Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats, Horned Frogs Ready to Tangle in Texas
8/29/2004 12:00:00 AM | Football
Aug. 29, 2004
NU-TCU Football Game Notes
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EVANSTON, Ill. -- With its two-week preseason camp concluded in Kenosha, Wis., Northwestern now turns its attention to the 2004 season opener. The Wildcats head to Fort Worth, Texas to battle the Horned Frogs of TCU, one of last year's surprise stories in college football. Kickoff is set for 8:36 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 2 with the game being televised to a national audience (ESPN2).
Northwestern is fielding one of its most experienced clubs in recent years -- 18 of its 22 offensive and defensive starters are either juniors or seniors. The other four starters are sophomores. In addition, all of the Wildcats' key specialists are either juniors or seniors. Two years ago, when Northwestern and TCU last met, the Wildcats were primarily a freshman- and sophomore-oriented club.
Offensively, the 'Cats are paced by third-year starting quarterback Brett Basanez (Arlington Heights, Ill./St. Viator) and three offensive linemen who are in their third year as starters: Zach Strief (Milford, Ohio/Milford), Matt Ulrich (Streamwood, Ill./Streamwood) and Trai Essex (Ft. Wayne, Ind./Paul Harding). Receivers Ashton Aikens (Detroit, Mich./Detroit Country Day) and Mark Philmore (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Reynoldsburg), along with running back Noah Herron (Mattawan, Mich./Mattawan) provide NU with experience at the skill positions.
On defense, the Wildcats feature some veteran experience at each unit. Northwestern's defensive line, however, may be the Wildcats' most seasoned position group. Seniors Luis Castillo (Garfield, N.J./Garfield) and Colby Clark (Austin, Texas/Westlake) join juniors Loren Howard (Scottsdale, Ariz./Saguaro) and Barry Cofield (Cleveland Heights, Ohio/Cleveland Heights) up front. Junior linebacker Tim McGarigle (Chicago, Ill./St. Patrick) is the 'Cats' top returning tackler, and cornerback Marvin Ward (Landover, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt) and safety Dominique Price (Louisville, Ky./DuPont Manual), both seniors, anchor the secondary.
Senior place-kicker and punter Brian Huffman (Schaumburg, Ill./ Schaumburg) leads the list of returning specialists.
For a complete set of notes, please open the above PDF link.
