Battle in the Trenches: Northwestern's Offense Prepares for Physical Huskers Defense
Northwestern looks to get above .500 for the first time this season as they head to Nebraska to open up Big Ten West play. Nebraska lost to Michigan State last week, but the Cornhusker defense caught the eye of Wildcats Head Coach Pat Fitzgerald.
"They are playing at an incredibly high level," Fitzgerald said. "I know the pride they have in their 'Blackshirts,' and it's 11 heartbeats operating as one. This defense is well coordinated, they fly around and they're physical. We'll have our hands full offensively."
The Cornhusker defense is led by their linebacking corps. Freshman Nick Henrich and sophomore Luke Reimer are two standouts along the front seven, who combined for 20 tackles and a sack against Michigan State.
"There aren't a lot of teams that can do what they did against Michigan State and Oklahoma," Northwestern LT Peter Skoronski said. "They throw a lot at you, so we have to be great in our preparation this week."
Northwestern RB Andrew Clair is well aware of the Cornhusker defensive front, a group that limited Michigan State's running game to only 71 yards. However, Clair is confident in the team's gameplan, which has remained the same the entire season.
"We look to match physicality with physicality," Clair said. "We have to play physical and play hard, and we just have to execute."
Big Ten football is often won and lost in the trenches, and for Northwestern's offense, they're expecting a physical battle up front when they enter Memorial Stadium.
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Joseph Acosta is a graduate student at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, specifying in Sports Media. He previously worked as the Managing Editor and Business Manager of the Florida Atlantic University Press from 2020-2021, and is a writer for SB Nation's Big Cat Country, covering the Jacksonville Jaguars.