Friday night at Northwestern’s lakefront Martin Stadium was a chance for a breath.
Sandwiched between an ugly season-opening loss at Tulane and next weekend’s Big Ten opener against No. 6 Oregon was the arrival of Western Illinois — an FCS opponent that had lost by 49 points to Illinois a week earlier.
Northwestern seized the opportunity, cruising to a 42-7 victory it will use to build self-belief, no matter the quality of the opponent.
“Any time you win a game it’s a confidence builder,” quarterback Preston Stone said. “The biggest task for us is to just gain confidence from the win we had tonight but don’t drink the Kool-Aid. … Just keep our heads down and keep working.”
Here are five takeaways from the game.
1. Coach David Braun didn’t have an immediate update on running back Cam Porter’s injury but said he’s “optimistic.”
Porter, in his sixth year at Northwestern, had to be helped off the field in the third quarter after totaling 12 carries for 91 yards and a touchdown. He later rode on a cart out of the stadium, was announced to have a lower body injury and didn’t return to the game.
Porter, who missed the 2021 season after tearing his ACL, had 126 carries for 501 yards and six touchdowns in 2024.
He opened the scoring for Northwestern on Friday when he broke free for a 43-yard touchdown, and he had three other carries for a total of 52 yards on the first drive.
“One thing I know about Cam Porter, one of the toughest, most resilient guys I’ve ever been around,” Braun said. “Staying optimistic that Cam will be back with us at full strength sooner rather than later.”
Stone said he and his teammates are praying for Porter, whom he called “one of the best human beings you’ll ever meet.”
“You can see on the field what he’s able to produce, but what you don’t see is just how unbelievably caring and dedicated and just a good man he is,” Stone said. “I told him in the fourth quarter — when he went down, watching him get helped off the field with his chin up and his eyes clear, that was one of the most grown-man things I’ve ever seen.”
2. Stone needed a boost after a disastrous first start — and he got one.
Stone, who transferred from SMU this season, had a brutal opener in Northwestern’s 23-3 loss to Tulane in New Orleans in Week 1, throwing four interceptions and losing a fumble
But he put that behind him Friday against an inferior opponent. Stone completed 21 of 29 passes for 245 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers.
“Coming off a game we only scored three points, (the Tulane performance) was disappointing,” Stone said. “But I think I can speak for the whole offense that there wasn’t any disbelief or doubt in what we could put together.”
Stone threw his first touchdown pass as a Northwestern quarterback with 6 minutes, 44 seconds left in the first quarter. He scrambled forward to avoid pressure and threw a sidearm dart to Hayden Eligon II for a 5-yard touchdown pass.
He added a 6-yard scoring pass to tight end Hunter Welcing in the back-right corner of the end zone on fourth-and-1 to cap an 83-yard drive and give Northwestern a 22-0 halftime lead.
Braun declared his faith in Stone after the Tulane game, and he said he handled the aftermath the right way.
“Ultimately, it would have been really easy for Preston to hang his head, feel sorry for himself,” Braun said. “He showed up at Sunday’s practice flying around, was buzzing around on Monday. Confident, resilient, excited to bounce back for his team. I think it really speaks to his character and who he is as a competitor.”
3. Stone called wide receiver Griffin Wilde a “safety valve.”
Wilde, who had 71 catches for 1,147 yards and 12 touchdowns last season at South Dakota State, has formed a clear connection with Stone.
He finished the game with a team-high five catches on nine targets for 94 yards.
That included a 46-yard catch in the first quarter, when he got several steps on the nearest defender and then caught a pass slightly behind him. It sparked the Wildcats’ second scoring drive.
Stone had some missteps Friday.
His second throw — a 19-yard pass to Ricky Ahumaraeze — was nearly picked off by defensive back Justin Richardson. Stone also threw a wobbly ball into a group of players, but Wilde came down with an impressive 16-yard catch.
Stone appreciated how Wilde came through.
“If it didn’t work out how we scripted it up — and you could see tonight, there were a couple of balls I might have left inside or high or low — Griff did a great job of making me right,” Stone said.
4. Northwestern’s defense pitched a shutout until the final minutes.
Western Illinois remained scoreless until, with the Wildcats starters on the bench, backup quarterback Carson Carswell threw an 8-yard touchdown pass to Christian Anaya with 2 minutes, 47 seconds to play in the game. Earlier, WIU kicker Antonio Chadha missed a 48-yard field-goal attempt when the football bounced off the left upright.
It was a strong night for the Wildcats defense, which had eight pass breakups. Linebacker Mac Uihlein intercepted a tipped ball. Defensive backs Fred Davis II and Josh Fussell each had three pass breakups.
“Needs to continue to show up,” Braun said. “Ultimately getting hands on footballs is great, but let’s convert some of those to interceptions as well. You can start to see a level of continuity and confidence showing up in that group as Fred gets a little more comfortable back there. Excited about where the group is headed.”
5. Braun believes the Wildcats can objectively evaluate their performance as they prepare for Week 3.
Northwestern faces a much bigger test in No. 6 Oregon on Sept. 13 — a challenge Braun doesn’t take lightly.
“We need to respect our opponent,” Braun said. “Oregon is not a difficult opponent to respect. It will be very clear in all of our prep over the summer and as we take a look at their first couple of games, the talent they have, how well coached they are.”
But Braun also had his players repeat a phrase twice in the locker room: “Our opponents are nameless and faceless and it’s all about us.”
His point was the Wildcats need to look at the film to see where they improved and where they’re still lacking, regardless of who they beat Friday and who’s ahead next week. When it comes to Stone, Braun believes the quarterback can look at Friday’s performance and realize he doesn’t need to do it all.
“There are opportunities for explosive plays in the passing game, but sometimes handing the ball off and a 4-yard carry is still a good offensive play, and a check-down that leads to a 7-yard gain,” Braun said. “Ultimately, two things he should take away from tonight is he’s a darn-good quarterback and he’s also supported by a lot of darn-good players around him, and he doesn’t have to carry all the load.”