Notre Dame got jilted on signing day by a star recruit they thought they had. In SEC country it happened to several teams. When you start playing with the top-recruited talent in the country, last second eyebrow raising events occur and your mind goes to that unsavory stereotype of the underbelly of recruiting.

Wisconsin grabbed headlines this week, however, by acknowledging that Badger AD Barry Alvarez was going to have a sitdown with Big Ten Commissioner Jim Delany to discuss the situation. Bielema had a chat with ESPN.com’s B1G blogger, Brian Bennett, which you can see here, and acknowledged that he had reached out to Urban Meyer. Wrapping himself in honoring legends, building leaders rhetoric, Bielema really made headlines by claiming “ “We at the Big Ten don’t want to be like the SEC — in any way, shape or form.”  Of course, this is like raw meat in an hungry lion’s cage for SEC fans who are chiming in with “what, and win six consecutive national titles?”.  

Fitz alluded to the fact that it’s never done until it is done when referring to Joliet Catholic star RB Malin Jones, who was the earliest commit in school history (nearly a year and a half before 2012 signing day).  Fitz said that he would’ve loved to report that no one else had gone after Malin after he committed, but that wasn’t true. A standout, instant impact RB pledging his future to NU and the ‘Cats need to keep on recruiting him even though he was already committed. It must be an infuriating task to stave off the vultures even when you HAVE the commitment.

One thing Fitz and his staff have done brilliantly is begin to build pipelines with specific schools, coaches and even the buddy system. It’s not a coincidence that we’re getting players from high schools this year, who have predecessors already on the team. Additionally, we’re continuing to get at least one pair of players from the same standout football factory schools to commit. Last year, Geoff Mogus and Deonte Gibson from St. Edward HS in the Cleveland area came together. In 2010, Trevor Siemian and Rashad Lawrence came in from the Orlando area as a pair. This year, Ian Park and Jack Schwaba continued the pair strategy as the Pittsburgh-area duo pledged to the purple.

You look at four-star Greg Kuhar and wonder how we got him? Well, his fellow high school teammates – Mogus and Gibson helped to recruit him. The relationships that Fitz and the staff have built in certain areas with certain teams helps. Fitz is very well regarded in Penn State country as well as Ohio. When you land elite players from elite Ohio schools, every one of the teams in your conference know where you are going. Their parents and media do as well. It’s not “Greg Kuhar”, it’s “Greg Kuhar, he’s going to Northwestern”.  That being said we do have our fair share of players that have little connection to NU other than the fact they a)may have camped at NU for football or b)they are from areas where we have decent name recognition. Our ability to continue to grab kids from Texas is one of the more underrated accomplishments by our staff. But it’s getting more and more cutthroat as coaches all realize their multi-million dollar jobs are made or broken with recruiting pipelines. Where there is bigtime money, there is usually impropriety. Recruiting impressionable teenagers, many of whom come from families that are getting by financially, well, just watch any episode of HBO Real Sports to see how blatantly bad it can be.

Northwestern has done a fantastic job of targeting proper fit kind of players as I referenced yesterday. Granted, we’re not winning near to the level of fan’s expectations, but you get the sense we’ve raised the talent bar. I’m really proud of our coaching staff in the recruiting circles as we manage to seemingly stay out of the cesspool factor and align with the right kind of guy. It will be interesting to see how this progresses now that we’ve started to land the four-star caliber player. Most will tell you that current players are the best recruiters and fellow star players seeing their kind go to a place like NU makes it easier to follow in their footsteps.

However, the talent is only a part of the equation. We need the coaching of said talent to translate in to “w’s” to get to the next level of talent. While we’re really impressing on the recruiting trails and managing to secure and protect our commitments, we’ve yet to get the program to a place that has the on-field product become the primary recruiting too.

Northwestern was ready to attack Nebraska and take what the defense gave it. And, on the defensive end, ready to force the Cornhuskers into uncomfortable shots and timid play with length and athleticism (yes, I typed those two words) on the wings of the 1-3-1.

It was a crazy back-and-forth battle with the Wildcats holding serve for much of the game. Nebraska erased a 15-point halftime deficit and got the game down to one and three points several times. Each time, NU found the answer to pull away.

Eventually, Northwestern found its range from beyond the arc to pull away and take an 84-74 victory at Welsh-Ryan Arena on Thursday over Nebraska.

This game came down to 3-point shooting for Northwestern. When the Cats were making their shots, the Huskers could not keep up. When they were not, the Huskers came back and made it a game. That is the kind of feast or famine we sometimes see with Northwestern unfortunately.

The Wildcats shot 14 of 31 from beyond the arc, taking more 3-point shots than 2-point shots in this game. Nine of those 3-pointers came in the first half as Nebraska packed the paint to prevent the back-door cuts and dared NU to shoot its way to a victory.

In the first half, it worked brilliantly.

The second half was a much slower start. The Wildcats missed their first seven shots and the 3-pointers that fell in the first half did not in the early part of the second. Very quickly, the Cornhuskers cut the Cats’ lead to four points.  It would take something to get out of the shooter’s mindset.

John Shurna had to be that something. Shurna played a superb game, using his (as the announcers described it) sneaky athleticism to get open for shots beyond the arc and to attack the basket. He finished with 28 points, shooting 9 for 13 and 3 for 6 from the floor. More importantly, he hit seven of eight free throws and led a parade to the free throw line that happened largely in the second half.

For those that keep track of advanced stats, like me, that equates to an 80.8 effective field goal percentage and an 84.7 percent true shooting percentage. John Shurna had a very good game.

The Wildcats, as a team followed his lead to the foul line throughout the game. Northwestern had 29 free throw attempts and made 24 of them. David Sobolewski made six of his seven attempts, drawing fouls on Nebraska’s guards.

When the Cats needed a basket or a score to keep the Cornhuskers from completing their comeback, the Wildcats found the foul line or found the right shooter to get the big back-breaking three.

Those became huge plays especially when Nebraska and guard Bo Spencer brought one last run to get within three points with 90 seconds left. Shurna was the one who stepped up, getting the ball and taking it to the basket a short jumper. Nebraska began missing jumpers and NU iced the game from the free throw line.

That is where the defense gets a lot of credit and the unfamiliarity Nebraska had with attacking the 1-3-1. Northwestern really stretched out its defense and forced Nebraska to start well above the 3-point line. John Shurna and Drew Crawford really bothered the the Cornhuskers’ ball handlers with their length and ability to close out passing lanes. There were a whole bunch of tipped passes and NU forced Nebraska into 13 turnovers in the game.

And for the most part, the Cats finished off defensive possessions by getting rebounds, giving up eight offensive rebounds which is the same number NU had too.

Nebraska found stretches where it broke down the 1-3-1. Most of those moments came when NU’s offense was struggling and Nebraska could get out on the break before the defense was set. But the Cornhuskers struggled mightily to run a half-court offense throughout the night. It was a solid defensive performance at times — granted, Nebraska did shoot 51.9 percent and ended up 11 for 26 from beyond the arc.

It was a nice game, but hardly perfect.

The Wildcats could not ever put the Cornhuskers away, even when it was clear they should. Nebraska put a press on late and forced a few turnovers to get more chances to cut into the lead late. It almost cost Northwestern the game.

In the end, the Wildcats’ 3-point shooting and dynamic offensive attack proved to be a little too much. Nebraska was one run too short to get a win. And that is the only stat that matters.

I’m always skeptical of the star rating system as we all know there is no sure-fire way to guarantee anything when it comes to projecting the performance of future players. Go back and look at the star-rankings on guys that have had tremendous impact in our program – Tyrell Sutton, Brett Basanez, Dan Persa, Corey Wootton, Jeremy Ebert. Not one of them was a four-star player, yet each of them were all Big Ten players. Conversely, the national rankings indeed have a correlation to the Top 25 each year.

I’m by no means a talent evaluator of high school football players. However, I do respect and realize that those that dedicate their living to this are smart, insightful people. I rely heavily on recruiting sites like WildcatReport.com and Scout.com for a sense of the talent we’re getting. Those of you that know me, know my number one metric is the list of schools that a recruit “chose Northwestern over….”.  Simply put, if the schools are lower tier BCS schools, MAC schools or the like, my expectations are lower. If they chose us over Top 25 programs.  I always exert caution here though as Martin Bayless chose Northwestern over Florida and Ohio State and he never saw the field before transferring.

The tone among fans since the Meineke Car Care Bowl of Texas had been sour. An inconceivable 6-7 2011 season just felt deflating since we had such high hopes. Furthermore, the littany of major issues of defense didn’t (and still don’t) seem fixable with one off-season and the departure of All Big Ten S Brian Peters, CB Jordan Mabin and even one year starting CB Jeravin Matthews who vastly improved during the season. As you scan the list of incoming freshman you start praying that guys like heralded RB/S Traveon Henry can step up and start as a true freshman in the secondary. That is both an unrealistic ans scary proposition as a fan. Yet, despite these glaring holes we need to fix, I felt so damn proud of our class yesterday. I really did.

The one thing that I love about our recruiting is the focus on “fit”.  Fitz of course needs to win at a better level to have his leadership skills and tactics connect with more oomph, but I’m huge on chemistry and the fact there were 57 high school players who had the character, personality, academics and athletic talent to get an offer from Northwestern makes me realize how well the coaches on the chemistry connection. I’ve learned from players that Fitz meets with the three current players assigned to host a prospect the Sunday morning after the potential player has departed. He gives the players 100% autonomy on the “fit” factor. Does his character fit the Northwestern program? If the players say “no” then Fitz doesn’t extend an offer. That is leadership.

This year’s class, especially when you include USC transfer Kyle Prater, has big time feel to it. Prater is the headline “get” of the year and the entire Fitz career at this point. However, defensive stud Ifeadi Odenigbo is the headliner of the incoming freshman class. He is an ESPNU Top 150 guy and was on said network yesterday firing up fans with his line in the sand quote around expectations:

 

“If we don’t win a Big Ten championship, my time there will be a failure. None of this 6-6 stuff. I want to see 11-1 or 12-0.” – Ifeadi Odenigbo – Chicago Tribune, February 1, 2012.

Man do I love to see that. It’s a long way from the days of early 1990s unheralded hoops recruit Jevon Johnson who once proclaimed “I can do it all” when he committed drawing an eye roll from NU students when that quote hit the Daily Northwestern headline. This is coming from one of  the top ten DEs in the entire country and arguably the top overall defensive player in the state of Ohio. It’s a quote from a guy who has 4.4 speed on defense as a pass rusher. Good God. When you’re rooting for a team that had only 17 sacks in the entire season, hopes couldn’t be higher for Ifeadi and the want to see him on the field (smoke signals seem to indicate he’ll redshirt).

DT Greg Kuhar is another four-star and fellow Ohio recruit who projects to be a future star for Northwestern. He was ranked by Rivals as the 19th best DT in the entire country. Somehow, RB Malin Jones has gone under the radar, perhaps because he was the earliest commit in NU history, pledging his future to NU nearly a year and a half before signing day. Jones become slightly overshadowed in his senior year by superstar RB Ty Isaac, who racked up record-setting numbers in the state title game. Make no mistake about it, Malin Jones is another on the instant impact list for Northwestern.

You read the recaps, watched the videos and likely scanned the rankings for this class. Scout ranks NU’s haul as the fifth best in the B1G while Rivals’ has NU in 10th place. If you look at the per player average ranking it is the highest it has been in the Fitz era. The highs are higher and the lower ends are higher in terms of player rankings. It’s a very solid class for Northwestern. It’s even bigger when you realize the lack of momentum we had with the 2011 season turning out the way it did.

Fitz will be the first to tell you that the rankings and projections of this class mean zilch. However, based on our season and the inherent challenges we still carry as a program, I think I can speak for most when I say job well done NU. Now it’s time to indoctrinate them in to mean streak and killer instinct class.

Days like yesterday give me high hopes for the future. It’s probably akin to Labor Day when you’ve just selected your NFL fantasy team. You’ve convinced yourself every one of your guys is going to have that all-pro year. For me, though, my day was made on Monday when commenter “MF” sent me the following link with a simple note:

“If the 1:45 mark of this doesn’t make you lick your chops, you’re nuts”:

Prater Playing Time Update

This is getting interesting. As you know, NU petitioned the NCAA for a special exemption for USC WR transfer Kyle Prater to be able to play THIS season citing personal circumstances. Fitz and NU aren’t permitted to comment on the case, but as this piece by Teddy G. points out, there is certainly a precedent set for the NCAA OK-ing this. Kyle Prater has cited a personal situation is the reason he needed to transfer close to home, but has not divulged (nor should he) what that situation with a family member is. Can you imagine Prater getting to play THIS season?

Men’s Hoops vs Nebraska Tonight

The ‘Cats (12-8,2-6) face Nebraska (11-9,3-6) at Welsh-Ryan (6pm ESPN2) tonight in their inaugural B1G meeting. The Huskers own a 3-1 edge all-time in the series with the last meeting coming in 1999 at a pre-season tournament in St. Louis (Nebraska won).  We’ll have much more on this tonight. Raise your hand if you thought Nebraska would have a better conference record than NU heading in to this one.

Right now is all about potential and excitement though. So who are these future Wildcats we will be screaming over? Time to meet the new Wildcats!

Consider this your open thread throughout the day. As signings become official, you will get to meet the new Wildcats and see highlights from their high school days and learn a little bit more about them. If any news breaks, it will be here.

Most of the commitments have already been reported. Northwestern is not expecting many surprises. But you never know. Be sure to check this post throughout the day as more signings become official for brief thoughts and links to all the Northwestern recruits. Don’t worry if it is a little empty here (especially if you check in the morning), we will add the recruits as it all becomes official.

So, let’s welcome some Wildcats!

UPDATE 12:01 P.M.

Hopefully this will be the last update with recruit mini-profiles and highlight tapes before we recap everything in the coming days. Be sure to scroll down through this post and meet the rest of the new Wildcats!

Dan Vitale, Safety/Athlete (Wheaton, Ill.)
6-foot-2/205 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 124/Rivals — Two Stars 

Vitale is looking for a position. Scout projects him as a safety while Rivals has not assigned him a position. Chris Emma of Scout reports Vitale is committed to play superback. He played wide receiver and running back in high school. So it will be interesting to see where he ends up and where Northwestern ends up putting him. Vitale was an on-the-spot commit once he was offered as the video above shows.

If Vitale does not play in the secondary, Dwight White should.

Dwight White, Safety/Defensive Back (Cypress, Texas)
5-foot-11/165 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 124/Rivals — Three Stars

Twitter / @DwightWhite3: Officially a Northwestern … via kwout

White certainly seems like a prospect, but someone that should fit in as a safety or cornerback in the future. Always good to have depth in that secondary as we well know.

Michael McHugh, Wide Receiver (Kirkwood, Mo.)
6-foot-2/180 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 202/Rivals — 16th in Missouri

McHugh’s letter of intent is in, but he will have a more official ceremony later this afternoon at his high school’s gym. McHugh is the second wide receiver in the class and seems to have the makeup of a Ross Lane or Jeremy Ebert. Not every receiver on the roster can fly down the field, you have to have those possession guys. This should be another valuable add.

Dean Lowry, Defensive End (Rockford, Ill.)
6-foot-5/230 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 95/Rivals — Three Stars

Lowry certainly brings a winning pedigree with him. Lowry won two Illinois state championships in high school and has all the size you want at defensive end. I am sure the team is excited to get him into the weight room to see how much he can strengthen to support that defensive line.

Traveon Henry, Running Back/Defensive Back (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
6-foot-1/200 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 43/Rivals — 33

Henry is going to offer an interesting choice for Northwestern. He is a really strong runner and has good vision on the field as a running back. But he also seems to be a perfect fit for the secondary. Rivals has him as the 33rd ranked cornerback in the country — or is that for running backs? I cannot quite tell. Either way, Henry is going to be a big contributor for the Wildcats. And he plays basketball (TonJua Jones anyone?).

Stephen Buckley, Cornerback/Athlete (Forney, Texas)
5-foot-11/170 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — Two Stars/Rivals — Two Stars


(h/t Wildcatfan)

Buckley was the last commit for Northwestern and is considered an athlete. I would expect, considering Northwestern’s depth issues there, that the team puts him at cornerback and tries to develop them there. He has a leg up in that he has experience playing the position. Seems like a little bit of a project and a player the coaching staff will have to coach up.

And finally… the last recruit in the 2012 Northwestern recruiting class is…

Terrance Brown, Safety/Defensive Back (Los Alamitos, Calif.)
6-foot-1/220 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 156/Rivals — Three Stars

Brown should be another project for the secondary. But as you can see from the discrepancy between his Scout and Rivals rating (Rivals has him higher), he has a lot of potential to grow and improve.

UPDATE 10:19 A.M.

As of now all 21 commitments have signed the national letters of intent. Seeing as there are no surprises likely today, the class is likely complete. I have 10 commitments profiled already, so we will get to the last 11 very shortly. So let’s do the next five this hour…

Joseph Jones, Safety/Defensive Back (Plano, Ill.)
6-foot-2/200 lbs.     Pos. Rankings: Scout — 112/Rivals — Two Stars 

Jones is going to play an interesting role in the future of the Wildcats considering the extreme need at cornerbacks. No telling whether he will be able to step on the field quickly. My bet is that he will not. But he will be important to adding depth in the coming years.

Now the big one: IFEADI ODENIGBO!!!!

Ifeadi Odenigbo, Outside Linebacker/Defensive End (Centerville, Ohio)
6-foot-3/217 lbs. Pos. Rankings: Scout — 5/Rivals — Four Stars

Odenigbo is undoubtedly the highest profile recruit that Northwestern has gotten in some time. This is a guy that could be a big playmaker on the defensive end and transform the culture and perception of the program. Yeah, no pressure Ifeadi.

A few of you have posted the quote Odenigbo gave to Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune about Odenigbo’s aspirations for his time at Northwestern. This is the kind of change many Northwestern fans want this recruiting class to start (or finish or continue). We might as well quote it again here:

 

If we don’t win a Big Ten championship, my time there will be a failure. None of this 6-6 stuff. I want to see 11-1 or 12-0.

Welcome to Evanston, Ifeadi.

Ian Park, Offensive Guard (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
6-foot-4/300 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 44/Rivals — Three Stars 

Park is another bruising offensive lineman from Upper St. Clair in Pittsburgh, joining his teammate Jack Schwaba. This has been a very offensive lineman-heavy class and Park might be one of those guys that can get into the rotation quickly. Scout already has him listed at 300 pounds, which is good weight to have to push around those Big Ten pass rushers. Will be interesting to see how he develops once he gets on campus.

Malin Jones, Running Back (Joliet, Ill.)
6-feet/207 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 42/Rivals — Three Stars

Jones quietly could be the best offensive skill player in this class. Northwestern is always looking for an answer at running back and, judging by Pat Fitzgerald’s reaction to his official signing. This could be a critical signing. Rivals named Jones a three-star sleeper by Rivals’ Keith Niebuhr. Here is what Niebuhr had to say:

 

Because he shared carries with 2013 running back Ty Isaac, Jones was somewhat overshadowed and is off the radar of many it seems. But this was someone who impressed a year ago at the U.S. Army Combine, had a productive senior season and could be primed for big things in college. The 6-2, 190-pounder is a solid all-around back that does many things well. He not only is strong running between the tackles but is fast enough to hit the corner and break off a long gainer. He should fit in well at Northwestern, where his multitude of skills can be utilized in the Wildcats’ wide-open offensive attack.

Oh, and Ty Isaac? He is a commit for 2013 as well. Northwestern is hot on his heels for next year too.

UPDATE 8:57 A.M.

As you can tell, I am still catching up a bit this morning. There are lots of recruits that I have not gotten to yet, but I want to make sure we get a look at them a few at a time for this open thread. Pat Fitzgerald is scheduled to comment on the class as a whole sometime around 11:30 a.m. So be on the lookout for that too!

The sixth recruit to commit this morning was defensive tackle Greg Kuhar, the first of the two (or three) four-star recruits on Northwestern’s board.

Greg Kuhar, Defensive Tackle (Lakewood, Ohio)
6-foot-3/260 lbs.     Pos. Rankings: Scout — 51; Rivals — 19 

Kuhar is a big signing for Northwestern. He is coming off of a knee surgery however, so maybe expect him to get a redshirt. Still, this is a great talent to have added to this class to bolster that defensive line.

Pat Fitzgerald likes this next recruit a lot. It is a special teamer and long snapper, Chris Fitzpatrick.

Chris Fitzpatrick, Long Snapper/Offensive Lineman (Lawrenceburg, Kent.)
6-foot-2/230 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 3/Rivals — Two Stars

It appears that Fitzpatrick will redshirt this year, according to Chris Emma of Scout.com, but this is a big step for Fitzpatrick and his high school. According to Rubio Long Snapping, Fitzpatrick will become the first Division I athlete from Anderson County High School since 1961. Rubio Long Snapping rates Fitzpatrick as a five-star long snapper. So Northwestern’s punters should be in good hands very soon.

Northwestern next got its second four-star caliber athlete in Adam DePietro.

Adam DePietro, Guard (Lancaster, Pa.)
6-foot-4/275 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 10/Rivals — 65 

I think that says it all from DePietro. You should notice that there are a lot of offensive linemen on the early list. Seeing as the Wildcats have a bevy of experience on the o-line last year (again, not necessarily everything when it comes to playing well). A lot of that is getting replaced this year. If the promise of this offensive line comes through, then the Wildcats will be in good shape to protect its promising young quarterbacks and skill players.

That would include skill players like Eric Wilson.

Eric Wilson, Wide Receiver/Defensive Back (Redford, Mich.)
6-foot-2/205 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 98/Rivals — Three Star

Rivals and Scout are split one what Wilson might be at the next level. Obviously, we all know how desperate the Wildcats are for players in the secondary, specifically at cornerback. Wilson played some safety in high school. This sounds like a good candidate for a redshirt to learn whatever position he will play.

The tenth recruit — all before 7 a.m.! — is Andrew Scanlan.

Andrew Scanlan, Wide Receiver (Royersford, Pa.)
6-foot-2/190 lbs. Pos. Ranking: Scout — 86/Rivals — Two Stars

I think it was worth it, Andrew.

*****

UPDATE 6:54 A.M.

Boy you sleep in a little bit and you miss a whole bunch. Northwestern got 10, count them 10 (actually I will be), signing before 7 a.m.

And who was the first? Who will be the guy forever to say he was the first Wildcat of the bunch?

That would be guard Connor Mahoney from Pennsylvania!

Connor Mahoney, Guard/Defensive Tackle (Malvern, Pa.)
6-foot-4/270 lbs.     Pos. Rankings: Scout — 68, Rivals —  Two Stars

Sorry, you were a minute late Jaylen Prater. You got in second according to NUSports. That is OK, we are all on the same team now!

Jaylen Prater, Outside Linebacker (Wellston, Ohio)
6-foot-2/220 lbs.     Pos. Rankings: Scout — 191/Rivals — Two Stars

These are some big guys coming through. Lots of talent in the early going. The next signing should beef up the offensive line a little more.

Kenton Playko, Offensive Tackle (Lewis Center, Ohio)
6-foot-5/260 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 55/Rivals — Three Stars

Could not find any video on YouTube of Playko (there is video through NUSports if you have their all-access package). But Playko has been waiting a long time for this day. He was Northwestern’s second verbal commitment in this class and, as you can tell from his size, is hoping to be the anchor for a big offensive line. Playko is doing a signing ceremony at his high school and then, he tells Corey McMahon of Scout, he is going right back to working out. No quit or days off for this guy!

Playko tells McMahon that he is up to 285 pounds and is looking to increase his strength and agility before Northwestern’s coaches get their hands on him for their training regimen. Seems like Northwestern has a solid bedrock for its offensive line of the future.

Adding to the size — not to mention the Pennsylvania pipeline — is Jack Schwaba.

Jack Schwaba, Tight End (Pittsburgh, Pa.)
6-foot-5/235 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 52; Rivals — 32 overall in Pa. 

Schwaba has a unique story. He is a fourth-generation Wildcat and a former Chicago resident. He joins a strong group of superbacks that will be fighting for playing time. Expect him to room with fellow commit Dan Vitale. Good to still have Schwaba in the family!

Offensive linemen sure like to get up early. Eric Olson gets the award for most technologically advanced signing, he sent his in through e-mail instead of the traditional fax.

Eric Olson, Offensive Tackle (Cambridge, Mass.)
6-foot-6/270 lbs.     Pos. Ranking: Scout — 56/Rivals — 5 overall in Mass.

I guess he wasn’t the first e-mail. Oh well. He is a Wildcat now. And that is all that matters! Olson has been a commit since June and, as you can tell, could not wait to get his national letter of intent in ASAP.

It is not quite time to pass the reigns. Not that Northwestern will go down without a fight. Or that the Wildcats will go down at all.

The Cornhuskers stood one win away with two matches still on the courts from upsetting the No. 12 Wildcats. No. 6 singles player Kate Turvy and No. 1 singles player Nida Hamilton stood in the Cornhuskers’ way.

Both scored victories and Northwestern advanced into the main draw of the ITA Indoor Team National Championships in Charlottesville, Va. in two weeks with a 4-3 victory over the team’s newly minted conference foes.

Turvy started her day off strong by teaming up with Belinda Niu for the Wildcats’ only win in doubles. It was the first doubles point though that they had dropped this season.

Turvy’s play in singles would prove to be part of the difference. Turvy defeated Nebraska’s No. 1 Mary Weatherholdt in straight sets thanks to two tiebreaker victories. Turvy finished first in time to tie the score.

It was up to sophomore sensation Nida Hamilton to close it off for the Wildcats.

Hamilton, who lost her second set in a hard-fought tiebreak, came back to win the final five games in the third set to win 6-1 and clinch the come-from-behind victory.

Obviously it was a big win for the Wildcats to advance in the ITA Team National Championship. And even bigger considering the trip to North Carolina to take on UNC and Duke this weekend. Sounds like the start of another strong season coming up for this young women’s tennis squad.

Just don’t think Nebraska will forget this defeat indoors. The Wildcats and Cornhuskers meet again in Evanston on March 25 (hopefully outside).

Honorable Mentions

John Frutiger, Men’s Swimming: Does anyone realize how short one hundredth of a second is? Really, think about how short of a time that is. It is miniscule, non-existent, almost irrelevant. Frutiger and Northwestern know how large that instant can be. Frutiger beat Colorado’s Missouri’s Ramon Melo by one hundredth of a second in the 400 free relay to score an 88-80 upset for NU. Frutiger, who won the 200 free earlier in the day and led a furious rally that fell just short in the 800 free relay, beat out Melo holding on to a .78 second lead in the final leg. It was not the strong finish Frutiger had earlier in the day, but it was enough for NU to end the regular season with a big win.

Danielle Diamant, Women’s Basketball: Diamant posted a double double in a much-needed win over Indiana this weekend. Diamant scored 22 points and 11 rebounds as the Wildcats held off the Hoosiers’ late rally for a 68-61 win Sunday at Welsh-Ryan Arena. It was Diamant’s fourth double double of the year and followed a 21-point, 10-rebound effort in an 80-70 loss to No. 13 Purdue earlier in the week. Diamant has posted a strong season with 13.5 points per game and a team-best 6.5 rebounds per game.

Kyle Prater, Football: Hey, why not give one more excited “Whoopee!” for the transfer of Kyle Prater from USC? The transfer has brought a lot of excitement back to Northwestern football after this disappointing season. The visions of Kain Colter or Trevor Siemian (or Zach Oliver) throwing bombs to Prater and Christian Jones (not to mention Pierre Youngblood-Ary who was redshirted this past year… or Venric Mark… or Rashad Lawrence… or Demetrius Fields) are dancing in our heads. Prater is another weapon for a team teeming with offensive talent. Then someone passed along this statement from Prater, which to me just shows Prater is perfect for Northwestern:

Oh yeah, Prater gets it. He understands the challenges and the naysayers that come with choosing Northwestern over elite schools. And by the humble way he answered this (hopefully unrepresentative) Wisconsin fan, you can tell he is going to remember it when the Badgers come to Evanston. This is the burden of forging a new path. Prater seems ready to take it.

You just cannot wait to see what the future will bring!

The Wildcat faithful might be getting a tad cocky after landing a five star transfer and say “two star!”, but we all know how (un)reliable stars are when it comes to predicting on-field success. Personally, I’m thrilled to have Stephen possibly round out our class as he is the second RB for our 2012 list which was headlined by Malin Jones who committed what seemed like half a decade ago.

Northwestern made a late push to secure a second RB for this class and after our recent laundry list of injuries at the position. Buckley, according to the reports I’ve read by Louie Vaccher, is a late bloomer who came on strong this season and just recently started getting the full-court press interest from BCS schools. Buckley, with fellow purple Wildcats Kansas State getting in the offer cue, but the primary competitor pirate ship Washington State Cougars and Mike Leach becoming our primary competitor. 

Buckley is a six-foot, 178 pounder and the 22nd commitment to the Northwestern 2012 class. Welcome aboard Stephen, we’re thrilled to have you in Evanston!

The loss likely flatlines Northwestern’s faint hopes of an NCAA Tournament run as we’d need to go 7-3 the rest of the way to really have a legitimate shot. The reality is we’ve gone from tourney buzz two weeks ago after the Michigan State win to having lost seven of our last nine. The Wildcat depth, normally an issue to begin with, is at incredibly thin status. Luka Mirkovic sat out Saturday with an injury and joined fellow MASH residents JerShon Cobb and Tre Demps on the bench. The Wildcats had Alex Marcotullio and Nick Fruendt as the pair of remaining scholarship players (Michael Turner is redshirting) and Fruendt barely played on Saturday. I was there, surrounded by about 2,000 Purdue fans in the upper levels of Welsh-Ryan Arena.  I just felt bad. I felt bad for John Shurna who is likely going to become the all-time leading scorer in school history. I felt bad that Drew Crawford, the most talented, all-around player with legit NBA potential  I’ve seen in a long time at NU. I felt bad for freshman warrior David Sobolewski who plays wire to wire in B1G play and does so without ever seeming to take a breather.   You simply can’t expect to win in the best basketball conference this year with six players getting minutes.

The playing time issue ends up becoming cannon fodder for fans who have had enough with Bill Carmody. “How can you only have ten guys on scholarship?” fans will say. I don’t think you’ll find many fans who have much to say about the effort of our team – on most nights. From a talent perspective, depth is where even during healthy times we run in to issues in conference play. We’re playing handcuffed and each heartbreaking loss seems to compound the team and fans’ psyche in to a state of “why us?”. Well, it’s time we dropped the mope and do something about it.

It’s a foregone conclusion for some, and possibly wishful thinking for others, that Coach Carmody’s days a the head coach are numbered in the two digit range.  Should Northwestern fail to make even the NIT, a distinct possibility at this point, you’d be hard-pressed to find many fans willing to say “one more year” for one of the longest tenured coaches in the BCS. I’m going against my own self-imposed edict of not adding fuel to the “time for a change” fire. I was pretty direct last year after the Penn State loss, but this year I’ve lost the fire. I’m in a general basketball fan malaise at this point. I was pretty emotionless on the inside, while cheering heartily on the outside with my family at the game on Saturday.

The comment section is filled with readers asking for me to take a stand. With several, the direct ask for me to be vocal about voicing the need for change is increasing in frequency. Speculation about whether or not Jim Phillips should fire Carmody in season in hopes of giving Tavaras Hardy an in-season trial run is being tossed around. It’s not a fun time to be a Wildcat hoops fan right now. Candidly, when I started this blog, this was not what I had envisioned. Admittedly, I was Mr. Positive, hoping to get other fans to jump on the Northwestern football (and basketball) bandwagon. It’s been fascinating to see how the expectations have morphed and changed during this four year plus span. I really do respect what Bill Carmody has done. The precipitous fall in 2007 not withstanding, he’s brought the program to a respectable night-in, night-out basis, yet the bottom-line is that Coach Carmody has had 12 seasons to try and do what the laundry list of coaches that combined to take the post for 31 years his prior could not do – post a winning record in the Big Ten. The writing seems to be clearly marked on the wall, but I’m going to watch the rest of the season play out. Personally, I’m not a fan of making moves within the season.

It sounds like sour grapes and/or excuse-riddled rationalization, but the level of injuries in hoops in recent years really makes me feel like we’ve become the Purdue football of basketball. You’d think we’d catch a break once in awhile. As winners will tell you, you’ve got to make your breaks.

Some games you wish could end in ties. Or could end in a way better than this one did.

Northwestern scrambled hard and had Purdue locked down defensively. The ball swung to the star forward in the corner. Dave Sobolewski made the slightest of errors, thinking he could take the ball from the senior before it got there in the closing stages of the game. It opened the slightest of holes for Hummel to get through before Davide Curletti could rotate over. Hummel got the ball and took the chance.

He had the space and time to launch a floater over Curletti’s outstretched hands. It went in with eight seconds to play. Purdue had a two-point lead.

Northwestern called timeout to draw up a play, but Purdue took away its options. The Boilermakers defense slowed down Dave Sobolewski bringing the ball up. They crowded Drew Crawford from getting anywhere, the first option. And finally, with time running out, they forced John Shurna into a 30-foot 3-point attempt for the win.

It hit the backboard left and was no good. Purdue got the critical victory 58-56 at Welsh-Ryan Arena, leaving Northwestern to say what if once again.

This was one of those games where both teams deserved a win. There were a lot of hard scrambles for loose balls and every possession counted. The Wildcats just came up one possession short.

Reggie Hearn was fighting and scrapping for every possession it seemed. It figured he would be the perfect player to tie the game late. With Purdue shading Northwestern’s big offensive weapons, Hearn blew past D.J. Byrd for a layup. This came after countless charges taken, loose balls scrapped for and rebounds dug out. Hearn did those little things necessary to keep Northwestern in close.

Purdue had opportunities to pull away. The Boilermakers successfully forced the Wildcats into two separate field goal droughts of longer than five minutes. Purdue made it a nine-point game early in the second half on a strong run to start the half.

It seemed like Wisconsin or Minnesota all over again. Northwestern was willing to scrap and fight tonight.

The Wildcats chipped away at the lead. Drew Crawford got things going on his way to a game-high 23 points and eight rebounds. John Shurna found a groove with 15 points and six rebounds, hitting on 6 of his 11 shots and posting a strong 63.1 percent true shooting percentage. Shurna did not absolutely take over the game, but he did what Northwestern asks of him — score efficiently.

Hearn was the difference in guiding Northwestern back, even getting a good roll on a dunk.

The Wildcats had the fight and had the execution at the end to erase a late five-point deficit. This game was not lost on the final possession.

Likely, this game was lost in an atypical offensive performance in the first half. Purdue struggled as much as Northwestern did. But the Cats hit their season average for turnovers in the first 20 minutes. Northwestern committed nine miscues in the first half and finished with 15 for the game.

The turnovers in the second half came at big times too when the Wildcats could have wrested control away for the final moments.

That is picking nits though. This game came down to who had the ball last. Hummel made the play to get Purdue the win. Northwestern could not match.

The disappointment is that the last play did not end up in a better shot for Shurna. He did a good job getting himself free, if not too far to really threaten the basket.

Hate the play call. Give credit to the defense. Give credit to the effort.

It is still another loss. And one step further away from the dream.

Northwestern was happy to welcome him back to Illinois.

Prater took one visit in his recruiting after deciding to transfer from USC and the former Proviso West star saw enough Friday night in Evanston to know Northwestern was the place. Pat Fitzgerald and Northwestern announced Saturday that Prater will transfer to Northwestern, giving NU a dangerous offensive weapon for the 2013 season.

 

“We’re extremely excited for Kyle to be able to come home to Chicago and join our Northwestern football family,” Fitzgerald said in the Northwestern release. “He is a tremendous young man from a great family and is a product of a high school program we really respect in Proviso West. Kyle’s decision to attend Northwestern made sense for everyone involved and we’re looking forward to him contributing to our program on and off the field.”

 

“This is one of the best days in my life for me and my family and I’m just happy to be back close to home, my family and my support group,” Prater said. “I’d like to thank USC and their administration for my release. I have the utmost respect for USC and the coaching staff, players, fans and everybody I was in touch with there. This Northwestern degree will take me far and help me become a better person. The dynamics of the school and the team have shown me a lot and I’m just happy to be a Wildcat.”

This is a big day for Northwestern too. The Wildcats 2012 recruiting cycle includes two four-star recruits — linebacker Ifeadi Odenigbo and offensive lineman Adam DePietro — and a five-star transfer in Prater. That is, if you believe in the recruiting rankings.

Potentially, the Wildcats have a dangerous group of wide receivers, running backs and quarterbacks to put on the field in 2013 (UPDATE: Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune reports Northwestern is considering applying for a waiver to get Prater eligible for 2012 because of an undisclosed “family issue”). This is a big get as signing day nears on Wednesday. Who knows what else Fitzgerald has cooking up before then?

It has been a week in preparation and recovery. A week of pondering and adjusting. A week to get back to what Northwestern does best.

A week certainly to stew over two disappointing and discouraging performances.

The Wildcats have seen themselves go from low to high to low as quickly as any team in the nation. The NCAA Tournament hopes were at one time certain and now are completely uncertain in the course of a week. The mood among fans is pessimistic.

One game will not quite turn that around like the Michigan State win did — which, in retrospect, looks like a perfect, flawless performance not to be matched again this season — but a strong performance with a win (on national TV no less) will do wonders to raise the profile of the team and get back into the tournament conversation.

Northwestern has a lot of work to do for sure. No player has more work to do it seems than John Shurna.

The responsibility falls on Northwestern’s star player to turn things around in his individual play and push his team back to that Tournament level. That is the responsibility you have as a senior, as a Naismith Award candidate and as, potentially, the best player in program history.

Shurna has been particularly sub-standard in the last two games. He has averaged 20.0 points per game which is right where Northwestern needs him and right at his season averages. But it is how he is getting those points that is most concerning.

Shurna is 14 for 33 in the last two games, including an absolutely horrid 8-for-21 performance at Minnesota last weekend. This includes his decent 6 for 13 showing from beyond the arc and his uncharacteristically inaccurate 6 for 12 effort from the foul line — most of that coming in a confounding 2 for 8 effort from the line against the Gophers.

His effective field goal percentage for those two games was 51.5 percent. That is not bad. His true shooting percentage for those two games is 52.2 percent — and it was a poor 42.8 percent because of all those missed shots and free throws. Then you consider that Shurna’s season effective field goal percentage is 54.0 percent and his true shooting percentage is 57.7 percent and you see Northwestern struggles when Shurna is not scoring efficiently.

Fatigue certainly will play factor. But Shurna has played at least 35 minutes in all but three games this year. You read that right. Shurna does not get a breather at all. And he has still scored at a high clip efficiently for most of the season.

That is how Shurna has continued to set the Big Ten on fire and remain among the conference’s leading scorers. And that is how Northwestern wins — when Shurna scores a lot on as few field goal attempts as possible — against Michigan State, Shurna scored 22 points on 14 field goals and a 58.4 true shooting percentage despite a poor overall field goal percentage.

The Minnesota game started poorly for Shurna as he was blocked on what looked like a relatively easy lay in. It was all uphill from there for Northwestern.

There is growing concern now that, in order to break this six losses in eight games stretch, that John Shurna has to take more control of the team and be more assertive. That is something Bill Carmody has asked Shurna to do at various times this year, hoping a more assertive and slightly more selfish Shurna can create the offense to kick start Northwestern when the offense stagnates (like it has the last two games).

It certainly helps having another strong scorer like Drew Crawford in the lineup. But this is John Shurna’s team, as Tim Doyle advised Shurna following the Minnesota game according to Teddy Greenstein of the Chicago Tribune:

 

Tim Doyle saw an empty seat next to John Shurna on Northwestern’s chartered flight back from Michigan two weeks ago. Doyle, the BTN analyst and former Wildcat celebrated for his all-around game and Elvis Presley hair, sat down to offer what he called “big-brother advice.”

“John, you’re going to leave Northwestern as arguably the greatest player in school history,” Doyle told him. “Let it all hang out. Two years ago, it was Craig Moore’s team. Last year it was Juice (Thompson’s) team. This is your team.”

That certainly seems to be the resounding message to Shurna in this difficult time for his team. Michael Thompson, in town for the week, met with Shurna too to provide some encouragement according to Chris Emma of Scout. His message was very much the same — you have to play as if it is your last possession and what will be will be.

Shurna definitely has a lot of pressure as the senior on a team still looking to break that tournament drought.

But now is John Shurna’s time to take over. Now is his time to take over and guide Northwestern like Thompson did last year. That is what Northwestern needs in the droughts and hard times offensively from its offensive leader. There is still time to get back into the Tournament picture. It just takes that little push of momentum to get over the top.