Northwestern
Penn State (Homecoming)
GAME NOTES: Wildcats to Host No. 4 Penn State on Homecoming
10/3/2017 3:34:00 PM | Football
| NORTHWESTERN FOOTBALL: GAME DAY INFORMATION | |||||
| DATE | OPPONENT | TIME | LOCATION | BROADCAST | LIVE STATS |
| Saturday, October 7 | 4/4 Penn State | 11 a.m. | Ryan Field | TV: ABC RADIO: WGN 720 |
Gameday Central |
| ABC: Steve Levy (play-by-play), Brian Griese (analyst), Todd McShay (sideline) WGN 720: Dave Eanet (play-by-play), Ted Albrecht (analyst), Adam Hoge (sideline) Social: Twitter (@NUFBFamily and @NU_SportsLive) | Instagram (@nufbfamily) | Facebook Game Notes: Northwestern | Penn State | Big Ten |
|||||
EVANSTON, Ill. — The Northwestern football program will play its second-straight top-10 foe when it hosts No. 4 Penn State in a cross-divisional showdown at Ryan Field on Saturday.
The Wildcats (2-2, 0-1 Big Ten) and Nittany Lions (5-0, 2-0 Big Ten) will kick off in front of a nationally-televised audience on ABC at 11 a.m. CT with Steve Levy, Brian Griese and Todd McShay on the call. As always, fans can also listen to the contest on WGN 720 with the voice of the Wildcats Dave Eanet, Ted Albrecht and Adam Hoge.
THORSON THROWING DARTS
Junior quarterback Clayton Thorson completed a career-high 29 passes at No. 10 Wisconsin Saturday and continues to ranks among the nation's elite while moving up the Northwestern record book. Thorson nearly brought the Wildcats back from down 21 points with an impressive fourth quarter versus the Badgers, completing 12-of-18 passes for 112 yards and two touchdowns in the final quarter after throwing for just 107 yards through the first three quarters. See below for more notes on Thorson's stellar season so far:
- Matched a career high for the seventh time with three touchdown passes at Wisconsin.
- Moved past Dan Persa (34; 2008-11) for fifth in program history with 36 career passing touchdowns.
- Recorded his 13th career game with at least 200 passing yards.
- With 219 yards versus Wisconsin, moved past Steve Schnur (5,612; 1993-96) and Sandy Schwab (5,679; 1982-85) for seventh in program history with 5,765 career passing yards.
- With 29 completions at Wisconsin, moved past Mike Greenfield (497; 1984-87) and Zak Kustok (507; 1999-01) for sixth in program history with 521 career completions.
- Has thrown for more yards (1,021) than any NU quarterback through four games since at least 2000.
- Ranks first in the Big Ten and 20th nationally in completions per game (22.75), second in the big ten in passing yards per game (265.3) and 4th in total passing yards (1,061).
JACKSON EYEING PROGRAM RECORD
Senior running back Justin Jackson rushed for a season-high 121 yards and matched his career high for the fourth time with three rushing touchdowns versus Bowling Green. Jackson enters Saturday's contest versus No. 4 Penn State with 4,402 career rushing yards, just 83 shy of Damien Anderson's program record of 4,485.
MAN IN THE MIDDLE
Redshirt first-year linebacker Paddy Fisher has stepped right in for former Wildcat and current Indianapolis Colts linebacker Anthony Walker, Jr. Fisher had eight tackles - including one for loss - and his first career forced fumble at Wisconsin. The Katy, Texas, native has recorded at least seven tackles in each of his last three games and leads the team with 37 tackles. He currently ranks first among FBS first-year players with 9.3 tackles per game and is third overall in the Big Ten.
THE LAST TIME PENN STATE VISITED RYAN FIELD...
...Justin Jackson rushed for 186 yards, Solomon Vault returned a kickoff 96 yards for a touchdown and Jack Mitchell kicked a game-winning 35-yard field goal with nine seconds left to give the Wildcats their second-straight win over the Nittany Lions, 23-20. Chicago's Big Ten Team also defeated Penn State on Sept. 27, 2014 in Happy Valley, 29-6, behind three rushing touchdowns from this week's honorary captain Trevor Siemian.
HOME SWEET HOME
The Wildcats will host No. 4 Penn State for Homecoming on Saturday in front of a nationally-televised audience for the second-straight week on ABC. The 'Cats have split their first four games, going 2-0 at home and dropping both contests on the road. See below for home/road splits for the 'Cats.
- Northwestern has averaged 593 yards of total offense per game at home and just 217.5 per game on the road.
- Junior Clayton Thorson has completed 75 percent of his passes with just one interception and is averaging 361 yards passing per game at home, while completing just 54.1 percent of his passes with four interceptions and 169.5 yards per game on the road.
- Senior Justin Jackson has 230 yards rushing and three touchdowns in two games at home and just 43 yards and a score on the road.
- The Wildcats' defense is giving up 346.5 yards per game at home and 422 per game on the road, while surrendering just 13.5 points per game at home and 37 per game on the road.
MR. SKY TEAM
Senior safety Godwin Igwebuike recorded his first interception of the season at Wisconsin, finishing with seven tackles for the third time this season and 15th time in his last 17 games dating back to the start of the 2015 season. Igwebuike is tied with junior Montre Hartage for the most interceptions by an active Wildcat with six, just two shy of cracking the NU top-10 list all time. The Pickerington, Ohio, native ranks 11th in the Big Ten in tackles per game with 7.3.
RED ALERT: 'CATS COMIN'
The Wildcats rank 19th in the country and second in the Big Ten in red zone offense, converting at a 94.1 percent clip (16-of-17). The 'Cats have converted on 16-straight trips to the red zone after missing a field goal in their first attempt in the season opener versus Nevada. Chicago's Big Ten Team has scored 14 touchdowns (8 rushing/6 passing) and made two field goals during the stretch.
JUSTIN JACKSON CONTINUES TO CLIMB THE CHARTS
Senior running back Justin Jackson eclipsed the 100-yard plateau for the second time this season and 22nd time in his career with a season-high 121 rushing yards versus Bowling Green. Jackson ranks 13th in Big Ten history with 4,402 career rushing yards and is just 116 yards shy of cracking the top 10. He is the second-active leading rusher in FBS behind only Oregon's Royce Freeman (4,738).
KUHBANDER KICKS
First-year kicker Charlie Kuhbander has solidified his job as the Wildcats' place kicker, making each of his last three field goal attempts and going a perfect 15-for-15 on extra points through the first four games. Kuhbander is tied for the team lead with 24 points, leaving him just 24 shy of Ira Adler's record for most points scored by a first-year kicker set in 1987.
SUPERBACK OR SUPERMAN?
Senior superback Garrett Dickerson hauled in four catches for 26 yards and his first touchdown of the season at No. 10 Wisconsin. Dickerson leads the Wildcats with 18 catches thanks in large part to his career-high nine catch, 150-yard performance versus Bowling Green on Sept. 16. He set the ninth-best single-game mark since at least 2000 and recorded the most receiving yards by a NU superback in program history, becoming the first NU superback to record 100-plus yards receiving since Danny Vitale had 108 versus Ball State in 2015. His nine receptions were also the most by a superback since Drake Dunsmore matched the total versus Auburn in the 2010 Outback Bowl.
OFF THE EDGE
Sophomore defensive end Joe Gaziano recorded his first sack of the season at No. 10 Wisconsin, continuing his early dominance of Big Ten opponents. Gaziano enters Saturday's game versus No. 4 Penn State with 6.5 career sacks, six of which have come in his first 10 career games versus Big Ten foes.
FOR THE FIRST TIME
Sophomore superback Cam Green and redshirt first-year wide receiver Ramaud Chiaohkiao-Bowmn caught their first career touchdowns at No. 10 Wisconsin. Junior quarterback Clayton Thorson has spread out his seven touchdown passes this season to six different players.
••••••
Be the first to know what's going on with the 'Cats -- Follow @NU_Sports on Twitter, become a fan of Northwestern Athletics on Facebook, check us out on Instagram, visit our Social Media page and download our mobile app from the Apple Store and Google Play! To get involved with the #B1GCats, become a season-ticket holder or join the Wildcat Fund!
