New Ryan Field, David Braun Usher in Transformative Era of Northwestern Football

By: Charlie Spungin, NUSports.com

Come Friday night’s 7 p.m. CT kickoff against Penn State, Northwestern football will be back on Central Street for the first time in 1,049 days.

The Wildcats will play their first-ever contest in the $850 million New Ryan Field for the season’s Big Ten home opener.

“This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for an entire football program and athletic department to open up a facility that I would say is the best football stadium in the world,” Dan and Susan Jones Family Head Football Coach David Braun said.

The stadium, which has a capacity of 35,000, is the most expensive college football stadium ever constructed. The game against the Nittany Lions is a sellout.

Fifth-year linebacker Kobie McKinzie, who has recorded 22 tackles, two tackles for loss, two pass breakups and one sack this season, said he’s never seen a stadium as incredible as the New Ryan Field.

“The venue itself, it’s unbelievable,” McKinzie said. “Not only that, but the engagement you’ll get from the student section and the furthest seat being 150 feet away. I think that when everybody really gets in that stadium and gets going, it’s going to be loud and unbelievable. It’s the best stadium in the United States. It’s a great opportunity that we call it our home.”

McKinzie said that his favorite part about the new stadium is the Wildcat Wall, the standing-only student section modeled after European football. Sixth-year defensive back Ore Adeyi lauded the team’s new state-of-the-art locker room, which he called an “NFL-style locker room” with the nameplates for each player.

After the team practiced inside the facility for the first time on Sunday, fifth-year running back Joseph Himon II — who scored his first career touchdown at the Old Ryan Field — said he is eager to take the field in a stadium Braun described as “reflective of winning a national championship.”

“It’s going to be special,” Himon said. “That place is going to be rocking. It’s going to be truly special to walk down the walls and run onto the field and be able to play a Big Ten game on a Friday night. There’s nothing more that you can really ask for.”

Braun stepped up to the helm to coach Northwestern in the final season of the Old Ryan Field in 2023. Since then, he has become the second head coach in program history to win multiple bowl games, and his 11 Big Ten wins over his first three seasons are tied for the most by a Wildcat head coach in program history.

But Braun didn’t step into the easiest job. Beginning the 2023 season with an interim tag next to his name, Braun took over a program coming off a one-win season. Despite that, Northwestern finished the season 8-5 with a Las Vegas Bowl victory, and through it all, he proved why he was the right coach to lead the Wildcats.

“He was able to show everyone that even if you’re in a tough spot, if you just do what you’re supposed to do–even when it’s hard–that’s going to be something that leads to positive things,” fourth-year defensive lineman Michael Kilbane said. “He didn’t back down. He did everything a head coach should do. He leaned in to support everyone, and he was able to be a beacon of hope for everyone. I think that was really powerful, and I think that’s a big reason why our team rallies around him.”

The 2023 Big Ten Coach of the Year, Braun has continued to raise the expectations at Northwestern. Braun has repeatedly made it clear that the program isn’t satisfied being a middle-of-the-pack team in the Big Ten. He’s striving to win a Big Ten and a national championship.

McKinzie, who played his first four collegiate seasons at Oklahoma and made a College Football Playoff appearance with the Sooners, knows that Braun has the chance to lead the Wildcats to greatness.

“The energy that he has and his passion for both sides of the ball doesn’t go unnoticed,” McKinzie said. “There was never a moment last week where I looked at our head coach and thought, ‘Man, he doesn’t believe we can win this game.’ The thought of losing never crossed my mind, and I know it never crossed his, either. I saw that look from him throughout the entire game.”

Both Himon and Adeyi called Braun a “player’s coach”, saying they can approach the fourth-year head coach’s office at any time to talk about any subject.

Adeyi, who missed the entire 2024 season due to injury, said Braun’s care for his players extends well beyond the field.

“Coach Braun has always been there for me,” Adeyi said. “When I got injured, he was at my surgery. Once I woke up, I saw him there talking with my parents. I feel like our relationship is more off the field. Coach Braun is more concerned with me as a person than a player, which I feel like is a great trait for a coach to have. I feel like that makes me want to play better for him.”

Northwestern enters Friday’s game 2-1, seeking its first 3-1 start since 2020. The Wildcats have also added talent through the transfer portal and brought in new coaches, including offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, as Braun continues to build the program.

Now, Ryan Field is here. Everything is coming together for the Wildcats. The new era is here.

“We already had nice facilities,” Himon said. “Seeing the practice facilities we already had gave me a little bit of an edge to come here, but now that we have that new stadium, I think it’ll definitely get more attention from recruits. Who wouldn’t want to play in that stadium for the next four or five years of their career?”