Northwestern Wildcats Football

"Kick in the 'Dore Wavin the Four-Four" - The Notorious B.I.G.

by Rodger Sherman on Sep 3, 2010 9:40 AM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 0 comments

In this Aug. 6, 2010 photo, Vanderbilt head football coach Robbie Caldwell supervises a practice in Nashville, Tenn. Caldwell took over as head coach after Bobby Johnson retired unexpectedly July 14, seven weeks before the season opener Sept. 4 against Northwestern. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

24 days ago: In this Aug. 6, 2010 photo, Vanderbilt head football coach Robbie Caldwell supervises a practice in Nashville, Tenn. Caldwell took over as head coach after Bobby Johnson retired unexpectedly July 14, seven weeks before the season opener Sept. 4 against Northwestern. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

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It's been a couple hundred days since there was last a football game involving Northwestern. That's all about to change, I think, so, time to do some predictin... AFTER THE JUMP! (Yeah, I've decided to get rid of even the pretense that there are interesting things before the jump.)

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Sherrick McManis Memorial Picks, Week One

by Rodger Sherman on Sep 2, 2010 3:31 PM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 5 comments

Welcome to this year of the newly-renamed Sherrick McManis memorial picks - where I tell you who I think is going to win, so you can rip me off for our pick em league which I have every intention in the world of winning. (In the future I might consider asking whoever is currently winning to make the picks for the week - we'll see if people are down for that.)

For those of you who need a refresher, we have picks (not against the spread), mascot fights, and when the time calls for it, my wild guesses as to what the team name of the out-of-conference opponent is. Unfortunately, we don't need that this week - I'm 11-0 in my ability to know the name of the opposing school's mascot this week.

Picks.... after the jump! (and feel free to jump in and say whatever you feel like.)

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NEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRDS: A Few Quick Questions for Anchor of Gold

by Rodger Sherman on Sep 2, 2010 1:20 PM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 1 comment

I like asking opposing bloggers questions. It is easier than writing posts myself. So I e-sat down with my SB Nation counterpart, KingJamesIV from Anchor of Gold.

What's a good season for Vanderbilt? And is a victory over Northwestern necessary to achieve that?

Our schedule is pretty brutal this season: Northwestern, LSU, @Ole Miss, @UConn, Eastern Michigan (YAY!), @Georgia, South Carolina, @Arkansas, Florida, @Kentucky, Tennessee, Wake Forest (Phil Steele ranked it as the 12th toughest overall). Considering we were a pathetic 2-10 last season (0-8 in conference), I think a reasonable goal would be to try not to finish last in the SEC East. Certainly the more wins the better and I think a win over Northwestern would have to be considered a quality one for VU. Let me put it this way: I think winning vs. Northwestern does more to help us have a great season than losing would to ensure we have a terrible season.

Say Warren Norman can't play, or can only play in a limited role, on Saturday. Tell me someone/something else Northwestern should be scared about on offense for Vanderbilt.

I'd say one of our RBs. Running Back has to be our deepest position. So, after Warren Norman we've got So. Zac Stacy (who had originally beaten out Norman last season for the starting assignment, only to have a nagging leg injury slow him down), Kennard Reeves and Wesley Tate (Golden Tate's younger brother).

We do have quite the unknown in our receiving corps this season. Last year we were woefully thin, thanks to the ineligibility of Terence Jeffers-Harris (who at one point was leading the CFL in receiving as a rookie). Losing TJH was a major blow last season. Without him, all it was going to take was an injury or two and we were going to be extremely reliant on the run. As has been the case with Vanderbilt football for the majority of the last 60 years, fate was not on our side. Justin Wheeler was lost for the season immediately thereafter and then nagging injuries effectively eliminated our downfield threat. This season we have a number of true freshman that specifically chose to come to Vanderbilt to take advantage of an immediate opportunity to play. 5-11 speedster Jonathan Krause, 6-3 Jordan Matthews (VU Hype alert: cousin of Jerry Rice!), and 6-4 Chris Boyd. I'm praying Earl Bennett 2.0 emerges from that set.

Just because I'm curious: Northwestern and Vanderbilt are both small, private schools dealing with bigger opponents - does Vandy have the same issues drawing football and basketball fans with Tennessee and other big SEC schools around?

In football, yes. We not only have UT and MTSU (the largest college in TN by enrollment) in Nashville, but like Chicago Nashville dwarfs the populations of the locations of the other SEC schools. With that population increase comes a lot of diversity - we've got lots of fans from all 12 SEC schools that live here. Also, I'm sure that VU and Northwestern are similar in that both draw in more students from out of state than in state, thanks to our academic reputations. As such, the vast majority of our alumni leave to return home or head to NYC, LA, Chicago (especially if they played VU football), DC, etc. Big State U really pulls in a majority of their students from in state and have the local fanbases to show for it. Also, what the hell else is there to do in a Starkville, MS or a Fayetteville, AR but go to a college football game? Vandy competes with the Titans and the Predators, not to mention the countless other events held in major cities weekend after weekend. Basketball is a different story for Vandy. It certainly isn't quite as good as it used to be, when Vanderbilt basketball was sold out and it was a packed house all season. They've come close to selling out of season tickets the last few years, though most non-conference games are a few thousand fans short of the 14,000+ capacity of Memorial Gym. Once the SEC slate starts, the gym is full. Memorial Gym is perhaps the most unique gym in college basketball thanks to it's design with the floor raised and the benches on the endline, almost beneath the goal, as opposed to the sideline. If you can get a ticket to a VU-UK, -UF, or -UT game at Memorial, do it just once.

We have similar fanbases and similar levels of historical success, which leads me to wonder: How do nerds celebrate a bowl win? Should we begin barricading the streets in Evanston in preparation?

I was fortunate enough to attend the Music City Bowl (that's what happens when you play a bowl game in your home town) in 2008 when Vanderbilt upset Boston College. There was a lot of excitement for sure, but it was extremely tame compared to what you see from time to time. That's not to say that I haven't seen the students celebrate a victory with a true gusto. There was the time when I was a student where we went on a ridiculously long, multi-season conference losing streak. When we finally beat someone (Kentucky, I think), the students rushed the field and ripped down the goal posts and paraded them through campus. The Vanderbilt administration were good sports about it and even had campus maintenance slice the posts into discs so that all the students could have a piece.

Bottom line: if you want overturned cars and lots of burning, it's probably going to have to be organized in advance.

Any predictions for Saturday? As I always tell opposing bloggers, anything you say can and will be jinxed against you.

I literally have no idea what to expect. Vanderbilt's biggest issue and probably always will be is depth (probably the same for Northwestern). Of late, we've typically started seasons very well (4-0 in 2005 only to finish 5-6 and 5-0 in 2008 to finish 7-6 after the bowl win) only to see the physical toll of football leave it's mark as the season progresses. Even last season, VU opened with Western Carolina (i know, i know) and then nearly won at #11 LSU, before losing our right offensive tackle to a broken ankle midway through the game. I think the Vanderbilt team that starts out this season is going to be significantly different than the one that finished 2009 2-10. Yesterday the line was around VU +5.5. I'd settle for beating the spread. Vanderbilt always seems to beat the spread as an underdog. I'd obviously love to pull off the upset, but there's no way I'm betting on it.

Picks post later - for those of you wondering, slicetheposts.blogspot.com is still available.

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Northwestern's Division, 2011/2012 Schedules Released

by Rodger Sherman on Sep 1, 2010 6:42 PM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 11 comments

So it's official: Northwestern will be in an as-of-yet unnamed division with Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Iowa, and Nebraska.

In our first two years, we'll skip Ohio State - meaning the class of 2013 will graduate college without ever having seen the Buckeyes play the Wildcats, which is a real shame for kids who love seeing their team lose violently in football. I certainly won't miss them - as I'll always say, Ohio State is the one school whose name I see and it makes my bowels loosen a bit, in both basketball and football. I've seen too many terrifying things happen to Northwestern teams in too little time.
We'll also miss Purdue - the first time we'll have a season without them since they became our "permanent rival" - and Wisconsin, who were a pretty decent opponent to have if you ask me.
The Illinois game appears to be protected, and will close the 2012 season.
Northwestern's game against Rice next year, currently scheduled for November 26th, will have to be moved, most likely to November 12th - you'd have to assume NU will want the game in the middle of the cold winter Rice won't particularly be used to. No other non-con games will be affected.
We'll travel to Nebraska in 2011 - they'll visit us in 2012.
Northwestern will have two straight years with bye weeks in November, which is good for enemies of the cold.

The divisions are still as-of-yet unnamed - obviously, suggestions are welcome. (That's what the comments are for.)

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AHHHHHHHHHHH BIG TEN DIVISIONS

by Rodger Sherman on Sep 1, 2010 4:00 PM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 17 comments

I leave town for a week and get back and this happens. Great.

Anyway, looks like we got Michigan, Nebraska, Michigan State, Iowa, and Minnesota, with Illinois our likely cross-rival.

First thought: everything works out pretty nicely: it's stupid that we're not in the same division as Illinois, but we still play them every year, and can't complain about the competitive balance in the division.

GO CRAZY.

Update, 4:53 PM: Be sure to check the SBNation pages on the topic: here's the storystream from the homesite, and here's a link that will be updated with all the stories from around the network. Not to toot our own collective horn, but with the fantastic Along the Olentangy now onboard, we have all 11 conference blogs, plus one for Nebraska, as well as Off-Tackle Empire for the whole conference. So there will be lots of discussion on those... 13 sites. Damn.

Consider this your open thread for the revelation show. THE DECISION.

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And Vanderbilt had a Secretary named Northwestern...

by Rodger Sherman on Aug 31, 2010 1:00 PM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 4 comments

You know that old wives tale list of coincidences between Kennedy and Lincoln? Well, Vanderbilt sports and Northwestern sports are eerily similar. Good thing we have to play them every year for the next four years in football. (Every year for the next four years? Jesus.)

Northwestern: Ranked No. 12 by the US News and World Report.

Vanderbilt: Ranked No. 17 by the US News and World Report.

Conclusion: We're both smart! NERD FIGHT! What weapon would you use first in a nerd fight? Calculator? Heavy book? I'd smash a graduated cylinder against a table like a beer bottle and come at my opponent threateningly, hoping he shatters his ultra-thick glasses backing off.

Northwestern: The only private school in the Big Ten.

Vanderbilt: The only private school in the SEC.

Conclusion: We're not just nerds, but rich nerds. Crap.

Northwestern: Has only 8,000 students, 12,000 less than the next smallest school in the conference.

Vanderbilt: Has only 6,000 students, 13,000 less than the next smallest school in the conference.

Conclusion: Numbers! Scary!

Northwestern: Has a 49,000 seat stadium - the smallest in the conference - but still never sells it out.

Vanderbilt: Has a 39,000 seat stadium - the smallest in the conference - but still never sells it out.

Conclusion: You see? Not that bad, Ryan Field.

Northwestern: Never won the Big Ten basketball title.

Vanderbilt: Never won the SEC football title.

Conclusion: We both really suck! I'd probably cut off a finger to be the one who was good at basketball and not the one who was occasionally good at football, though.

Northwestern: Currently mired in a 62-year-long bowl drought.

Vanderbilt: Ended a 53-year bowl drought after winning the 2008 Music City Bowl.

Conclusion: CRAP. I HATE THEM AND I HOPE BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO THEM.

Northwestern: If you ask somebody on the street in Chicago, they just might be a bigger fan of an orange-wearing state school than Northwestern.

Vanderbilt: If you ask somebody on the street in Nashville, they just might be a bigger fan of an orange-wearing state school than Northwestern.

Conclusion: Orange is a really ugly color.

Northwestern: The basketball coach at that orange-wearing state school is named Bruce.

Vanderbilt: The basketball coach at that orange-wearing state school is named Bruce.

Conclusion: I just threw this in even though it means absolutely nothing. You might find this fact intriguing if you just smoked up, but, why are you reading Northwestern sports blogs when you're high anyway?

So, I think I've made it pretty clear: THERE IS A CONSPIRACY THEORY AND THEY'RE OUT TO GET US. And we probably should play our creepily similar southern counterparts more often.

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Gettin' Familiar With Vanderbilt

by Rodger Sherman on Aug 31, 2010 9:00 AM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 6 comments

More photos » Mark Humphrey - AP

This photo would be embarrassing enough already if it wasn't taken in a game against Western Carolina.

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You smell that?

It's the rotting recently-dead corpse of summer, and with its decay comes not only vultures, but also new life in the form of a football season born anew. In a few days, there will be tackles, and thus, we preview Northwestern's first opponent: the Vanderbilt Commodores.

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Next on the Chopping Block: Vanderbilt

by Rodger Sherman on Aug 30, 2010 9:00 AM CDT in Northwestern Wildcats Football Comment 13 comments

Four times this year, and, well, every year, NU plays an out-of-conference opponent. The question arises: who are these guys? Some people only want to know who they are in a football sense, but, to truly understand our opponents on the gridiron, you have to know where they come from, so football strategy can wait. I plan on getting to know these universities a little bit better with posts on each college, mainly with info gleaned from their wikipedia pages.