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ILLUSTRATED VOLUME 24, ISSUE 6 107 f Tale Of Two Seasons I t was all lined up for Northwestern last season, all the pieces in place for a program-changing sort of season. The Wildcats were 4-0 and ranked 16th nationally when they led No. 4 Ohio State in the fourth quar- ter. A win would have been the biggest in school history and many believed would have greased the paths to a season even more memora- ble than some of the Wildcats' runs to the Rose Bowl. Then, it all fell apart. The Buckeyes scored a go-ahead TD, then stopped Northwestern deep in their own territo- ry on fourth-and-one and escaped Evanston. Ohio State blew through the rest of its regular-season games. The Wildcats blew up, losing their next six, two of those games by a field goal; two in overtime; and two by utter blowout. "They fell short on that fourth- and-one, and then it was kind of a death spiral," said Louie Vaccher, publisher of WildcatReport.com, the Rivals.com site that covers Northwestern. That 5-7 season was profoundly disappointing, not just in the final record, but how that final record came to pass. Northwestern failed time and again to win close games, in a season in which the program was expected to get over the prover- bial hump. But the sentiment now around Northwestern is that 2013 was an aberration — "one of those years" — as opposed to a sign that a pro- gram that was for several years trending upward has plateaued or hit a downturn. To get back on track, Northwest- (5-7 overall, 1-7 Big Ten, 6th Legends) Date Opponent . . . . . . . . . . . Results 8/31 at California . . . . . . . . W, 44-30 9/7 SYRACUSE . . . . . . . . . W, 48-27 9/14 W. MICHIGAN. . . . . . . W, 38-17 9/21 MAINE . . . . . . . . . . . . W, 35-21 10/5 OHIO STATE . . . . . . . . L, 30-40 10/12 at Wisconsin . . . . . . . . L, 6-35 10/19 MINESOTA . . . . . . . . . L, 17-20 10/26 at Iowa . . . . . . . . L, 10-17 (OT) 11/2 at Nebraska . . . . . . . . L, 24-27 11/16 MICHIGAN . . . . L, 19-27 (3OT) 11/23 MICHIGAN STATE. . . . . L, 6-30 11/30 at Illinois . . . . . . . . . . W, 37-34 Who's in Charge? COACH PAT FITZGERALD Record at Northwestern: 55-46 (eight seasons) Record vs. Purdue: 2-3 Northwestern Venric Mark's succesful return from injury could spur a Wildcat offense that struggled in his absence late in 2013. Northwestern Wildcats 2014 OPPONENT PREVIEW • NOV. 22 • ROSS-ADE STADIUM • TIME: TBA • TV: TBD Date Opponent 8/30 CALIFORNIA 9/6 N. ILLINOIS 9/20 W. ILLINOIS 9/27 at Penn State 10/4 Wisconsin 10/11 at Minnesota 10/18 NEBRASKA 11/1 at Iowa 11/8 MICHIGAN 11/15 at Notre Dame 11/22 at Purdue 11/29 ILLINOIS 2013 RESULTS 2014 SCHEDULE EARLY LINE: PURDUE -1 "I think 2014 could be an uphill battle for the Wildcats. The offensive line has got to play better, a huge disappointment last year. You lose (quarterback) Kain Colter, your best playmaker on offense, and it will have to be more pass-ori- ented with Trevor Siemain now. Defensively, they probably have more speed and athleticism than they've ever had at Northwestern on that side of the ball and that unit will have to carry the day." — Tom Dienhart, Big Ten Network TOM'S TAKE 15 In the last four years, Northwestern has gone 15-1 in August and September and 12-20 in October and November. Wins by month August/September: October: November: 5 7