Stone named starting QB, Lausch to focus on baseball — Northwestern football’s Big Ten Media Day notes

Here’s what Wildcat players and head coach David Braun discussed in Las Vegas.

Football season is almost here.

With Opening Day just a little over a month away, the Big Ten hosted football media availability in Las Vegas, and fans and media members got the chance to hear from coaches and players from all 18 schools. Here’s what head coach David Braun, quarterback Preston Stone, running back Joseph Himon II and defensive end Anto Saka talked about throughout the day.

These quotes have been edited for brevity and clarity.

Braun on new AD Mark Jackson: “[I] want to take an opportunity to thank Mark Jackson, his partnership, his leadership, running our athletic department since he’s arrived in September. Could not be more grateful, more thankful for having someone in the foxhole, a true partner and just a solutions-based individual.”

Braun on the team in general after 2024: “Our team cannot wait to get going next Wednesday. This is a special group that returned in January, humble, hungry, frustrated after the 2024 campaign, but ultimately, a group that chose to show up, get to work and make incredible change as we approach the 2025 season. It started with great leadership from the leaders on our team, hard conversations, a willingness to really evaluate everything that we do within our program and really set and establish new standards for how we operate. And all of us in this room know good teams are well-led from coaches. Great teams are well-led from players and those in the locker room. And what we see going on with our team right now is a level of accountability, a level of ownership, from the young men on our team that I could not be more excited about.”

Braun on reasons to be excited:

“This has been an awesome offseason for the ‘Cats. It started in January with humility and a ton of hunger. Great winter block, incredible spring ball, by far the most challenging spring ball we’ve had at Northwestern in a long time. Very physical live tackling, challenging our guys to prepare themselves for the arena and competing in the Big Ten, and [I] feel like we have a team that’s in a really good space going into fall camp.”

Braun on defensive end Anto Saka: “Anto truly will be one of the best defensive ends in the country next year. Forever has had a unique ability to rush the passer. Has become a well rounded defensive lineman. Every-down player, his leadership continues to grow. Will have a pivotal impact on our defense this season.”

Braun on running back Joseph Himon II: “You go back and study our explosive plays over the last couple of years, something that shows up a lot is the ball is in Joe Himon’s hands, whether it’s on special teams or on the offense side of the ball. So excited for Zach Lujan to be able to find different ways to utilize Joe this year, get the ball in his hands and bring a truly explosive element to our backfield.”

Braun on now-officially-anointed starting quarterback Preston Stone: “Yes, I have been impressed with his football knowledge, his processing, his accuracy, his leadership, but what I’ve been most excited about and most impressed with is his ability to quickly build relationships with his teammates. He is someone that our team truly rallies around, enjoys being around and is a special leader, especially at that quarterback position.”

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During his opening statement, Braun went through a brief rundown of most positions on the team. Here’s what he had to say about each.

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On the quarterback room: “So excited about the elevated play in the quarterback room coming out of spring ball, the elements that Preston has brought to that room, the development of Ryan Boe as a young quarterback in that room.”

On Jack Lausch:

On the offensive line: “There’s true competitive depth in our offensive line room. The return of Caleb Tiernan at left tackle cannot be understated.”

On the running backs: “Joe Himon, Cam Porter, Caleb Komolafe, truly a backfield that has an opportunity to be impactful not only in the run game but also in the pass game.”

On the tight ends: “Our tight end room, unproven, but it’s deep. It’s diverse in terms of the skillsets that exist. It’s a room that will be utilized heavily throughout the season.”

On the wide receivers: “All you have to do is look at the stat line. Griffin Wilde, the transfer wide receiver from South Dakota State, very productive at the FCS level. [There’s an] opportunity for him to prove it in the Big Ten. The rest of that room in a lot of ways is unproven, but very talented and hungry [with a] chip on their shoulder. Excited about what that room is going to show not only the Big Ten but the country over the course of this year.”

On the defensive line: “I would argue we have one of the deepest defensive end groups in the league. Anto, Aidan Hubbard, Michael Kilbane, Richie Hagarty returning, the list goes on and on. Experienced [defensive] tackles in Carmine Bastone and Najee Story.”

On the linebackers: “Returned our starting Mike linebacker in Mac Uihlein. Mac is someone that makes everyone around him better.”

On the safeties: “Safety room is a group that’s really starting to thrive and excel. We’re going to have to find ways to get those guys on the field between Robert Fitzgerald, Damon Walters and Garner Wallace. Garner Wallace is a name to keep an eye on as someone that’s really blossomed late in his development at Northwestern.”

On the cornerbacks: “The return of Ore [Adeyi] after an injury last year, Josh Fussell really coming into his own, the addition of Fred Davis as a transfer. There’s some true depth in that corner room that we’re excited to lean into.”

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Here’s what Braun, Stone, Himon and Saka talked about in the later press conference and at the BTN studio set following Braun’s opening statement.

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Braun on revenue-sharing:

Braun on strength of schedule:

Himon on Braun: “I think he’s getting just more comfortable in his role of being a head coach, and I think that he just wants to be more assertive, more dominant and more confident, just with his approach to everything.”

Saka on Braun: “With these years under Coach Braun’s belt, now he has the vision, and he’s instilled that in us through every team meeting, through every workout he’s been at, that, simply, what happened last year can’t happen again. He’s been really involved with the offseason process, and he’s just been hyping the guys up and making sure we’re all in the mental space to go out and perform.”

Stone on Northwestern: “As soon as I stepped on campus in Evanston, I knew it was a special place led by a special head coach in Coach Braun. On my visit, I got to spend time with some of the leaders from the team from the previous year. You could tell that the player leadership was off-the-charts.”

Himon on Stone: “I think he’s a great player. I mean, on and off the field, I think he’s a great person. Obviously, he has a ton of experience coming from SMU. And I think during that 2023 season, I mean, he put up the numbers and showed why he’s one of the best quarterbacks in college football. And I think that that’ll really show this year.”

Saka on Stone: “Preston, he’s just a gamer, like I got that sense from the first moment he stepped on campus. One of the things that he said that really stuck out to me is ‘These workouts, I feel I should be doing every workout with y’all. So if y’all squat, I should be squatting, if I’m benching, then y’all should be benching, and vice versa.’ It’s just he wants to be a part of the team. He feels like he wants to be embodied in that Northwestern culture. So he just shows that he’s got that grit, he’s got that toughness. And then obviously, from spring ball practices and some of his film, he shows that he can sling the ball. So that’s always going to help.”

Stone on the wide receivers: “We’ve got an unbelievable wide receiver room with a ton of depth. I’d say, just with our offense as a whole, we have a very balanced attack and can hurt you in a lot of different ways. And Coach Lujan gives me the tools to run the offense and make checks at the line in a way that is very advantageous for the offense as a whole. And so I think for defenses that are scheming against us, it’s going to be very difficult to find out what you want to emphasize when you’re playing against us because we got guys like Joe, who can play receiver, play running back. We got great tight ends, great receivers. It’s going to be tough for some defenses in the fall.”

Saka on NFL Draft hype: “It’s been great, but obviously I can’t do anything I do without the guys on the side of the ball with me.”

Saka on the key to becoming an every-down guy: “Trusting my coaches. Trusting my D-line coaching, Coach Smith, trusting the strength staff, guys like Coach Spanos to get me where I need to be. I rely on Coach Smith to refine my technique on the first and second down so I can be an every-down player. Coach Spanos has helped me get stronger in the weight room, get stronger out on the field and put on some weight. I’m up 15 pounds. So it’s just a lot of honing in on the coaching points and just being a listener, being a student and just executing what’s being asked of me.”

Himon on new running backs coach Aristotle Thompson: “Man, Coach AT is a wonderful guy. Man, great person on and off the field. I think he’s a true professional. Comes with a ton of experience, a ton of knowledge towards the game, and he’s just been helping us understand the game holistically, like they do it in the pros, and honestly, he cares about us off the field too, so I feel like that helps just build our relationship with the guys, and he’s been a wonderful addition.”

Stone on defining success: “I think we have a championship mindset in everything we do. That starts in the weight room, starts in practice, and going into camp this next week, it’s going to be critical to define our culture as a team that finishes. We feel, I feel good about where we’re at right now and going into camp and going into our first few games, what I think is Northwestern football is going to be our ability to compete and fight in those championship rounds once we get into November.”

Braun on establishing the program: “It’s a long process, right? You can’t snap your fingers and do it overnight, but I’m excited about the growth that we’re having. Ultimately, a frustrating 4-8 season provides an opportunity for us to evaluate everything, be really honest with ourselves, and timing is a critical thing. The reality is, college football has been flipped on its head these last couple years in terms of the landscape that we’re navigating. This December and January provided an opportunity for us to evaluate everything: how we communicate, how we’re organized as a program, how we’re going to prioritize who we scout, how we recruit, how we utilize the transfer portal with the House settlement, how we’re going to leverage this revenue-share model and do it the Northwestern way. I’m really excited about where we’re at.”

Braun on this year’s team:

Braun on Stone: “In our preparation for Duke in 2024, we watched a bunch of 2023 SMU tape because Duke’s offensive coordinator had come from SMU. The second that Preston went in the transfer portal, as a program: ‘The quarterback from SMU? We got to go get that guy.’ The way that he is integrated in the team. Built relationships, learned the offense. There’s no one else in the country that I’d rather have as our starting quarterback, and again, yes, deep ball accuracy, processing, but the way that he has built relationships with our team, and the way that our team gravitates towards him — I’m really excited about the things that this offense is going to be able to do this fall.”

Braun on Stone becoming the starter: “Ultimately, if we’re going to say one of our core values is competition, you got to be honest with guys in terms of like, ‘Ultimately, you’re going to have to earn this.’ Competition and earned opportunity. You’re honest with him, ‘Preston, we have you here for a reason, we believe in you, we need to need to play better at the quarterback position next fall.’ And what he did throughout the offseason and what he put on display throughout spring, it was abundantly clear that he was our starting quarterback and going to position us to be at our best in the fall.”

Braun on how involved he is in the offensive gameplan and play-calling: “Certainly involved in terms of decision-making, going for it on fourth down. Very involved [in] high-level, strategically, how we’re approaching, how we’re evaluating our team and the things that they do well. And ultimately, the thing that we need to do a great job of is find[ing] ways in all three phases of the game, but specifically on offense, [to differentiate] ourselves. Keeping our opponents off-balance. And ultimately, with the development of the quarterback room, the development of that offensive line room, Cam Porter, Joe Himon, Caleb Komolafe in the running back room, the wide receiver room, very unproven, but really excited about that room, [I] feel like we’re positioned for Zach to be in a position where he can really catch his stride as a play-caller. There’s so much more comfortability on the offense with our team. And yeah, I’m involved with that. But what I will tell you is I trusted and hired Zach Lujan to call our offense. And I’ve seen it go the wrong way when head coaches feel like they got to be involved in everything, and they also ultimately become disruptive on Zach, and I’ve talked a lot about what we need to do, and [I’m] really excited about what I saw throughout the progression of spring ball. Excited for this fall.”

Braun on the offensive line/fourth downs: “I mean, ultimately, there is competitive depth in that room for the first time since I’ve been at Northwestern. There’s some really good football players that don’t know if they’re going to be starting for us in the fall or not, and we need to do a great job of establishing our wide-zone principles, utilizing the things that come off of that. And from a mentality standpoint, every single person on our team when it’s fourth and one, doesn’t matter where we’re out on the field, should be demanding that we’re going for it, trusting that behind that offensive line we can pick up that one yard. And it’s been a neat experience for that offensive line, the work of Bill O’Boyle and Ryan Olson. We’ve gone to more of an NFL model where it’s truly an offensive line coach in Bill O’Boyle and Ryan Olson, our run game specialist, assistant o-line coach. Like, we talk about development, but we’re investing in that development. Bill’s ability to be frequently around our players even in spring recruiting while Ryan was out on the road has started to pay off.”

Braun on new Ryan Field: “It’s really exciting. And when you have an opportunity with Class of 2026 recruits to step into that venue and be down at field level and see it with your own eyes, the design, the development, the attention to detail that’s gone into this project, it’s amazing. It will be the best venue in football.”

Braun on the lakefront stadium: “It didn’t produce enough wins. We’re excited to create a home-field advantage and win a lot of games on the lakefront this year. But it did provide one of the most unique experiences in all of college football. It did allow for our fan base to truly stay completely engaged with our program. And ultimately, and in my opinion most importantly for our players and our students at Northwestern, being right on campus — it was the right move and the perfect bridge to the new Ryan Field.”

Braun on what is considered a success: “That’s a great question. What I will tell you is in terms of the way that we evaluate how we’re operating as a program, we’re asking ourselves, individually and collectively, ‘Have we operated in a way today that is reflective of winning a Big Ten Championship?’ And if we can answer yes to that as we go throughout the season, that’s a successful season. Does that mean eight wins and a Bowl Championship, nine wins and a potential College Football Playoff bid? Time will tell, but we’re not going to put a ceiling on this team.”

Braun on whether the new NIL/revenue-sharing legislation has been a positive for NU: “Absolutely. I will be as bold to say I have so much reverence and appreciation for what this program has achieved over the years, both on and off the field. But timing, and I’m not saying, ‘Turn it around in 12 months and snap your fingers and make it happen.’ But going into the future, long-term, building a model of sustainability on a rock-solid foundation, we can state that, ‘Why can’t we do it better than we’ve ever done it before under this new model?’”

Braun on NIL’s impact on players: