MustangWally
- Mayfield
Northwestern turned their ship around from 1-11 to 8-5 in one year. What do they have that we don't?
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Honestly, Pat Fitzgerald for 17 years. Say what you will about him as a person. He gave NW an identity. I know that NW was going to come out and be a physical defense and run some iteration of a run heavy spread. He was going to bring in his guys and when you were brought in regardless of how you were ranked you knew you had a job and where you fit in the scheme. Also helps that in those 17 years he had 9 winning seasons and of those 9 season 5 were 9+ win seasons. So while a little inconsistent you can basically figure NW was going to have a winning season every other year.
Over the same time period, we have had 5 head coaches and who had a total of 4 winning seasons only one of which was a 9 win season.
Mind you Pat had Gary Bennet and Randy Walker prior to him to stabilize the program and their tenures look more similar (but still better) to what Illinois has gone through since 2006 just with slightly higher highs and not as low lows.
Over the same time period, we have had 5 head coaches and who had a total of 4 winning seasons only one of which was a 9 win season.
Mind you Pat had Gary Bennet and Randy Walker prior to him to stabilize the program and their tenures look more similar (but still better) to what Illinois has gone through since 2006 just with slightly higher highs and not as low lows.
The identity from Day 1 of the Bielema tenure is to emulate Iowa and Wisconsin (well, the old Wisconsin). All about developing the lines on both sides of the ball. If you have a monster OL and DL, you can run the ball/stop the run and usually come out on top in 1 possession games and that should be enough to get to 6-6.
But I am more reassured by the type of linemen we've been recruiting in the last few classes (Dennis, Hansen, Henderson) vs the linemen we got in BB's first few classes. So invest whatever money we have into S&C, and good OL/DL coaches that focus on developing over recruiting
ChiefGritty
- Chicago, IL
A B1G West schedule
I understand that was the plan, but I'm not seeing it in application yet. We aren't lining up and out physical-ing defenses from an offensive standpoint. I also don't remember old Wisconsin or current Iowa lining up in 97% shotgun, spread formation. Which again goes towards identity. We're supposed to be a road grader physical offense that just punches you in the mouth and year 3 should have been the year we started to see it with BB and Miller, but despite the messaging we are a spread team with big slow power backs with very little of that Iowa/Wisconsin zone read 1-cut runners.
On defense we at least had the law firm, and tried to be that pressure style defense but our identity is aggressive and over penalized.
Neither is overly innovative or makes coaches want to stay and build. However, I think that if we stay the course we could get there by year 5 and after a little more roster and coach churn we might see some level of stability if we can consistently be a 7 to 8 win team that upsets a blue blood every 3ish years for a 9 to 10 win season.
redwingillini11
White and Sixth
- North Aurora
Over from Michigan's 247 page:
This seems to suggest that Leonhard has the NFL in his sights. Things heading in the direction that Leonhard won't be back next year? Maybe that's one of the things that have been happening behind the scenes?
Sources have confirmed that contact has been made with two previously mentioned targets, former Wisconsin defensive coordinator and current Illinois defensive analyst Jim Leonhard, and former Seattle Seahawks defensive coordinator Clint Hurtt. Agent sources I’ve spoken with think it will be tough to pull either away from the lure of the NFL, but Moore at least has Michigan in the mix (though more so with Hurtt than with Leonhard).
Real Recognize Real report (1/29) - Rumblings on the defensive coordinator search
We share the latest on a handful of names tied to Sherrone Moore's search for Michigan's next defensive coordinator.247sports.com
This seems to suggest that Leonhard has the NFL in his sights. Things heading in the direction that Leonhard won't be back next year? Maybe that's one of the things that have been happening behind the scenes?
Can anyone tell me what Josh was thinking when he put Mizzou on the schedule? Was it to appease some St. Louis/Belleville alums? Or did he have a Ron Guenther inspired "moment"? We have to stop these self-inflicted wounds. One of these decades.
That was before the Pac12 invasion and before Mizzou went berserk with NIL
Ah. That makes more sense now. Thanks.
Any hints as to who? or nah?one bullet dodged
How many more dodge, duck, dip, dive and dodges to go?one bullet dodged
As of now 1
redwingillini11
White and Sixth
- North Aurora
Love itMustangWally
- Mayfield
I'm pretty sure we played five games against the West, too.
Besides NW, Kansas who had never won more than 3 games in the 10 previous years has now gone 6-7 and 9-4 in the last two years. Mizzou didn’t have to turn their program completely around but they have risen rapidly in the past couple of years. If you think the issue is because we are a basketball school then so is Duke, KY, and Kansas and they all have shown improvement. So, like Mustang Wally why haven’t we??
BZuppke
- Plainfield
Not really. We were within a score of winning many of those losses. We’re going to have a break out year soon.
SKane
- Tennessee
Yes, really. All of the wins were by less than a TD. The team could very easily have gone 0 - 12.
Not winining 7-8 games last year could be a killer for this program.
Champaign Toast
Fan since Kiwane Garris
I'm not yet concerned about the upcoming non-conference series with Missouri (or Duke, for that matter). A lot can happen.
Missouri series starts in 2026. What's to say, among other variables, that Coach Drinkwitz couldn't by then have moved on to another program--for the sake of argument, say... Clemson--putting Missouri in a state of transition?
Duke series is 2025-6. They're coming off a period of success under Coach Elko, with Manny Diaz taking over and getting another shot in the ACC. Diaz was good but not great with the blue blood-ish Miami Hurricanes.
All that being said... it's a fact that 2026 having both Duke and Missouri in the non-conference slate carries extra potential for oomph in a single season's schedule. In the new Big Ten, I wouldn't fault our program for scheduling three non-power conference opponents to help us get to 6 wins. That is: focus less on strength of schedule, ignore any haters, and get bowl-eligible.
I remember something Gary Barnett said after the Wildcats beat ND in Soldier Field in 1995. He said something to the effect, you not only have to convince your players you can win the game, you have to convince the referees you can win the game as well. Words to live by.
All I know is that Wisconsin became Wisconsin by scheduling three cupcakes every year for decades. If we want to be like them, we have to schedule like them.
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