2021 Northwestern
3–9 (1–8 Big Ten), coached by Pat Fitzgerald. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Ohio 35–6Sep 25
By 29 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingLost to Purdue 14–32Nov 20
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 3 | vs Michigan State | L 21–38 | 69% |
| Sep 11 | vs Indiana State | W 24–6 | 83% |
| Sep 18 | at Duke | L 23–30 | 57% |
| Sep 25 | vs Ohio | W 35–6 | 67% |
| Oct 2 | at Nebraska | L 7–56 | 47% |
| Oct 16 | vs Rutgers | W 21–7 | 65% |
| Oct 23 | at 6Michigan | L 7–33 | 25% |
| Oct 30 | vs Minnesota | L 14–41 | 44% |
| Nov 6 | vs 19Iowa | L 12–17 | 33% |
| Nov 13 | at 20Wisconsin | L 7–35 | 18% |
| Nov 20 | vs Purdue | L 14–32 | 37% |
| Nov 27 | at Illinois | L 14–47 | 42% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to Illinois 47–14; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 12th in the Big Ten.
In program history: The 96th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 133 on file).
- Record
- 3–9
- Conference
- 1–8 tied for 12th in Big Ten
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 199–348
- Coach
- Pat Fitzgerald
- Elo
- 1399 −170 this season
- SP+ rating
- -11.1 No. 106 of 130; offense No. 118, defense No. 72
- SRS
- −8.2 No. 100 of 130 in FBS
- Returning
- 14% of last season’s EPA, No. 127 of 128
- Recruiting class
- No. 50 roster talent No. 44 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Mike Bajakian
- Defensive coordinator
- Jim O’Neil
- Offense
- Spread
- Defense
- 4–3/3–4 hybrid
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | -0.01 | 37% | 1.25 | 123rd of 130 |
| Defense | 0.25 | 48% | 1.15 | 108th of 130 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.05 off 0.24 def | 39% off 47% def | — | 117th off 114th def |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.0 | own 27 | 20% allowed |
| Defense | 4.3 | own 31 | 12% caused |
CORE rating -18.7, 116th of 130 (offense -8.8, defense 9.9).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Ryan Hilinski QB | 978 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Andrew Marty QB | 6 TD |
| Rushing yards | Evan Hull RB | 1,009 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Evan Hull RB | 7 TD |
| Receiving yards | Stephon Robinson WR | 625 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Marshall Lang TE | 3 TD |
| Tackles | Chris Bergin LB | 132 tkl |
| Sacks | Adetomiwa Adebawore DL | 4.5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Brandon Joseph S | 3 INT |
Top recruits in the 2021 class
| Jordan Mosley WR | ★★★★ | No. 319 |
| Mac Uihlein LB | ★★★★ | No. 322 |
| Caleb Tiernan OT | ★★★★ | No. 354 |
| Najee Story DL | ★★★ | No. 430 |
| Anthony Tyus III RB | ★★★ | No. 579 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2021 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.870 |
| Running backs | 1 | 3.0 | 0.876 |
| Receivers | 3 | 3.3 | 0.870 |
| Offensive line | 3 | 3.3 | 0.866 |
| Defensive line | 1 | 3.0 | 0.888 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 3.5 | 0.884 |
| Defensive backs | 3 | 3.0 | 0.856 |
| Athletes and specialists | 2 | 3.0 | 0.838 |
| Whole class | 16 | 3.2 | 0.866 |
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.
Roster 115
The 2021 roster115 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2021 line; 63 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 6
The 2021 portal Ryan Hilinski PRO | ★★★ | from  South Carolina |
 Jeremy Meiser DL | ★★★ | from  Old Dominion |
 Andrew Clair RB | ★★★ | from  Bowling Green |
 Stephon Robinson Jr. WR | ★★★ | from  Kansas |
 Trent Carrington CB | ★★★ | from  Presbyterian |
 Jeffery Pooler Jr. DE | ★★ | from  West Virginia |
Transfers out 7
 Andrew Leota DE | ★★★ | to  Auburn |
| Gunner Maldonado S | ★★★ | to  Arizona |
| Drake Anderson RB | ★★★ | to Arizona |
| Cameron Ruiz CB | ★★★ | to  Temple |
| Isaiah Bowser RB | ★★★ | to  UCF |
| Jeremiah McDonald S | ★★★ | no new school on file |
| Kyric McGowan WR | ★★★ | to  Georgia Tech |
All-Big Ten
1 first team, 2 second teamFirst team
Peter SkoronskiOTCoaches-2; Media-1
Second team
- Chris BerginLBCoaches-3; Media-2
Brandon JosephDBMedia-2
From Wikipedia’s 2021 all-conference team article, with the selectors that named each player (AP-1: the Associated Press’s first team).
2021 Big Ten standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michigan | 8–1 | 12–2 | 3 |
 Ohio State | 8–1 | 11–2 | 6 |
| Michigan State | 7–2 | 11–2 | 9 |
| Iowa | 7–2 | 10–4 | 23 |
| Wisconsin | 6–3 | 9–4 | |
| Minnesota | 6–3 | 9–4 | |
| Purdue | 6–3 | 9–4 | |
 Penn State | 4–5 | 7–6 | |
| Illinois | 4–5 | 5–7 | |
 Maryland | 3–6 | 7–6 | |
| Rutgers | 2–7 | 5–8 | |
| Northwestern | 1–8 | 3–9 | |
| Nebraska | 1–8 | 3–9 | |
 Indiana | 0–9 | 2–10 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.