Evanston also showed just how much work P.J. Fleck has to do to turn things around in Minneapolis.

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At this point Northwestern still looks far closer to challenging Wisconsin for Big Ten West supremacy than the Golden Gophers. It is a situation that has not changed over the past few years, and shows no signs of changing in the near future. After the Saturday shakedown by the Wildcats it looks less and less likely that Minnesota will have any shot against College Football Playoff contender Wisconsin.