Six days out from kickoff, the predictions for Northwestern Football are already dropping, and Inside NU’s Charlie Jacobs is looking at a 7-6 season with a 3-6 Big Ten record, but honestly, that might be selling them short based on the ceiling. This guy was the most pessimistic last year and the Wildcats blew past his expectations, so what’s up this time around?
Michael Kilbane, Chip Kelly, and That Nine-Win Dream
Jacobs has Michael Kilbane pegged as the MVP and Josh Fussell as the breakout player, which is some exciting stuff for the ’Cats faithful. But the real talk is about the schedule. It is absolutely brutal. We’re talking about the only team in the entire country playing on the road against the three undisputed best Big Ten teams, plus hosting two others who could totally make the College Football Playoff. Seriously? What a gauntlet. The true MVP for this squad, Jacobs says, has to be Chip Kelly, and only if that offense starts churning out points like he’s done at his previous stops. Coach David Braun handing over the offensive keys to Kelly tells you everything you need to know about his win-at-all-costs mentality. Pair that with the new stadium getting built and that massive Uihlein donation, and this program is absolutely on an upward trajectory. Jacobs believes the absolute ceiling for this team this season is nine regular season wins. Yeah, you heard that right, nine wins. That’s best-case scenario stuff, obviously, but what if they hit it?
Navigating the Brutal Gauntlet to Bowl Eligibility
So, how do they get there? Jacobs is pretty clear about the games he thinks are unwinnable: Indiana, Oregon, and Ohio State. He says it’s got nothing to do with the Wildcats themselves, and everything to do with the absolute juggernauts on the other sideline. The good news? Northwestern should be 3-0 in their non-conference slate. South Dakota State, even as a top-tier FCS team, is still an FCS team that’s getting hammered by the NIL era. Colorado doesn’t look like much, and with Northwestern coming off a bye week for that one, it should be a solid win. Ball State is the easiest game on the whole schedule. That’s five wins right there with Rutgers and Michigan State also looking like potential victories. Rutgers’ offense can score if their quarterback situation gets sorted, and going into East Lansing could be daunting with their new coach and his vendetta, but hey, still gettable.
To become bowl eligible, the Wildcats need to snag one more win, maybe more, from this list: hosting Penn State, hosting Iowa, going on the road at Minnesota, or hosting Illinois. Three of those are home games, but Iowa and Illinois fans will travel, and Penn State fans probably will too. Jacobs thinks the most gettable game is against Illinois in the final week, but if they could somehow go into the Twin Cities and knock off the Golden Gophers, that would be the signature win of the season. Minnesota was 7-0 at home last year, so that would be huge. That Minnesota game on November 21st? Circle it, because that might be the one that puts them in a bowl game and shows everyone what this team can really do.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
Leave a Reply