Can Northwestern football be respectable in 2023?
By Dante Pryor
Sept 2 at Rutgers L: Looking at last season’s offensive output, the Scarlet Knights win this game by four points. It’s not that easy, but Northwestern can’t score points (that’s a common theme for these predictions).
Sept 9 UTEP W: This is close to being a 50/50 game. Few teams in the FBS were raided by the portal as severely as the Miners. Their lack of FBS-level players could be the only thing that gives the Wildcats a win here.
Sept 16 at Duke L: The Blue Devils are a dark horse in the new-look ACC. Easy home win for the Dukies.
Sept 23, Minnesota L: The math is simple; the Golden Gophers want to ground and pound the football, and Northwestern is awful against the run.
Sept 30 Penn State L: Quarterback Drew Allar might not have to throw with Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen running all over Northwestern’s defense.
Oct 7 Howard W: Playing a low-tier PurMEAC team is just what the doctor ordered. Hopefully, the quit factor has not set in at this point.
Oct 21 at Nebraska L: The Cornhuskers might need this win to get to six and a bowl. There’s no way they are losing this one.
Oct 28, Maryland L: At this point in the season, the players’ quit factor must be acknowledged. The Terrapins pitching the football all over the field might demoralize the Wildcats.
Nov 4 Iowa L: The Hawkeyes welcome this game after consecutive physical games against Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Nov 11 at Wisconsin L: Braelon Allen will have a field day running all over the Northwestern defense.
Nov 18 Purdue L: Texas transfer quarterback Hudson Card should be well acclimated to the Boilermaker offense by this point in the season. In addition, the Wildcats can’t score.
Nov 25 at Illinois L: The Illini win this game and the Hat by a lot. David Braun has done his job if the Wildcats want to be on the field.
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Prediction: 2-10 (0-9 Big Ten):
The Northwestern football roster wasn’t incredible coming into the 2023 season. With the mess that is the Wildcats athletic program, no one knows which players will stay and which players will leave. It is hard to predict conference wins for a roster that wasn’t talented and might be losing what talent it had.