Bowling Green State University Athletics
Know the Opponent: Northwestern
July 18, 2017 | Football
Over the course of six weeks, BGSUFalcons.com will break down the 12 opponents that BGSU Football will face during the 2017 season. The Falcons will play on the road against two Big Ten opponents in the first three weeks of the season, including today's featured team, Northwestern. The game is slated to be televised on the Big Ten Network with a 7:30 pm kick-off.
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UNDEFEATED
Bowling Green enters their Sept. 16 matchup against Northwestern with an all-time record of 2-0 against the Wildcats. The Falcons' previous two meetings with Northwestern came in the 2001 and 2003 seasons.
The 2001 matchup – the first-ever meeting between the two – was a classic. Down 42-35 with under a minute to go, BGSU quarterback Josh Harris – the future sixth-round draft pick of the Baltimore Ravens – threw a touchdown pass to Robert Redd to bring the score to 42-41 with 0:39 left in the game. Instead of going for the tie, Head Coach Urban Meyer decided to try to win it. He kept the offense on the field, and Cole Magner ran around the left side for the successful two-point conversion to complete an eight-play, 77-yard drive to down the Wildcats in their own stadium.
In 2003 the Falcons met back up with the 'Cats at Ford Field in Detroit for the Motor City Bowl. Bowling Green, entering the game 10-3, was tasked with taking down a vengeful 6-6 Northwestern squad. Trailing 17-7 in the third, Bowling Green scored once in the third and once more in the fourth to take a 21-17 lead. Northwestern answered back with a touchdown with just over ten minutes left in the fourth. The Falcons took their time with the ball and ran 11 plays for 67 yards in 5:16 to tally the final score. Again it was Harris and Magner helping to sink the Wildcats; Harris' three-yard pass to Magner helped make it 28-24 and bring a bowl win to Head Coach Gregg Brandon in his first year at the helm.
PREVIOUS KNOW THE OPPONENT FEATURES
MICHIGAN STATE
SOUTH DAKOTA
THE MAN WITH THE PLAN
Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald is entering his 12th season at the helm of Wildcat football. He holds an all-time record of 77-62 and is Northwestern's all-time winningest coach. This makes him one of just eight active coaches that are their respective program's all-time winningest coach. Last season's trip to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl was the 13th bowl game in the history of the program. Fitzgerald, since taking over in 2006, has been responsible for seven of those bowl appearances. He was also a part of four other appearances – two as an assistant coach and two as a player. He has led the Wildcats to a 17-9 mark over the past two years.
RETURNING EXPERIENCE
Though they were able to end on a good note by taking down No. 23 Pittsburgh in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl, the Wildcats must face the fact that they finished a meager 6-6 in the regular season and tied for fourth in the Big Ten West. Part of the benefit of having such a young team, as Northwestern did, is that they grow up. The 'Cats will be returning 17 of their 22 starters from last season. Of these 17 returners, include six that were named All-Big Ten following the 2016 season. The biggest of these playmakers is running back Justin Jackson, whose 1,524 rushing yards ranked him 13th in FBS. He tallied 15 touchdowns. He returns his senior year just 580 yards short of the all-time record for most rushing yards by a Northwestern running back. He stands alone as the only player in school history to rush for over 1,000 yards in three consecutive seasons.
TRANSFER HELP
Northwestern will be the beneficiary of two graduate transfers who have decided to spend their remaining years of eligibility in Evanston. Each will have two years of eligibility.
The first of these is Jalen Brown, who has the potential to become Northwestern's go-to wide receiver. Though only a redshirt junior, he graduated in June and arrived at Northwestern in the fall. Brown caught 16 catches for 407 yards and four touchdowns in 25 games in his time with Oregon. His career-best performance came versus Arizona State when he caught five passes for 97 yards.
Joining Brown will be Trey Klock, formerly of Georgia Tech. Klock played tackle with the Yellow Jackets and appeared in 22 games during his career in their unique triple-option offense. The Hummelstown, Pa. native played in all 12 games as a redshirt freshman and ten the following year.
ON AND OFF THE FIELD
It is no secret that Northwestern is widely regarded as one of the top institutions in the country. Lately, their football team has proven what it means for an athlete to also be a student. Following the 2016 season, the Wildcats were ranked No. 1 among all FBS schools in Academic Progress Rate (APR) by the NCAA. They have been ranked first or second among FBS institutions for seven consecutive years. The focus of APR is to monitor the academic success and retention of student-athletes from year to year. Based on a 1,000-point scale, NU received a score of 995.
SEASON TICKET INFORMATION
SEASON TICKET BENEFITS (SPARK PAGE)
ROAD GAME TICKET PRICES/SALES INFORMATION
FOOTBALL TICKETS PAGE
UNDEFEATED
Bowling Green enters their Sept. 16 matchup against Northwestern with an all-time record of 2-0 against the Wildcats. The Falcons' previous two meetings with Northwestern came in the 2001 and 2003 seasons.
The 2001 matchup – the first-ever meeting between the two – was a classic. Down 42-35 with under a minute to go, BGSU quarterback Josh Harris – the future sixth-round draft pick of the Baltimore Ravens – threw a touchdown pass to Robert Redd to bring the score to 42-41 with 0:39 left in the game. Instead of going for the tie, Head Coach Urban Meyer decided to try to win it. He kept the offense on the field, and Cole Magner ran around the left side for the successful two-point conversion to complete an eight-play, 77-yard drive to down the Wildcats in their own stadium.
In 2003 the Falcons met back up with the 'Cats at Ford Field in Detroit for the Motor City Bowl. Bowling Green, entering the game 10-3, was tasked with taking down a vengeful 6-6 Northwestern squad. Trailing 17-7 in the third, Bowling Green scored once in the third and once more in the fourth to take a 21-17 lead. Northwestern answered back with a touchdown with just over ten minutes left in the fourth. The Falcons took their time with the ball and ran 11 plays for 67 yards in 5:16 to tally the final score. Again it was Harris and Magner helping to sink the Wildcats; Harris' three-yard pass to Magner helped make it 28-24 and bring a bowl win to Head Coach Gregg Brandon in his first year at the helm.
PREVIOUS KNOW THE OPPONENT FEATURES
MICHIGAN STATE
SOUTH DAKOTA
THE MAN WITH THE PLAN
Northwestern Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald is entering his 12th season at the helm of Wildcat football. He holds an all-time record of 77-62 and is Northwestern's all-time winningest coach. This makes him one of just eight active coaches that are their respective program's all-time winningest coach. Last season's trip to the New Era Pinstripe Bowl was the 13th bowl game in the history of the program. Fitzgerald, since taking over in 2006, has been responsible for seven of those bowl appearances. He was also a part of four other appearances – two as an assistant coach and two as a player. He has led the Wildcats to a 17-9 mark over the past two years.
RETURNING EXPERIENCE
Though they were able to end on a good note by taking down No. 23 Pittsburgh in the New Era Pinstripe Bowl, the Wildcats must face the fact that they finished a meager 6-6 in the regular season and tied for fourth in the Big Ten West. Part of the benefit of having such a young team, as Northwestern did, is that they grow up. The 'Cats will be returning 17 of their 22 starters from last season. Of these 17 returners, include six that were named All-Big Ten following the 2016 season. The biggest of these playmakers is running back Justin Jackson, whose 1,524 rushing yards ranked him 13th in FBS. He tallied 15 touchdowns. He returns his senior year just 580 yards short of the all-time record for most rushing yards by a Northwestern running back. He stands alone as the only player in school history to rush for over 1,000 yards in three consecutive seasons.
TRANSFER HELP
Northwestern will be the beneficiary of two graduate transfers who have decided to spend their remaining years of eligibility in Evanston. Each will have two years of eligibility.
The first of these is Jalen Brown, who has the potential to become Northwestern's go-to wide receiver. Though only a redshirt junior, he graduated in June and arrived at Northwestern in the fall. Brown caught 16 catches for 407 yards and four touchdowns in 25 games in his time with Oregon. His career-best performance came versus Arizona State when he caught five passes for 97 yards.
Joining Brown will be Trey Klock, formerly of Georgia Tech. Klock played tackle with the Yellow Jackets and appeared in 22 games during his career in their unique triple-option offense. The Hummelstown, Pa. native played in all 12 games as a redshirt freshman and ten the following year.
ON AND OFF THE FIELD
It is no secret that Northwestern is widely regarded as one of the top institutions in the country. Lately, their football team has proven what it means for an athlete to also be a student. Following the 2016 season, the Wildcats were ranked No. 1 among all FBS schools in Academic Progress Rate (APR) by the NCAA. They have been ranked first or second among FBS institutions for seven consecutive years. The focus of APR is to monitor the academic success and retention of student-athletes from year to year. Based on a 1,000-point scale, NU received a score of 995.
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