2002 Northwestern
3–9 (1–7 Big Ten), coached by Randy Walker. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Navy 49–40Sep 21
By 9 points, its widest win.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | at Air Force | L 3–52 | 40% |
| Sep 7 | vs TCU | L 24–48 | 46% |
| Sep 14 | vs Duke | W 26–21 | 67% |
| Sep 21 | at Navy | W 49–40 | 51% |
| Sep 28 | at Michigan State | L 24–39 | 32% |
| Oct 5 | vs 5Ohio State | L 16–27 | 24% |
| Oct 10 | at Minnesota | L 42–45 | 23% |
| Oct 19 | at 20Penn State | L 0–49 | 20% |
| Oct 26 | vs Purdue | L 13–42 | 41% |
| Nov 2 | vs Indiana | W 41–37 | 44% |
| Nov 9 | at 6Iowa | L 10–62 | 10% |
| Nov 23 | vs Illinois | L 24–31 | 33% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to Illinois 31–24; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 10th in the Big Ten.
In program history: The 106th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 133 on file).
Players on this team
Barry CofieldDefensive tackle
Brett BasanezQuarterback- Tim McGarigleLinebacker
- Shaun HerbertReceiver
- Marquice Cole
- Mark PhilmoreReceiver
Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 2002.
- Record
- 3–9
- Conference
- 1–7 tied for 10th in Big Ten
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 272–493
- Coach
- Randy Walker
- Elo
- 1352 −101 this season
- SP+ rating
- -11.5 No. 89 of 117; offense No. 58, defense No. 107
- SRS
- −11.9 No. 93 of 117 in Division I-A
- Recruiting class
- No. 63
- Offensive coordinator
- Mike Dunbar
- Defensive coordinator
- Greg Colby
- Captains
- Pat Durr and Austin King
- Offense
- Spread
- Defense
- 4–3
Top recruits in the 2002 class
| Brandon Horn WR | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Alexander Webb PRO | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Derell Jenkins ATH | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Rick McDole OT | ★★★ | No. 670 |
| Jim Devine SDE | ★★ | No. 898 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2002 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.800 |
| Running backs | 1 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Receivers | 4 | 2.3 | 0.775 |
| Offensive line | 1 | 3.0 | 0.800 |
| Defensive line | 3 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Defensive backs | 4 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Athletes and specialists | 1 | 3.0 | 0.800 |
| Whole class | 17 | 2.2 | 0.775 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Drafted in 2003
The 2003 draft| Rd 4 | Austin King C | Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
All-Big Ten
1 second teamSecond team
Jeff RoehlOGCoaches-2; Media-2
From Wikipedia’s 2002 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).
2002 Big Ten standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ohio State | 8–0 | 14–0 | 1 |
| Iowa | 8–0 | 11–2 | 8 |
 Michigan | 6–2 | 10–3 | 9 |
| Penn State | 5–3 | 9–4 | 16 |
| Purdue | 4–4 | 7–6 | |
| Illinois | 4–4 | 5–7 | |
| Minnesota | 3–5 | 8–5 | |
 Wisconsin | 2–6 | 8–6 | |
| Michigan State | 2–6 | 4–8 | |
| Northwestern | 1–7 | 3–9 | |
| Indiana | 1–7 | 3–9 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.