He stands at 6-feet-8 inches. He tips the scale at 270 pounds. He runs the 40-yard dash in 4.8 seconds.

It’s safe to say Corey Wootton is a physical specimen.

“He’s just an excellent athlete,” defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz said. “I’ve coached guys who are faster, and I’ve coached guys who are stronger and heavier. But I’ve never coached a guy with a combination of as big, fast and strong as he is.”
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Disruptive defensive end Corey Wotton was awarded Monday night for his breakout season.

The junior from Rutherford, N.J. totaled nine sacks, 15 tackles for loss, one blocked kick and a forced fumble on the season to earn first-team All-Big Ten honors, as chosen by the conference’s coaches. Continue reading »

After experiencing mixed success against running quarterbacks, Northwestern’s defense faced one of its biggest challenges of the season Saturday in mobile Illinois quarterback Juice Williams. The Illini signal-caller burned the Wildcats last season, racking up 357 total yards and three touchdowns.

This year, Corey Wootton and the Cats’ defense made sure Williams was kept under wraps — and out of the end zone.

The junior defensive end added to his team-leading sack total, leading a ferocious pass rush that kept the Illini offense on its heels and spurred the Cats to a 27-10 victory.

“I can’t say enough about the improvement our defense has made,” coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “We play pretty well together, as a team, on defense.”

The defense, which implemented coordinator Mike Hankwitz’s attacking style all season, employed a disciplined game plan to contain Williams.

Leading the charge was Wootton, who has emerged as a leading candidate for all-Big Ten by striking fear into opposing quarterbacks all season. Despite facing double teams throughout the game, the junior repeatedly got into the backfield, recording three tackles and a half sack.

While Wootton kept multiple players busy, senior Kevin Mims attacked Williams from his blind side. In his final game at Ryan Field, Mims terrorized the Illini offense, forcing a key fourth-quarter fumble and finishing with seven tackles and two and a half sacks.

“He is playing the best football of his career right now,” Fitzgerald said.

When Williams or running back Daniel Dufrene got past NU’s front four, linebackers Prince Kwateng and Nate Williams were there to bring them down. The duo finished with 21 tackles, helping limit the Illini offense to just two plays of more than 20 yards.

“The preparation behind the scenes, what you don’t see, it really paid off for them today,” junior safety Brendan Smith said of the linebackers.

Despite the desire to cheat up on the mobile Williams, the defensive backs stayed with their men and limited Illinois’ ability to throw down the field. The Cats’ lone interception of the day came when junior cornerback Sherrick McManis outjumped wideout Will Judson to corral a deep ball.

KEY TAKEAWAYS, BIG PAYOFF
Mims’ forced fumble was one of two turnovers caused by the defense, and it ended Illinois’ last chance at a comeback. While the Cats scored only three points off turnovers, they seized the momentum back with each takeaway.

Fitzgerald said he discussed turnovers before the game with his counterpart on the Illini sideline.

“It’s critical that you take care of the football, because everyone is so evenly matched in this league,” Fitzgerald said. “That’s what (Illinois coach) Ron (Zook) and I were talking about before the game.”

Both coaches had dealt with turnover woes this season. NU came into the game with 24 giveaways, two less than Illinois’ 26.

Fitzgerald had ample reason to stress taking care of the ball to his team. With the win, the Cats improved to 7-0 this year when they win or tie the turnover battle.

TAKING IT TO THE HOUSE… ALMOST
Smith’s 52-yard punt return in the fourth quarter was the longest of his career and the team’s longest of the season. After the game, the junior said he was one move away from a touchdown.

“I was looking to cut back, and I just wanted to set up one more block to see what we could do,” he said. “But I’m not greedy.”

The play set up wide receiver Eric Peterman’s 18-yard touchdown reception that all but sealed the victory.

And in a game that was a nail-biter entering the four quarter, Smith’s return proved to be the game-changing play.

“It was huge,” senior quarterback C.J. Bachér said. “At that point, nobody really had the momentum, and that punt return really seized it for us.”

GAME NOTES
With the win, the Cats improved to 9-3. It was their first nine-win season since 1996 and only the fifth in school history… Both polls moved NU up after the win. The Associated Press poll ranked the Cats 24th, while the USA/Coaches’ Poll ranked them 20th, one spot ahead of Michigan State… The team will learn its bowl fate on Dec. 7. Smith, who came to the postgame press conference sporting a handlebar mustache, said he would have some creative facial hair for the bowl game. “It’s gonna be something nice,” he said.

james-simpson@northwestern.edu

First, the betting lines, and this week’s line might be my favorite of the year. We’ve seen Northwestern get shafted (underdog at 3-7 Michigan? really?). Now, the 8-3 Wildcats are a three-point underdog at home to an Illinois team that’s 5-6 and lost to Western Michigan two weeks ago.

Coach Pat Fitzgerald consistently talks about his team not caring what the media and the outside world writes or says about the Cats. But if the players need any extra motivation, they should take a look at that line.

On to the Week 12 musings around the local newspapers…

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Apparently Terrelle Pryor is not the best running quarterback in this game. Pryor is dragged down from behind by Corey Wootton on third down for a big three and out form the Northwestern defense.

Kafka had 35 yards on 10 carries in the first drive of the game for the Wildcats, which ended in the game-tying score. But NU comes out with a few passing plays, including a quick swing to Andrew Brewer for a first down. Nothing down the field though.

On third down, Kafka throws over the middle for Ross Lane and defensive tackle Nader Abdallah nearly picks it off at the line. Expect some more runs from Kafka before NU tries to throw the ball again as the team punts it back to Ohio State.

Pryor tries the option for the first time and Kevin Mims meets him the backfield for a loss of seven yards. The Cats want to keep the ball in Pryor’s hands in this game. He is going to get some good runs because of his athletic ability. But with a couple of big losses already they could try and force him to throw. That did not work as he found a receiver deep for the Buckeyes’ only score in the first quarter.

Sit tight in this one.

MINNEAPOLIS – Junior defensive end Corey Wootton said he knew Saturday’s game would come down to which team’s defense played better.

Northwestern won the battle.

The Wildcats’ defense allowed 10 points — and none in the second half — to a team that was averaging a little more than 28 points per game. The other seven points came on an interception return for a touchdown by Minnesota defensive back Traye Simmons.

“We’ve proven this year that we can be the rock to our team,” said Wootton, who had one sack.

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MINNEAPOLIS — The rampant first half scoring disappeared for both Minnesota and Northwestern.

The Gophers drove 92 yards down the field, only to see a 20-yard field goal missed by Joel Monroe.

The Cats turned around and drove 50 yards behind Mike Kafka’s legs, only to see Gophers cornerback Traye Simmons earn his second interception of the day.

Entering the fourth quarter, the same question is sitting for both teams. Who wants this game?

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MINNEAPOLIS — All season, Northwestern players and coaches alike have preached two things. Force turnovers. Make big plays.

Safety Brendan Smith did both to secure the Wildcats’ biggest victory of the season.

With 12 seconds left in regulation and the game tied at 17, Smith picked off a tipped pass from Minnesota quarterback Adam Weber and returned it 48 yards for a touchdown, propelling NU to a dramatic 24-17 road victory.
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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Northwestern had few positives to take from its disheartening 21-19 loss to Indiana on Saturday. But one bright spot from the game was the continued stellar play of the Wildcats’ defensive line.

Led by junior defensive end Corey Wootton, the NU front four wreaked havoc on the Hoosiers’ backfield, smothering Indiana’s running game and repeatedly pressuring sophomore quarterback Ben Chappell.
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Last season, Northwestern entered the fourth quarter clinging to a 17-14 lead over Purdue. Less than an hour later, the Wildcats trudged off the field in defeat, victimized by 21 unanswered points from the Boilermakers in the final period.

The loss was one of three defeats last season where NU blew a fourth-quarter lead — setbacks that ultimately kept the team out of a bowl game.

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