The Rutgers Scarlet Knights face Northwestern in week one of the 2023 season. What has been going on at Northwestern is not the point of this; it is simply the cause for discussion. Now that Northwestern has fired their head coach after all that has been released, it will be interesting to see how this affects Rutgers’ start of the season. This will be looked at purely from a football standpoint, as Rutgers will want to start their season strong. Here is a look at how the Northwestern coaching change could help the Rutgers Scarlet Knights begin the 2023 season 1-0.
2022 Scarlet Knights and Wildcats
In 2022, Rutgers ended their season with a 4-8. They did pretty well considering their expectations heading into the season. While, of course, fans would have preferred for the team to win at least five games to qualify for a bowl game, winning against a Big Ten opponent at home was a big deal. Putting up a fight with their defense, no matter the opponent, was impressive. They will still be seen as the lesser team in the conference but have more potential than people give them credit for.
Rutgers RB Samuel Brown (27) – Ben Solomon/Rutgers Athletics
Northwestern definitely struggled last season. They ended 2022 with a 1-11 record. The only team that they beat was Nebraska. It was the first game of the season, which was great, but they lost every game following that win. The Wildcats will be looking for a way to come back this season, and luckily for them, winning two games would be an improvement. Rutgers and Northwestern did not face in 2022 but will open up their college football season together.
Last Time the Two Faced
The last time the Scarlet Knights faced the Northwestern Wildcats was in 2021. The two played on October 16th. Northwestern had the home-field advantage and won the game 21-7. Obviously, being two years ago, these two teams will be completely different the next time they face. According to ESPN, Rutgers ended the game with 159 passing yards, one passing touchdown, and 63 rushing yards. Northwestern ended the game with 267 passing yards and two passing touchdowns. The offense also had 135 rushing yards and one rushing touchdown.
Rutgers QB Gavin Wimsatt (2) – Andrew Mills/NJ Advanced Media
What to Expect
Alright, now to what really matters, what is to come. Rutgers and Northwestern will open up the season together. The Scarlet Knights may not have the highest hopes, but they are expected to do much better than they did in 2022. The biggest need will be to stay healthy, and if they can do that, even their offense should do better. Rutgers can work off the run game based on their returning players. The Scarlet Knights will also have a new offensive coordinator, which is expected to make a big impact on the team.
Having to let go of a head coach in July is hard to deal with. The program will be dealing with other outside noise as well, but looking at it solely on losing their head coach; it will be difficult. Pat Fitzgerald has been the Northwestern head coach ever since 2006. There is no time to go through any major process when it comes to hiring a new Head Coach. As of July 11th, the interim head coach is expected to be David Braun. Braun, who was hired in January as the Defensive Coordinator, has been managing the program.
Northwestern WR Flynn Nagel (2) – John Munson/NJ Advance Media
Losing a head coach in mid-July will be a tough adjustment. At least for them, it was before the 2023 preseason. This does give Rutgers some room to breathe in week one. The Scarlet Knights may not know exactly what to expect, but they will have time to learn how Braun, assuming he is the interim, coaches and will still have film on the players. Just based on how the 2022 season ended, Rutgers could be the favorites heading into the game.
The Scarlet Knights’ defense vs. the Wildcats’ offense will be what to watch for the most and why Rutgers may have the edge. Northwestern went through five quarterbacks in 2022. Quarterback Ryan Hilinski had the most reps in 2022, but there are a lot of unknowns heading into the 2023 season. The quarterbacks threw 17 interceptions compared to ten touchdowns, according to ESPN. This could definitely be something for Rutgers to look forward to this coming season.
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights and the Northwestern Wildcats will face off on September 3rd at SHI stadium. It will be interesting to see how the coaching change will affect Northwestern and how Rutgers will be able to take advantage of being their first opponent.
