After last week’s beatdown by Tulane, the Wildcats needed to show up and out Friday night at the Lakefront.
And that’s exactly what they did as Northwestern steamrolled in-state FCS foe Western Illinois, 42-7, to notch their first win of the 2025 campaign. The Wildcats looked like an entirely different team on the field as they recorded 526 yards of total offense while the defense held firm.
Head coach David Braun said the difference between the past two games was consistency.
“Establishing a run game. Playing complimentary football. Multiple three and outs from our defense,” he said. “I think it showed that our offense was able to find some rhythm today. And the reality is, some of the things that we saw today, it’s not like those weren’t showing up in increments in our Tulane game.
“It just was the consistency aspect of it and finding rhythm. But was excited about the way that we saw some of those consistencies. And then to be able to also see, in the second half, us moving the football.”
Offense rebounds and clicks
The Wildcats struck on each of their first two drives. Running back Cam Porter sprinted 43 yards into the south endzone to strike first with just under 12 minutes remaining in the opening frame. The next drive was capped by a 5-yard reception by Hayden Eligon II with Lawson Albright running the ball in for a two-point conversion, making it 15-0.
Quarterback Preston Stone looked more like the passer he was hyped to be than the one who appeared in the Week One contest against the Green Wave. A week ago, Stone threw four picks and finished 19-of-36 for 161 yards. In the home opener, Stone threw three touchdowns with 245 yards through the air, going 21-of-29.
“It would have been really easy for Preston to hang his head, feel sorry for himself,” Braun said. “And, I mean, he showed up at Sunday’s practice flying around. I mean, was buzzing around on Monday. Confident, resilient, excited to bounce back for his team. I think it just really speaks to his character and who he is as a competitor.”
“Definitely a lot that we and myself needed to work on,” said Stone of his performance the week prior. “And I think as a team, our main focus was just our preparation and our processes going into this game, and I think we did a great job tonight of being prepared.”
Within the final 30 seconds of the first half, Stone found Hunter Welching for the 6-yard score to make it 22-0 at the break.
Luke Akers kicked a pair of field goals in the third quarter, 35 yards (7:06) and 25 yards (1:40), to extend the lead further while holding the Roughnecks scoreless.
Fourth quarter
Stone notched his third touchdown pass of the night when he found Drew Wagner for four yards in the south endzone. But the Wildcats weren’t done there.
With just over seven minutes left, Northwestern put in their backups while up, 35-0. Quarterback Ryan Boe put a stamp on the game as he scored his first collegiate touchdown on a 58-yard run down the farside of the field, stiff arming a Western Illinois defender along the way.
“Yeah. I mean, you see a quarterback putting a guy down like that. It’s a huge play, and I think you see everyone on the sideline just jumping, going crazy,” said wide receiver Griffin Wilde.
With just under three minutes remaining, the Roughnecks erased their goose egg when quarterback Christian Anaya found Cason Carswell from eight yards out, making it 42-7 at the final.
Defense stands tall
The Wildcats held Western Illinois to 181 total yards for the day and just 71 on the ground. Mac Uihlein picked off the Roughnecks in the first quarter as Northwestern’s secondary broke up eight passes and nabbed a pair of sacks for 14 yards.
“It needs to continue to show up,” Braun said of his defense. “And ultimately, getting hands on footballs is great, but let’s convert some of those to interceptions as well.”
Northwestern will look to carry this momentum into Week Three when the Wildcats welcome the No. 6 Oregon Ducks to the Lakefront for an 11 a.m. kickoff.
“You know, we need to respect our opponent,” Braun said. “Oregon is not a difficult opponent to respect.
“It will be very clear in all of our prep over the summer and as we, you know, take a look at their first couple games, the talent that they have, how well coached that they are. But ultimately, you know, I made our team repeat it twice in the locker room. You know, our opponents are nameless and faceless, and it’s all about us.”
