David Braun wasn’t too happy with Saturday’s result. No coach would be. Moral victories don’t exist in football.
The only result that mattered was the final score: No. 4 Oregon 34, Northwestern 14. It wasn’t complete dominion by the Ducks, but the game wasn’t in question at all. Even with Oregon up 17-0 at halftime.
“We got our butts kicked by a really good football team,” Braun said. “Oregon is a really good football team.”
The bad news is that Northwestern’s offense struggled on Saturday. Quarterback Preston Stone threw for 135 yards and was intercepted twice. It was decidedly over when Centralia, Illinois, native Dierre Hill Jr. darted 66 yards for a touchdown.
But, compare this to last week. Oregon scored 69 points on Oklahoma State, and racked up 128 points in two games. Northwestern decidedly allowed much less than that.
“I want my guys to keep their heads up,” Braun said.
Northwestern can, because they earned respect from the reigning Big Ten Champions.
What they’re saying:
NU had three goals on Saturday. Win all three areas, and they should have a chance to upset the mighty Ducks.
Braun said he wanted the ‘Cats to win in the run game, win the turnover battle and make plays on special teams. Braun said NU won the rushing battle, although when the game was out of reach, and made a play on special teams with a long return by Joseph Himon. They did lose the turnover battle.
“We can’t turn the ball over ,” Braun said.
That’s not good enough. Braun knows it, and said it’s not enough to want to take a close game into the fourth quarter. The Wildcats want to challenge the teams at the top.
Perhaps the ‘Cats aren’t as far off as some might think. Oregon head coach Dan Lanning gave Northwestern praise unprompted, and gave an honest assessment of NU. It added up to
“They had some good answers,” Lanning said of Northwestern. “They played with poise all day.”
One of the takeaways from NU’s win over Western Illinois last week was how the Wildcats’ floor is significantly higher than it’s been recently. Braun has not lost to an FCS team since taking over in 2023; NU has two FCS losses before Braun took over on its resume since 2016.
Oregon has been devastating opposing defenses. Oregon got its licks in, but the ‘Cats didn’t crack on Saturday. Some teams struggle to keep the Ducks under 30 by halftime, NU held Oregon to 17 at half and 34 for the game.
The defense forced turnovers, too. The Northwestern defense has some moxie to it, and plays better than the sum of its parts. That’s when Northwestern has been at its best.
“That defense is tough,” Lanning said.
The other parts of the team leave more the be desired, unfortunately.
The other side:
If the NU defense held up its part of the bargain, the offense needs to catch up.
The ‘Cats offense executed the first part of its game plan. Control, protect and move the football. That churned the clock, and kept the ball away from Oregon’s offense.
The best defense really can be the best offense. Oregon’s offense can’t score if the Cats’ keep it off the field, and they did for most of the first quarter. NU drove into Oregon territory, but didn’t finish those drives in the end zone.
Lanning was honest in that assessment of the ‘Cats.
“They shot themselves in the foot a little bit more than they created success,” Lanning said.
The Ducks were playing in a different environment. They’re not used to the 11 a.m. kickoffs in Evanston. Their calling card was always Pac-12 After Dark on Pacific Time, or a primetime game between top 25 teams.
With a complete game plan, NU could have had the Ducks on the ropes. The offensive lapses kept them from putting the Ducks on upset alert.
Moral victories don’t exist in football, but the respect Oregon gave Northwestern should be a sign the ‘Cats aren’t light years away from being a team in the top half of the Big Ten. There has to be better execution if they want to take the next step, though.
“Can’t beat teams like Oregon when you don’t win the turnover battle,” Braun said.
