Northwestern throttles Indiana 24-14 for third straight win

 Indiana and Northwestern have the look of two Big Ten teams passing in midseason.

Quarterback Clayton Thorson threw for 285 yards and three touchdowns on Saturday, and the resurgent Wildcats bolted to an early lead then coasted past the Hoosiers 24-14 for their third straight victory.

In a reversal of its 1-3 start to the season, Northwestern (4-3, 3-1) took a 24-3 lead and wasn't seriously threatened the rest of the way.

"Without a doubt, (the difference) is the way we've prepared," Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgerald said in a hoarse voice that confirmed his more vocal leadership of late. "We really had to change gears with the way we practiced and worked out, a spring-ball type mentality."

Meanwhile, Indiana (3-4, 1-3) dropped its third consecutive game after three victories in the first four starts.

"To get out of this deal, we've got to batten down the hatches, circle the wagons and get better," coach Kevin Wilson said. "Five games left. We need to notch some victories."

Thorson became the first Northwestern signal-caller since at least 2000 to throw three or more touchdown passes in three consecutive games. He completed 24 passes in 43 attempts and did not throw an interception.

Running back Justin Jackson led the Northwestern ground attack with 106 yards in 28 carries.

"Everything worked for us in the first half," said Thorson, who left the game briefly because of an unspecified upper-body injury midway through the final period. "We ran for a bunch of yards. We passed for a bunch of yards. We were really balanced."

The Wildcats took the opening kickoff and drove 70 yards for a touchdown, as the Hoosiers had no answer for their no-huddle offense. Thorson connected with Solomon Vault on a 17-yard pass to complete the 11-play drive.

After Indiana was unable to move the ball on its next possession, Northwestern needed only five plays to score again.

Thorson completed three straight passes for first downs, the last to Austin Carr for a 34-yard touchdown. It marked the sixth straight game in which Carr scored on a pass reception.

Griffin Oakes cut the deficit to 14-3 on a 21-yard field five minutes later, but the Wildcats responded immediately.

On the first play of the second period, Thorson hooked up with Macan Wilson on a 32-yard strike to climax a nine-play, 79-yard drive.

"We were a little flat-footed early . but they got a handle on it, got a good bead on it," said Wilson, whose team didn't allow a point in the second half. "That's a credit to not just the coaches but the kids. Because they settled down, and they needed to."

Nick Westbrook scored Indiana's lone touchdown on a 3-yard run late in the third period.

Forced to throw often in the second half, Hoosiers quarterback Richard Lagow completed 35 of 59 attempts for 319 yards. He was intercepted twice.

Westbrook paced the receivers with 10 receptions for 126 yards.

TAKEAWAY

Indiana: While the defense continues to hold its own, there has been little evidence of the high-powered attack that Wilson was expected to bring with him from Oklahoma five years ago. The offense scored just five touchdowns and 51 points in the last three games. "Same story -- can't run it and can't score points. So, poorly-coached," Wilson said.... Fitzgerald and White served as Northwestern assistants under since-deceased coach Randy Walker in the 2001 season. "Coach Walker was looking down on us today," Fitzgerald said.

Northwestern: After a slow start, Jackson has busted out in a big way with 465 yards rushing in the last three games. Jackson totaled 359 yards on 60 carries in victories at Iowa and Michigan the last two previous weeks. ... Carr caught seven balls for 125 yards. He was the Big Ten leader in and receptions (43), yards (595) and TDs (eight) at the start of the day. ... The six-pointer was the first for Wilson in his career.

UP NEXT

Indiana hosts Maryland at Memorial Stadium on Saturday.

Northwestern faces a stiff test against Ohio Stadium on Saturday, when they meet second-ranked Ohio State in Columbus.

Northwestern rolls past Michigan State 54-40

 Justin Jackson rushed for 188 yards and two touchdowns, and Northwestern moved the ball almost at will after a slow start, beating Michigan State 54-40 on Saturday night to hand the Spartans their fourth straight defeat.

Clayton Thorson threw for 281 yards and three TDs for the Wildcats, who rallied from an early 14-0 deficit. Michigan State (2-4, 0-3 Big Ten) is now mired in its longest losing streak in coach Mark Dantonio's 10 seasons at the helm.

The Spartans hadn't lost four in a row since 2006, and this was the most points they'd allowed since a 56-21 loss to Wisconsin in 2003.

Northwestern held Michigan State to 3 yards of offense in the second quarter.

The Spartans made a change at quarterback for this game, starting redshirt freshman Brian Lewerke instead of Tyler O'Connor, but Michigan State's problems extend well beyond one position.

The Spartans went back to O'Connor in the third quarter, and he threw for 281 yards and three touchdowns, but Michigan State couldn't stop Northwestern (3-3, 2-1) with any consistency.

Solomon Vault returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown late in the third quarter to put the Wildcats up 40-31, and the Spartans never made it closer after that.

Michigan State is off to its worst start after six games since 1994, when the Spartans were 2-4 and later forfeited away the wins.

THE TAKEAWAY

Northwestern: After starting the season with losses to Western Michigan and Illinois State, the Wildcats have rebounded to win three of four. Northwestern has to be encouraged by the ease with which it shrugged off an early deficit Saturday, and although the secondary was beat for a couple long touchdowns in the second half, the Wildcats will win their share of games if they keep creating big holes for Jackson.

Michigan State: Dantonio shook things up by starting Lewerke at quarterback, then watched his defense give up so many yards and points it didn't really matter who was throwing passes for Michigan State. The Spartans were a mess on defense and still don't block well enough on offense to put together many sustained drives.

O'Connor did do his best to reclaim the quarterback spot with his work late in the game.

UP NEXT

Northwestern: The Wildcats host Indiana next weekend.

Michigan State: The Spartans play at Maryland on Saturday night. If you don't count games forfeited from 1994, the last time Michigan State lost five games in a row within one season was when the Spartans dropped their first five in 1991.

Carr's 3 TD catches help Northwestern down Iowa 38-31

 Justin Jackson ran for 171 yards andAustin Carr caught three touchdown passes as Northwestern held on to beat Iowa 38-31 on Saturday.

Trae Williams' interception in the final minute secured the win for the Wildcats (2-3, 1-1 Big Ten), who scored touchdowns on three straight drives in the second half for their first win at Kinnick Stadium since 2009.

The Hawkeyes had scored 17 straight points to take a 24-17 lead in the third quarter before Northwestern's surge and late stops.

"For us to weather that storm and then not to flinch after they went on a 17-0 run, I thought showed some maturity from this group and then to get the finish was critically important," Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said. "We've got to squeeze everything out of this group. I think they're coming along for us."

C.J. Beathard threw for 204 yards and a touchdown for Iowa (3-2, 1-1), which snapped its nine-game regular-season Big Ten winning streak.

Northwestern's Clayton Thorson threw for 164 yards. Carr - his favorite target and the Big Ten's receptions leader - has caught a touchdown pass in four straight games.

Jackson became the fourth player in Northwestern history to reach 3,000 career yards. The junior's 58-yard touchdown run late in the third quarter regained the lead for the Wildcats.

Defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo had four of Northwestern's six sacks.

The Hawkeyes had two chances to tie the game in the final seven minutes, but were forced to punt and then Williams intercepted Beathard at Northwestern's 36-yard line.

Iowa's mistakes - pass protection and penalties - were costly. The Hawkeyes had 70 penalty yards, including personal fouls on Northwestern's last scoring drive.

"We're not good enough to give up 15 yards, whether it's a sack, a penalty," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. "We're just not good enough, and not many teams are."

Iowa's LeShun Daniels Jr. and Akrum Wadley combined for 107 rushing yards and three touchdowns. Wadley has seven touchdowns in three games against Northwestern.

THE TAKEAWAY

NORTHWESTERN: The Wildcats entered Saturday as the worst scoring offense in the Big Ten, but exploded for a season-high 38 points in their first road game. Northwestern took advantage of good field position early. It had three scoring drives of 75-plus yards in the second half.

"The offense has been there, but I just think we've had self-inflicted wounds," Fitzgerald said.

IOWA: Beathard didn't have time to find targets in his first game without top receiver Matt VandeBerg, who broke his foot this week in practice. Beathard was sacked six times and had to scramble to throw most of the game.

UP NEXT

NORTHWESTERN: The Wildcats have a bye next week before visiting No. 17 Michigan State on Oct. 15.

IOWA: The Hawkeyes travel to Minnesota with hopes of holding onto the "Floyd of Rosedale" trophy. Iowa got whipped 52-14 in its last trip to Minnesota two years ago.

Armstrong Jr. leads No. 20 Nebraska over Northwestern 24-13

It looks as if No. 20 Nebraska's return to the Top 25 won't be a one-week affair.

Tommy Armstrong Jr. threw for 246 yards and ran for a career-high 132 yards to lead the Cornhuskers to a 24 -13 victory over Northwestern on Saturday night in the Big Ten opener for both teams.

Nebraska (4-0) remained unbeaten coming off a tight win over Oregon that vaulted the `Huskers into The Associated Press poll for the first time since December 2014.

They lost two fumbles near the Northwestern goal line in the first half, but scored two touchdowns in the third quarter to stretch their lead from three to 11.

"We got two touchdowns early in the game, but there's no points on the board," coach Mike Riley said. "So how are you going to react to that? I'm really pleased with our reaction."

The Wildcats (1-3) matched their loss total from last year when they went 10-3.

Armstrong went 18 of 29, hitting Alonzo Moore with a 59-yarder in the first half and throwing a 4-yard touchdown strike to Cethan Carter that made it 17-7 early in the third after Aaron Williams intercepted Clayton Thorson's pass in the end zone.

Terrell Newby ran for 69 yards and a touchdown . Moore had 72 yards receiving, and Nebraska finished with 556 yards in all.

Thorson threw for 249 yards and had a 42-yard touchdown run. But he also threw two interceptions and was sacked four times, bringing his Big Ten-leading total to 15.

Austin Carr had another big game for Northwestern with 109 yards receiving and a touchdown, giving him at least one scoring catch in three straight games. But a team that seemed to be getting on track with last week's win over Duke after opening with losses to Western Michigan and Illinois State came up short against the resurgent Cornhuskers.

"These guys better figure it out pretty quick," coach Pat Fitzgerald said. "They better walk out of the locker room. They better hug whoever they love. They'd better go to bed and they'd better wake up and they've got to get ready to get their rear ends coached off this week because that's what's gonna happen. I'm not gonna sit here and I'm not gonna take it and I'm not gonna accept it. They'd better buckle it up. They'd better start hydrating right now because it's not acceptable the way we're playing.

"It starts and ends with me so I'm gonna fix it."

Nebraska drove 80 yards for a touchdown after Williams picked off Thorson in the end zone on the opening drive of the second half, with Carter's 4-yard TD catch making it 17-7.

Northwestern answered with a 24-yard TD pass from Thorson to Carr, but Jack Mitchell's extra-point attempt hit the left upright. The Cornhuskers then went 79 yards with Jordan Westerkamp running it in from the 10 to boost the lead to 24-13.

THE TAKEAWAY

NEBRASKA: The Cornhuskers ultimately took charge after those early turnovers and continue to roll along in their second season under Mike Riley. It's a big improvement over last year, when they had to rally to finish 6-7.

NORTHWESTERN: Coach Pat Fitzgerald has been criticizing his team for not finishing drives. He'll probably have more to say about it, considering Northwestern racked up 388 yards. But the defense had its difficulties, too.

HOLD ON

Nebraska might have put this one away in the first half if not for the turnovers.

On the game's opening possession, Newby fumbled as he tried to lung across the goal line at the end of a 49-yard run with two defenders in pursuit. The ball popped out as he contorted himself in mid-air along the sideline and bounced through the end zone.

Nebraska had the ball on the 2 late in the second quarter when a spinning Devine Ozigbo lost a fumble.

POLL IMPLICATIONS:

Nebraska certainly appeared to strengthen its standing in the poll with this win, taking control after a shaky first half.

KICKING COMPETITION

While Fitzgerald said Jack Mitchell will continue to handle kickoffs, field-goal duties and extra points are now up for grabs. Mitchell will be competing this week with Matt Micucci after he booted a 27-yard field goal wide right and hit the upright on a missed PAT.

UP NEXT

NEBRASKA: The Cornhuskers return home to face Illinois, which handed them one of their most disappointing losses a year ago. That was on a last-second touchdown and extra point in Champaign.

NORTHWESTERN: Northwestern goes on the road for the first time when it visits Iowa - a 14-7 winner at Rutgers after a surprising loss to North Dakota State.

Northwestern gets first win, 24-13 over Duke

After losing to a Mid-American Conference opponent to open the season, then an FCS school in week two, Northwestern got on the right track by beating a Power Five school.

Clayton Thorson threw for 320 yards and three touchdowns, Justin Jacksonrushed for 94 yards and Northwestern defeated Duke 24-13 on Saturday night.

Northwestern avoided losing its first three games to start the season, something it hasn't done since 1992. They suffered losses to MAC-favorite Western Michigan and FCS-power Illinois State.

"I think I saw a bunch of guys that celebrated their rear ends off," said Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald. "I think it just shows if you have perseverance and grit and you stay the course that you can do whatever you set your mind to."

After being held to 7 points by Illinois State last week, Northwestern (1-2) scored on the game's opening drive. Thorson connected with Garrett Dickerson for a 26-yard touchdown reception, capping a 10-play, 75-yard drive.

"I think it meant a lot. It was just the first drive of the game and it was Garrett's first touchdown catch, so that was huge, and it was fun for us," said Thorson. "When we get into that situation we have to capitalize more when we get down there.

Northwestern capitalized on Blue Devils' punter Austin Parker's gaffe in the third quarter to take a 14-7 lead. Duke (1-2) was lined up to punt, Parker dropped the snapped and wasn't able to get the punt away. Northwestern took over at the Duke 44. On the next play, Thorson found Solomon Vault wide open in the middle of the field for the go-ahead touchdown.

"We have shown flashes - which is not what you want in game three - of at times being a really good football team. We have shown flashes, unfortunately, of doing things bad football teams do. We are consistently inconsistent," said Duke coach David Cutcliffe.

Thorson also connected with former walk-on Austin Carr on a 58-yard touchdown pass in the fourth quarter.

Duke's Daniel Jones threw for 279 yards with one interception. Jela Duncan had 53 yards rushing and a touchdown.

"I felt like we were prepared going in and knew what they were trying to do. It's all about execution from there," said Jones.

Byron Fields picked off Thorson's pass at the 1, setting up a 99-yard, 12-play drive to tie the game at 7 with 3:03 left in the second quarter. The drive was highlighted by Shaun Wilson's 39-yard catch from Jones.

Thorson was hurried or on his back for most of the game. Duke was throwing a number of blitz packages at the Northwestern offensive line, which they weren't able to pick up.

"He saw every pressure that I think he will see in his career," said Fitzgerald. "He's won 11 games as a starter, and I think he hung in there pretty well with the amount of time he got."

TAKEAWAY

Duke: The Blue Devils failed to finish on multiple drives. Late in first quarter on fourth-down and 10 at the Wildcats' 38, it looked as if Duke was going to convert on a fake punt, but Erich Schneider, who was wide open in the middle of the field, slipped on the grass and fell before he had a chance to catch Parker's pass. Jones threw a pick to Godwin Igwebuike at the Northwestern 22 at the end of the first quarter and AJ Reed missed a 48 yard field goal attempt early in the fourth quarter."We shot ourselves in the foot a couple of times and it really hurt us in the end," said safety DeVon Edwards.

Northwestern: Despite Thorson getting sacked five times, Northwestern showed some life on offense. The opening scoring drive featured Jackson, and then Thorson was able to open it up in the air in the second half.

GETTING DEFENSIVE

Fitzgerald backed his coaching staff after his staff received criticism with losses to Western Michigan and Illinois State. "I'm very happy for our staff. It's the all-time winningest staff in Northwestern history. We had a couple tough losses and some people are going to take shots at them and I think they shut off the noise pretty well," said Fitzgerald.

UP NEXT

Duke: The Blue Devils visit struggling Notre Dame on Saturday.

Northwestern: The Wildcats' season-opening four-game home stand continues Saturday night against Nebraska, which beat Oregon on Saturday.

Slattery's 33-yard FG leads Illinois State over NU, 9-7

Although it appeared his missed extra point might prove to be the difference, Sean Slattery said his thoughts never turned negative.

"Coach told me at halftime, `You're gonna hit a big one,'" Slattery said. "That gave me some confidence. You just have to believe in yourself and get it done."

Slattery connected on a 33-yard field goal as time expired to give Illinois State a 9-7 upset of Northwestern on Saturday.

Jake Kolbe completed 30 of his 41 passes for 287 yards and two interceptions, Anthony Warrum had nine receptions for 116 yards and George Moreira had 57 yards on 12 carries and a touchdown for Illinois State (2-0).

"We feel like we belong playing teams like this," Kolbe said. "We stressed all week we're good enough to play with teams like that."

Clayton Thorson was 17 of 41 for 191 yards for Northwestern, which fell to 0-2.

Justin Jackson had 39 yards on 11 carries for the Wildcats before leaving the game early in the fourth quarter with a leg injury.

Thorson connected with Austin Carr on a 10-yard touchdown pass on a fourth-down play early in the fourth quarter that gave the Wildcats a 7-6 edge with 9:04 remaining. That appeared to be the winning score before Kolbe led the Redbirds on an 11-play, 77-yard drive in the final 3:11 for the winning score.

"We knew that today was going to be a battle," Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said. "Did I think it was going to be this type of battle from a standpoint of scoring? Quite frankly, no. I thought we'd be able to move the ball better on the ground. I thought, obviously, we'd be able to pitch and catch better, so you've got to credit ISU's defense. They did a great job up front.

Slattery missed the extra point following Moreira's 6-yard touchdown run just before halftime and missed a 49-yard attempt in the first quarter.

"Even when they went up 7-6, I always felt like we were gonna come back and win the game," Illinois State coach Brock Spack said.

TAKEAWAY

Illinois State: The Redbirds suffered a 37-3 loss in their previous visit to Ryan Field in 2010. That was coach Brock Spack's second season and Saturday's result shows how far the program has come since then. With Kolbe and Warrum leading a high-powered offensive attack, the Redbirds should again be one of the better teams in FCS.

Northwestern: The struggles against Western Michigan in the opener weren't an aberration. Once again, the offense could not find any consistency and Jackson could not bail them out because the Illinois State defense was keying on him. Thorson cannot seem to get on the same page with his receivers and completions over 10 yards were rare. Defensively, the Wildcats struggled to get off the field and continue to get pushed around in short-yardage situations.

STUFFED

Jackson left early in the fourth quarter and wasn't much of a factor before that, averaging just 3.5 yards a carry.

"Early on, I felt like we dominated the line and stopped him," Redbirds linebacker Alejandro Rivera said.

The Northwestern players didn't disagree. "Offensive line wise, I thought we got our butts kicked up front," guardConnor Mahoney said. "The credit goes to Illinois State. We didn't bring it today and that falls on the whole group."

NO WORK OF ART

The Wildcats won 10 games last season, but now have dropped two games by a total of three points. They lost 22-21 to Western Michigan in the opener.

"I wouldn't say either of the teams we've played have put together a Picasso," Fitzgerald said. "Obviously, we haven't either. Our hallmark around here is we typically win close games because we make plays down the stretch and right now that isn't happening, so obviously that's my responsibility. I've got to find a way for us not to be in these types of close games."

UP NEXT

Illinois State: The Redbirds host Eastern Illinois on Saturday.

Northwestern: The Wildcats season-opening four-game home stand continues Saturday night against

Terrell, Bogan lead Western Michigan over Northwestern 22-21

Offenses are granted four downs in college football, so Western Michigan coach P.J. Fleck figured he might as well use them all.

The Broncos going 4 for 4 on fourth down was a key in their upset of Northwestern on Saturday.

"We didn't come here to lay up. We came here to win a football game," Fleck said. "I believe in this football team and I believe in our short-yardage system. It comes down to attitude, how and will, and I believe that's what we do well."

Zach Terrell threw for 218 yards and a touchdown and Jamauri Bogan had a 1-yard touchdown run on fourth down in Western Michigan's 22-21 victory.

Terrell was 26 of 36 as Western Michigan's offense controlled the play throughout and held the ball for 39 minutes.

Justin Jackson had 124 yards rushing and three rushing touchdowns, including a 46-yarder, for Northwestern.

Clayton Thorson completed 15 of 22 passes for 196 yards. His fumble at the goal line in the final minutes thwarted Northwestern's comeback attempt.

"I saw a lot of space," Thorson said. "Could have scored, but even if I didn't, I should have gone down or something. Can't fumble on the 1."

The outcome essentially came down to two close plays at each goal line in the final minutes. Bogan's touchdown with 5:38 remaining gave the Broncos the lead. The play was reviewed because there was a question whether his knee was down before he crossed over. The call stood.

"Our fullback, Leo (Ekwoge), went in there and destroyed things, our offensive line played really well and God was with me and he helped me tuck my leg just a little bit more," Bogan said.

On the ensuing possession, Northwestern drove down the field before Thorson was hit by linebacker Robert Spillaneand fumbled. Davontae Ginwright recovered for the Broncos for the touchback before stepping out of bounds. The play was reviewed because Ginwright threw the ball back on the field - it was recovered by Northwestern - but it was ruled he stepped out before getting rid of the ball.

"Not to discredit Western Michigan, but when you play as poorly as we did, those calls, the football gods, they go against you." Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgerald said. "You get what you earn, and that's what we deserve."

Fleck was pumped, but was careful not to make too much of the win.

"How big is it? It's as big as the outside world makes it," he said. "Inside our circle, it's 1-0, and that's it."

STRONG DEBUT

Western Michigan freshman kicker Butch Hampton converted three of four field goals with a long of 47. He missed his first attempt, hitting the crossbar from 50 yards out.

"How 'bout your first kick as a true freshman from 50?" Fleck said. "I think you saw what he could do."

MENTOR-STUDENT

As a 35-year-old coach, it's not surprising that Fleck looks up to Fitzgerald, who took over the Wildcats when he was 31.

"He is what I want to become, and that's a huge compliment to him because he does things the right way," Fleck said. "He is one of my all-time mentors."

THE TAKEAWAY

Western Michigan: The Broncos were picked as favorites to win the Mid-American Conference this season and they showed why. Terrell ended last season as the seventh-most efficient quarterback in the country and picked up right where he left off. "Zach Terrell is the toughest football player I've ever coached," Fleck said.

Northwestern: The Wildcats tied a school record with 10 wins last season, but the opener showed they have a ways to go before they can think of achieving that type of production this season. For now, Jackson will be the workhorse on offense until Thorson and the young receiving corps work out the kinks. Defensively, the Wildcats struggled to get consistent pressure on Terrell and were regularly outmuscled on short-yardage plays.

UP NEXT

Western Michigan: The Broncos host North Carolina Central on Saturday night.

Northwestern: The Wildcats host Illinois State on Saturday in the second of four straight home games to start the season.