Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Get Set for Big Ten Opener at Wisconsin
6/21/1999 12:00:00 AM | Football
September 21, 1998
Northwestern (2-1) at No. 14 Wisconsin (3-0)
Date/Time: Sept. 26, 1998/11:10 a.m. CT
Site/Capacity: Camp Randall Stadium/76,129
Television: ESPN
Radio: WGN (720 AM)
Northwestern got back on the winning track last Saturday with a 23-14 victory over Rice in Houston. With the win, the Wildcats improved to 2-1 on the season and have now won four of their last five contests.
A fired-up 'Cat defense and several gutsy coaching calls by Coach Barnett were the difference in the Rice game. NU kept the Owls in third and long situations for the majority of the evening. They forced Rice into at least third-and-eight on nine of the Owls' 16 third-down attempts and they did not attain a first down on any of those tries. Meanwhile, Barnett had punter J.J. Standring run up the middle for a 24-yard gain on fourth and four. That drive eventually culminated with a field goal. On the ensuing kickoff, Brian Gowins successfully executed an on-side kick which led to NU's first TD of the game five plays later.
Gowins' three field goals (22, 48, 45) put him in first place on NU's all-time field goals made list (47). For his efforts, Gowins was tabbed as the Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week. He now has 215 career points, just seven points shy of the NU record (222) set by Darnell Autry (1994-96).
Brian Marshall came off the bench to rush for 91 yards on 16 carries, while true freshman Sam Simmons continued to sizzle on kickoff returns. He returned one for 67 yards which set up NU's first score. Also shining offensively for the 'Cats was Biletnikoff Award candidate D'Wayne Bates. He recorded seven receptions for 96 yards and one touchdown.
Barry Gardner led the defense with 20 tackles, followed by Jim Thorpe Award candidate Mike Nelson who had 13. Gardner, a Butkus Award candidate, has now recorded double figure tackles in 12 of his last 15 games.
The 'Cats head to Wisconsin on Saturday to take on the Badgers at Camp Randall. Wisconsin is off to a 3-0 start with wins over San Diego St. (26-14), Ohio U. (45-0) and UNLV (52-7).
Wisconsin Series
Series Record: UW leads, 51-29-5
First Meeting: 1890, NU won 22-10
Last UW Win at UW: 1993, 53-14
Last NU Win at UW: 1996, 34-30
Current Series Streak: UW, 1 game
UWs Largest Margin of Victory: 56 pts., 56-0 in 1912
NUs Largest Margin of Victory: 41 pts., 41-0 in 1943
Head Coach Gary Barnett
Gary Barnett is in his seventh season at the helm of the Northwestern Wildcats after overseeing one of the most masterful program turnarounds in college football history. Hired in 1992, he took a school which hadn't enjoyed a winning season in 20 years, and in just four years had it sitting on the top of the world as Big Ten champs. The following year, Barnett proved to the naysayers that 1995 wasn't a fluke by repeating as Big Ten champions. The 52-year-old native of Lakeland, Fla., has won every major "Coach of the Year" award, and has compiled a 34-37-1 record at Northwestern.
Prior to eight seasons as an assistant at the University of Colorado, Barnett served as the head coach for Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colo., for two years beginning in 1982.
Barnett graduated from the University of Missouri in 1969 with a degree in social studies, and later earned a master's degree in education from his alma mater. At Missouri, he played wide receiver and participated in the 1966 Sugar Bowl and the 1968 Gator Bowl while with the Tigers.
Facts and Firsts Following Rice
Brian Gowins became NU's all-time career field goals made leader. He now has made 47, surpassing John Duvic's 46 field goals set from 1983-86.
With his 11 points scored vs. Rice, Gowins is now only seven points behind Darnell Autry as NU's all-time overall leading scorer. Autry ended his career with 222 points.
Barry Gardner's 20 tackles on Saturday marked the 12th time in his last 15 games that he has recorded double-figures in stops.
D'Wayne Bates had 96 yards receiving, putting him within striking distance of NU's all-time career receiving record. Bates currently has 2,403 yards, while Richard Buchanan (1987-90) holds the mark with 2,474 yards.
Fourth-Quarter Defense
The Wildcats have allowed just 133 fourth-quarter yards this season for a 37.7 yards per game average. Rice tallied just 11 yards on 16 plays in the fourth stanza. Opponents are 2-for-12 on third downs during the final quarter. No touchdowns have been scored against NU in the closing quarter, however, Duke did manage a field goal.
The Captains
As voted upon by their teammates and coaches, the captains for the 1998 Northwestern football team are wide receiver D'Wayne Bates, linebacker Barry Gardner, fullback Matt Hartl and offensive lineman Bryan LaBelle. All four are seniors.
Bates, who missed last season due to a broken leg suffered in the 'Cats victory over Oklahoma in the Pigskin Classic, led the Big Ten in receptions and reception yards in 1996 and was a Playboy All-American in 1997. Gardner is in his second duty as a captain, having served in the same capacity last year. The former walk-on led the Big Ten in total tackles in 1997 and was selected first-team All-Big Ten. Hartl, who was a major force in the Wildcats' drive to the Rose Bowl in 1995, will miss this season while undergoing chemotherapy to fight Hodgkins Disease. This is his second bout with this form of cancer. LaBelle, a roommate of Hartl's, started in all 12 games last year at tight tackle.
Lost In (Cyber) Space
Head coach Gary Barnett will take part in a live chat session each Wednesday from 7 to 7:15 p.m. during the football season. Fans can log on at nusports.com and go to the football page. The feature, which began on Wednesday, Sept. 9, was the most highly attended chat session that fansonly.com (nusports.com's web server) has ever had. Barnett was also the featured guest on America Online's Athlete Direct Prime this month.
Illinois Kickoff Time Announced
Kickoff for the NU-Illinois game at Ryan Field on Oct. 3 has been set for 11:10 a.m. CT. The game will be broadcast by ESPN Regional Television. Fans should check their local listings to see if the game will be broadcast in your area.
Big Ten Tackle Leader
Two-time captain Barry Gardner finished 1997 first in the Big Ten in total tackles (174). He also led the conference in solo stops (112) and tackles per game (14.5). This year, he is off to a great start, leading the Wildcat defense to a smothering attack against UNLV. NU limited the Rebels to just 35 yards rushing and only eight first downs. The 'Cats also only allowed UNLV to convert two of its 13 third-down conversion attempts. Versus Duke Gardner tallied 19 total tackles (15 solo stops) to lead NU. At Rice, the senior led all players with 20 tackles, 13 of which were solo efforts. Gardner has now produced double figure tackle games in 12 of the last 15 contests.
The 1997 GTE Second-Team Academic All-American's 174 tackles was the fourth-best season total in NU history. Gardner currently has 338 career stops, good for 6th place on NU's career tackle list. He leaped-frogged over Steve Ostrowski (331 tackles, 1990-93), and NFL standout Tom Homco (333 stops, 1988-91). Eric Collier holds down the fifth spot with 342 tackles (1994-97).
Gardner's 45 tackles this year leads the Big Ten. The Butkus Award candidate's tackle line in 1998: UNLV (6), Duke (19) and Rice (20).
Best Conditioned Athletes
Strength coach Larry Lilja is legendary at NU for the grueling workouts that he puts the Wildcats through. His top five conditioned players with their bench and 40-yard dash statistics are:
1) LB Barry Gardner: Bench (435), 40 Yard Dash (4.68)2) DL Jeff Dyra: Bench (425), 40 Yard Dash (4.88)
3) FB Sean Bennett: Bench (375), 40 Yard Dash (4.51)
4) TE John Cerasani: Bench (404), 40 Yard Dash (4.97)
5) FS Rashad Morton: Bench (335), 40 Yard Dash (4.54)
DWayne Bates
All-Big Ten receiver D'Wayne Bates returned to the Wildcat lineup in dramatic fashion after missing most of 1997 with a broken leg. Against UNLV he caught nine passes for 156 yards and scored two touchdowns. In the process, he became the first Wildcat to record 10 games of 100 or more yards in receiving. Below are a list of some of Bates' accomplishments as a Wildcat. The Big Ten Conference tabbed him the Offensive Player of the Week for his play against UNLV.
Bates has made at least one reception in his last 24-straight contests and 27 of 28 in his NU career. He has made at least four receptions in 16 of his last 20 games.
97 of his career 146 catches have been for first downs (66%).
Bates now has 146 catches for 2,403 yards in his NU career. The 146 catches rank third-best in NU history. In second place is Lee Gissendaner with 156 receptions, while the career record of 197 is held by Richard Buchanan (1988-90).
Bates is in second place on the all-time NU receiving list with 2,403 yards. The NU career record of 2,474 yards is also held by Buchanan.
Bates set the NU single-season receiving mark in 1996 with 1,196 yards.
Gowins Kicks His Way Into Record Book
Brian Gowins, who led the Big Ten in field goals made last year (20), is methodically kicking his way to the top of a lot of the charts in the NU record book. Below are the records the first-team All-Big Ten performer holds or is close to breaking:
Most points scored by a kicker: 215 points, first place
Career field goals made: 47, first place
Most field goals in a season: 20, first place
Most consecutive games making a field goal: nine-consecutive games in 1997, first place
Two or more field goals in a game: nine (season), 19 (career), first place
Most field goals 40-yards or more: 17, first place
Longest field goal: 52 yards, second on NU list, two yards shy of Nick Mirkopulos' 54 yarder in 1975
Career scoring leaders: 215 points, second place, seven behind Darnell Autry (1994-1996)
Big'Uns
For the fifth-straight year, Northwestern boasts a roster with several players over 300 pounds. Lineman and their poundage are as follows: Adam Fay (301), Ryan Friedrich (311), Brian Hemmerle (315), Lance Clelland (301), Bryan LaBelle (317) and Javiar Collins (305).
The starting offensive line of Clelland, Friedrich, Ty Garner (294), Hemmerle and LaBelle combine for a stout average of 307.6, up 8.6 pounds from 1997.
Biletnikoff Award
D'Wayne Bates has been named to the initial "Watch List" for the Biletnikoff Award, which is given annually to the nation's best college football receiver. A selection committee will pare down the list to 10 semifinalists in October. This is the second year that Bates has been named to the Biletnikoff watch list.
Thorpe Award
Mike Nelson is one of 44 prospects for the 1998 Jim Thorpe Award given annually to the nation's best defensive back in college football. Three finalists will be invited to ESPN's College Football Awards Show, broadcast December 10 from Disney World.
Butkus Award
Barry Gardner is one of 68 players on the Butkus Award's initial watch list. The Butkus Award is given annually to the nation's best collegiate linebacker. The list will be trimmed to 10 finalists on October 15 and three finalists will be announced via a national teleconference on November 12. The winner will be announced on December 11 at the Butkus Award Gala in Orlando.
Youth Movement
Traditionally, college freshmen arrive at school and are immediately given a red shirt to wear around for the whole year. Not really a "red shirt", but a redshirt year to get bigger, stronger and smarter in their new surroundings. Coach Barnett and his staff are not subscribing to the conventional wisdom this season. As many as 10 freshmen could see playing time in 1998.
True freshmen who have played in both of the first two contests are Kevin Bentley, a linebacker from Van Nuys, Calif., Blake Henry, a offensive tackle from Towson, Md., Wayne Lucier, a tightend/offensive tackle from Salem, N.H., and Sam Simmons, a wide receiver from Kansas City, Mo. Against Duke, Barnett utilized two more freshmen in Billy Silva and Rashidi Wheeler. Silva played on special teams while Wheeler saw three plays in the defensive backfield.
Other players who might see action this season are: Pete Chapman, defensive line, Aurora, Colo.; Raheem Covington, defensive back, Pine Hill, N.J.; and Chris Jones, linebacker, Garland, Texas.
A Star Is Born
True freshman Sam Simmons is the brightest star of the 1998 recruiting class, thus far. Simmons, who is ranked first in the nation in kickoff returns, has turned quite a few heads in the 'Cats first three games. A look at the wide receivers statistics follows:
Kick Returns: seven for 271 yards, 38.7 average, long of 67
Receiving: two for 46 yards, 23.0 average, long of 31
Rushing: five for 19 yards, 3.8 average, long of 11
Wildcats On The Tube
Since 1995, 35 of NU's 38 contests have been televised. In 1997, 11 of NU's games were selected for broadcast. This season the Duke (ESPN Regional), Wisconsin (ESPN), Illinois (ESPN Regional) and Michigan games (ESPN) have already been selected for broadcast. The UNLV (Las Vegas T.V. 33) game was televised in its market only, while the Rice contest was not televised.
Since NU football was first televised on October 27, 1951, when the 'Cats entertained the Wisconsin Badgers at Northwestern, the Wildcats have been featured on 85 occasions.
Nationally Ranked
The following Wildcats were ranked among the national leaders in the following categories:
Kickoff Return: Sam Simmons, 38.71 ypr -- 1st
Pass Receptions: D'Wayne Bates, 6.33 cpg -- (t) 27th
Receiving Yards: D'Wayne Bates, 92.67 ypg -- 29th
Interceptions: Mike Nelson, .67 ipg -- (t) 14th
Field Goals: Brian Gowins, 2.0 fgpg -- (t) 6th
Punt Returns Josh Barnes, 8.45 ypr -- 44th
As a team the Wildcats were ranked in the top 25 in the following categories:
Net Punting: 41.4 avg. -- 15thKickoff Returns: 29.5 avg. -- 12th
Pass Efficiency Defense: 47.37 comp. pct. -- 31st
Scoring Defense: 21.7 avg. -- 49th
The Champions
After the Rice contest, the NU coaching staff named the following players as plaque winners of the weekly "Champion Club." O-Line: Bryan LaBelle; O-Back: Brian Marshall; D-Line: Darryl Hodge, Thor Schmidt ; D-Back: Barry Gardner, Thor Schmidt; Kick: Brian Gowins, Sam Simmons & J.J. Standring, Rookie: Raheem Covington; Scout: James McCaffrey.
The Gary Barnett Show
Look for The Gary Barnett Show Tuesday, Sept. 22, at 4:00 p.m. on Fox Sports Chicago. The show will be repeated at 1 a.m. on Sept. 23 and 11:30 a.m. on Sept. 24. Dave Eanet, the voice of Wildcat Football on WGN Radio, serves as the host.
A new feature this year is "Ask the Coach." Fans can send in their questions to Coach Barnett at nusports.com and if their question is read on the show, they'll receive an Northwestern football cap courtesy of adidas and NU.
Up Next
Following the Wisconsin contest, the Wildcats return home to take on state rival Illinois. Game time for the Oct. 3 contest will be 11:10 a.m. CT. The game will be televised by ESPN Regional Television. Fans should check their local listings to see if the game will be broadcast in their area.
