While the Northwestern Wildcats certainly don’t get the same amount of national notoriety that some of their other Big ten conference counterparts get, judging by the last few seasons, maybe they should. You see, after going an impressive 9-5 last season, Northwestern has now quietly won 36 games over the past four seasons.
With the Big Ten title hopefuls looking to take another step forward in their evolution, now is a great time to find out what lies ahead for Pat Fitzgerald’s mostly underrated squad. Thanks to the expert betting information that you’re about to get on the Wildcats, you’re going to be able to maximize your wagers on Northwestern over the course of the entire 2019 NCAA college football season. Now, let’s get down to business.
Northwestern Wildcats 2019 College Football Season Betting Guide
2018 Betting Statistics
- ATS: 9-5 (W-L) / 7-5-2 (ATS) / 2-3-2 (Home) / 5-2-0 (Away) / 5-3-2 (Grass) / 2-2-0 (Turf)
- O/U: 7-7-0 (W-L) / 3-4-0 (Home) / 4-3-0 (Away) / 6-4-0 (Grass) / 1-3-0 (Turf) / 47.4 (Total)
Last season, not only did Northwestern win an impressive nine games, but the Wildcats also managed to post a solid 7-5-2 ATS mark while covering the chalk five times on the road. Northwestern went a dead-even 7-7 against their Over/Under total odds.
2018 Team Leaders
- Touchdowns: Clayton Thorson (9)
- Rushing: Isaiah Bowser (866)
- Passing: Clayton Thorson (3183)
- Receiving: Flynn Nagel (780)
- Interceptions: JR Pace (4)
Senior signal-caller Clayton Thorson rushed for a team-high nine scores while passing for 3,183 yards with 17 TD passes and an awful 15 interceptions. Sophomore running back Isaiah Browser exploded for the Cats last season by averaging a stellar 108.0 yards rushing over Northwestern’s final eight games to finish the season with a team-high 866 yards while senior wide receiver Flynn Nagel had a team-high 780 receiving yards. Sophomore defensive back JR Pace recorded a team-high four interceptions.
Offense
- Total Yards: 354.4 / Rank 108
- Passing Yards: 239.4 / Rank 59
- Rushing Yards: 114.9 /Rank 120
- Points Scored: 24.2 / Rank 100
- Field Goal %: 62.5 / Rank 110
Last season, the Wildcats were mostly uninspiring on offense in finishing 108th in total offense, 59th in passing, a dismal 120th in rushing and 110th in scoring (24.2 ppg).
Defense
- Total Yards: 390.9 / Rank 63
- Passing Yards: 261.2 / Rank 109
- Rushing Yards: 129.6 /Rank 26
- Points Allowed: 23.2 / Rank 41
- Field Goal %: 66.7 / Rank 36
While Northwestern was mostly awful on the offensive side of the ball last season, the Wildcats were rock-solid on defense in finishing 63rd overall, 109th against the pass, an encouraging 26th against the run and 41st in points allowed (23.2 ppg).
Outlook
While Northwestern will have a new quarterback under center in 2016 five-star recruit Hunter Johnson, many, like myself, believe the dual-threat quarterback signal-caller could almost immediately produce better results than the limited Thorson ever did. Johnson has a sure-handed target in senior wide receiver in B,en Skowronek, who has racked up consecutive 45-catch seasons the last two years. More importantly, the Wildcats looks to have found a potential star in running back Isaiah Browser.
Then, there’s the fact that the Wildcats look like they’re going to be strong on defense again after limiting the opposition to 23.1 points per game a year ago (41st). All-Big Ten defensive end Joe Gaziano leads a solid defensive line while linebacker Paddy Fisher is expected to challenge for some national awards. The secondary is also in good shape with a nice mix of youth and experience.
The Wildcats have what looks like a fairly difficult schedule in 2019 that starts off with a tough regular season opener at Stanford. A Week 3 home matchup against Michigan State is followed by consecutive road dates against Wisconsin and Nebraska and a pair of equally difficult home contests against Ohio State and Iowa follow. While I genuinely believe the Wildcats will challenge to close out their 2019 campaign with a five-game winning streak, Northwestern’s difficult early start could spell doom for this blossoming program. Eight wins sounds about right to me college football betting buffs. Now, place your wagers on the Wildcats accordingly all season long.
