Western Illinois receiver Christian Anaya, shown here in warmups, scored the Leathernecks’ lone touchdown Friday night. (Photo by GoLeathernecks.com)
By Dan Verdun
Northwestern washed over visiting Western Illinois Friday night at Evanston’s Martin Stadium, based just off Lake Michigan.
A week after not scoring a touchdown, Northwestern scored on its first two possessions and set the tone for Friday’s game at Martin Stadium in Evanston.
Those scores got the Wildcats (1-1) off to a fast start as NU downed Western Illinois, 42-7. The Leathernecks (0-2) dropped their second straight game to a Big Ten Conference opponent, having lost at Illinois a week ago.
“(We were) not competitive enough in all three phases early,” WIU head coach Joe Davis said.
Coming off a four-interception game in an opening loss at Tulane, Northwestern quarterback Preston Stone had a bounce-back performance, passing for 245 yards and three touchdowns. The graduate student transfer from SMU completed his first nine passes as NU built a 15-0 lead.
NU running back Cam Porter led the Wildcats with 91 yards on 12 attempts before leaving with a third-quarter injury. Porter opened the scoring with a 43-yard touchdown dash.
Porter ran behind an offensive line that started four graduate students and averaged 6-foot-5 and 311 pounds.
Northwestern outgained WIU in total yards, 526-181. The Leathernecks produced only 60 yards and three first downs in the first half.
“Offensively, we could never get anything going and eventually got worn down by another Power 4 opponent,” Davis said.
WIU quarterback Chris Irvin completed five passes in 18 attempts for 27 yards. He was intercepted once and sacked twice.
True freshman Carson Carswell relieved Irvin midway through the fourth quarter. The Michigan native led the Leathernecks on a 10-play, 75-yard touchdown drive.
Carswell capped the drive with an 8-yard TD pass to receiver Christian Anaya with 2:47 remaining in the game. He completed 6 of 8 passes for 52 yards on the drive.
Northwestern is the last Big Ten team to lose to an FCS team. Southern Illinois knocked off the Wildcats in Evanston, 31-24, in 2022.
Game changers
2:50, 1st quarter: WIU defensive back Justin Richardson forced NU’s Chase Farrell to fumble on an end around. Richardson also recovered the ball to thwart the Wildcat drive at the Western 34.
The Leatherneck defense used the momentum to force NU to punt on its next three possessions.
“I was proud of the way our defense played after a slow start,” Davis said.
1:41, 2nd quarter: WIU appeared to stop NU on downs when Christian Pierce and Malini Ti’a combined to drop Porter for a one-yard loss on fourth down and 1 at midfield. However, Esteban Guillory was flagged for lining up in the neutral zone. The penalty gave NU a first down.
Six plays later, Northwestern scored on a 6-yard pass from Stone to tight end Hunter Welcing on a fourth and 1 with 28 seconds left before halftime. The score gave NU a 22-0 lead at the break.
2:47, 4th quarter: Carswell threw his first collegiate touchdown to a wide-open Anaya.
Nifty ‘Necks
Prairie State Pigskin chooses the the top three Western Illinois players in the game:
Justin Richardson, DB: The graduate student led WIU with 11 tackles, six of which were solo. He also forced and recovered a fumble as well as recording a tackle for loss.
Christian Pierce, DB: The Brother Rice graduate recorded 10 tackles, five of which were solo.
Markell Holman, RB: The St. Francis transfer led Western with 52 rushing yards on 13 attempts.
What it means
With its two revenue-producing games against FBS programs in the books, Western Illinois now shifts focus to its upcoming FCS opponents.
What’s next
Western Illinois hosts Valparaiso from the non-scholarship FCS Pioneer League Sept. 13 for the home opener at Hanson Field in Macomb. Kickoff is 6 p.m.
Dan Verdun is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin. He has written four books: NIU Huskies Football, EIU Panthers Football, ISU Redbirds Football and SIU Salukis Football.
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