The Wildcats should have stuck with the hot hand.
After Duke took the go-ahead score but failed on the two-point attempt, Northwestern had a shot and they seemed poised to take it.
The final drive began with running back Cam Porter rushing up the middle for seven yards followed by another run for six yards to the left. Mixing it up a bit, quarterback Mike Wright found Porter through the air, who ran out at the Duke 7-yard line to make it 2nd-and-5. Again, Porter carried the ball for four yards to make it 3rd-and-1. And then things went awry.
Instead of giving it to Porter again, offensive coordinator Zach Lujan called an option that saw Wright lose eight yards on the play. Facing 4th-and-9 now, Wright scrambled but couldn’t find a target, throwing the ball through the back of the endzone for the final, 26-20.
“I think Coach Lujan would be the first one to tell you that the way that Cam Porter was running the ball at that time, we’d like to have that play-call back,” Northwestern coach David Braun said after the game. On the final play, he added, “Mike did a good job extending the play, giving our guy a chance in the back of the end zone.”
“They’re a sound defense,” Porter said of the 3rd-and-1 play. “We felt like we had a good call, but it just didn’t go our way, and that’s how football goes.” When asked about his feelings on the call, Porter added, “I trust Coach Lujan. I know he’s gonna make the right decision and put us in a position to succeed.”
Northwestern quarterback Mike Wright reacts after a play against Duke. (Damien Dennis/The Pit Media)
Regulation
Northwestern (1-1) struck early when Jack Olsen put back a 44-yard field goal on the Wildcats’ game-opening drive. Later in the quarter, Duke (2-0) intercepted a pass from Wright and converted it into its first lead when quarterback Maalik Murphy connected with Eli Pancol for a 16-yard score.
Porter scored his first touchdown of the night with 6:32 remaining in the second half off a 4-yard run. Northwestern led at the half, 10-7.
The Wildcats had a chance on their first drive of the third quarter to go up by three, but Olsen’s 29-yard field goal attempt was no good. Both teams finished 2-for-3 on field goals for the night, largely due to the 20 miles per hour wind gusts coming off of Lake Michigan. However, after Caleb Komolafe fumbled on the Wildcats’ next drive, the Blue Devils tied things up with a 49-yard field goal from Todd Pelino.
The game entered the final frame tied, 10-10, but with possession entering the fourth, Olsen connected on a 35-yard kick to give Northwestern the edge, 13-10.
At the two-minute timeout, Pelino missed a 33-yard field goal, giving Northwestern a shot to close things out. Instead, a holding penalty pushed the Cats back 10 yards and ultimately led to a punt. This time, Duke’s drive ended with a 22-yard success from Pelino with 13 seconds remaining.
Braun commented on the weather, stating, “definitely affected the special teams game. But we felt (after warmups) like the throwing game was going to be unaffected.”
Overtime
Northwestern received the ball first to open the overtime, with both teams scoring — Porter earned his second score of the night on a 10-yard run while Murphy and the Blue Devils made one 25-yard play to Jordan Moore before the final series’.
Porter finished the game with 93 yards on the ground and 27 through the air.
“They were defending downfield and it opened up some of the flats and some of the check downs, so I was able to get going a bit,” he said of his total through the air.
Wright finished 20-of-36 for 158 yards with 17 on the ground. AJ Henning led the receivers with eight catches for 52 yards while Bryce Kirtz had a pair for 29 yards.
The Wildcats had 287 yards of offense while allowing Duke to rack up 342 yards, though Northwestern held their run game to just 93 yards.
“This one definitely hurts,” Braun said. “A lot of guys in that locker room that are struggling.”
Braun and the Wildcats will wrap up the non-conference slate next weekend when Northwestern hosts Eastern Illinois.
