The number one thing Northwestern football needed this season was offensive consistency.
Not only did the Wildcats offense finish among the worst five in the FBS last season, averaging only 284.4 yards per game, but they also faced persistent injuries on their offensive line, with eight different lineman seeing more than 100 snaps.
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Kicking off the 2025 campaign, Northwestern has stacked up 45 points in its opening two games. While that may sound promising, 42 of those came in last week’s matchup against Western Illinois, an FCS team that had only won four games across five seasons prior to 2024. The Wildcats didn’t score a touchdown in their road season opener against Tulane but managed to avoid a shutout with an early field goal in the first quarter.
With unproven names dotting the roster, the Wildcats’ ability to move the chains will continue to be tested in Week 3 against No. 4 Oregon, who has won its first two games by more than 45 points.
“They’re going to be aggressive,” Northwestern head coach David Braun said ahead of Saturday’s matchup. “They’re going to try and apply pressure in a lot of different ways, in all three phases on top of being extremely talented. They are fundamentally sound; they’re physical; they play hard; they finish plays.”
Tasked with leading Northwestern in its Big Ten opener is SMU transfer quarterback Preston Stone.
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Stone started every game of the Mustangs’ 2023 regular season, leading them to a perfect conference record before breaking his leg in the finale against Navy and losing the starting role to Kevin Jennings in 2024. Stone’s experience against Power Five opponents is limited. He went winless in two starts, and adjusting to Big Ten defenses, especially the Ducks, will be a steep climb.
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“At SMU we had a great year last year, and we definitely felt well-equipped,” Stone said. “That being said, there was definitely a difference when we played Penn State compared to the other teams we played the whole year.”
Paired with a new face at quarterback, Northwestern continues to adjust to second-year offensive coordinator Zach Lujan’s scheme.
“This has been one of the most fun offenses that I’ve ever gotten to play in, largely because of how much coach Lujan puts on my plate, in a good way,” Stone said.
Northwestern’s revolving door at quarterback has often been eased by experienced wide receivers, but with A.J. Henning and Bryce Kirtz out of NCAA eligibility, the room is back to square one. The top candidates to fill their shoes? Two transfers.
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“I’ve been open about this: That wide receiver room is unproven, but that is not a reflection of a lack of belief in that room,” Braun said. “I’m really excited about where that room is at, and, you know, some weeks it’s just going to look different based on what we’re seeing or how the game plays out.”
The most anticipated newcomer is South Dakota State transfer Griffin Wilde, who reunited with Lujan after playing a key role on the Jackrabbits’ 2023 FCS national championship team.
Wilde may be unproven in the FBS, but the South Dakota native has seen plenty of action in college football. As a true freshman, he played in every game of SDSU’s undefeated season, highlighted by a career-high 71-yard touchdown in the FCS semifinals. As Stone’s go-to target this season, Wilde has brought in 11 catches for 158 yards.
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“Griffin is one of those guys that lets his play do the talking,” Braun said. “One of the things that I really appreciate about him is if it’s 3rd and 11 in a critical situation, that dude is going to find a way to make a play. His consistency, his competitiveness, all things that really stand out to me.”
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Among the receivers, Wilde, a junior, stands as the most experienced. The rest of the room consists of redshirt sophomores or younger.
“A lot of those guys have a chip on their shoulder,” Stone said. “Whether it be stepping up to the plate to fill up some pretty big shoes with Bryce and AJ from last year, those guys are really hungry and ready to prove themselves,”
With the receiving room adjusting, Northwestern thought it could lean on the familiar face remaining in the backfield, as running back Cam Porter returned for his sixth and final season. But during the third quarter against Western Illinois, Porter went down with a lower-body injury, and Braun announced the veteran will miss the remainder of the season.
Despite the blow, the Wildcats are relying on Porter to continue to make an impact in the locker room and on the sidelines.
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“Every single room that he steps into, the people in that room are better because Cam’s in it,” Braun said. “I’m emotional because I’m feeling for Cam, but also just speaking truth: That dude will continue to be one of the best captains we’ve ever had and will continue to lead this football team.”
Porter’s absence leaves the majority of carries to redshirt sophomore Caleb Komolafe and redshirt junior Joseph Himon II.
“[Komolafe’s] workload, Joe’s workload is certainly going to increase with the loss of Cam, but there’s going to be other young men in that room that are going to have to step up as well,” Braun said. “We’re going to have to be solutions-based here.”
Himon’s explosive speed carried Northwestern to its final win of the 2024 season, delivering the game-winning touchdown against Purdue: an overtime catch that doubled as the first walk-off touchdown reception by a Big Ten running back since 2001.
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That play wasn’t a one-off. The backfield is the engine of the Wildcats’ offense.
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“A huge strength of our offense is our running back room,” Stone said. “Hand the ball off to Joe, hand the ball off to Cam Porter, any of those guys. That opens up a lot of opportunities in the passing game.”
Through two games, Northwestern’s offense has shown flashes of effectiveness alongside moments that still leave questions about consistency.
In New Orleans, the Wildcats began the season in nothing short of pure disarray. Stone threw a career-high four interceptions, lost a fumble and was sacked three times in the 20-point loss to Tulane.
‘‘One game does not define us as a football team,’’ Braun said. ‘‘This one just happens to be the first one and stings a lot.”
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Northwestern responded in a big way one week later, tallying 526 yards of total offense against Western Illinois, scoring touchdowns on its first two drives and cashing in a 2-point conversion in the first quarter — the team’s most points in an opening quarter in more than a decade.
Clearly, the Wildcats’ offense is still finding its footing, but the early games hint at what this group can do as Big Ten competition ramps up.
“If we want to talk about winning Big Ten championships, playing in the CFP, we have to evaluate daily if the way that we’re operating aligns with that, and if it doesn’t, there needs to be accountability,” Braun said.
But before Northwestern can think about postseason play, its first conference foe leads the nation in both points per game and total touchdowns since 2023.
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Inside the AP Poll: Why USF climbed so high after its shocking upset of No. 13 Florida
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The USF Bulls, 2-0 with wins over Boise State and Florida, clearly deserved to be ranked. But voters are always a little slow to react to big wins from a team outside of a Power 4 conference. Is USF’s ranking right?
“We’re going to have to score points,” Braun said. “That’s very clear. How do you do that in the strategic way that positions the offense to finish drives with touchdowns and doesn’t expose your defense to more snaps than you would want? The thought of Oregon’s offense having 85 snaps in a game — like that’s a scary thought.”
It’ll be the first time in more than 50 years that Oregon heads down to Evanston. When the Ducks made the trip in 1974, the Wildcats walked away with the win.
Although it’s Northwestern’s second home game, it coincides with the end of Wildcat Welcome, the university’s orientation for first-year students, drawing a sold-out crowd to the lakefront stadium.
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“The students are back,” Braun said. “We need Wildside at a whole other level. The lakefront needs to be packed with purple. We need to create a home field advantage. It may be a smaller venue, but it can still be an incredible advantage for the ’Cats.”
About the Author
Taylor Hancock is a junior journalism student at Northwestern University, originally from Atlanta. At Northwestern, she calls live broadcasts across football, women’s and men’s basketball, and volleyball for WNUR Sports, the student-run radio station. You can also find her on the sidelines with Northwestern’s student sports broadcast station, NNN SportsNight.
