Northwestern credit belief for NCAA title win
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NBC Sports
20 hours ago
- NBC Sports
While new stadium takes shape, Northwestern looks to re-establish winning foundation
EVANSTON, Ill. — The steel frame for Northwestern's new home stands out as a beacon of promise on the site of the old stadium. The sections filled in by concrete are more signs of progress. A little more than a year after the school broke ground on a new Ryan Field, the framework for something special appears to be in place. 'It truly will be the best football venue in the country,' coach David Braun said. 'It won't affect us in 2025. It's certainly affecting our recruiting in a positive manner. But so much to look forward to in 2026.' As for what Northwestern has to look forward to this year? The Wildcats come into Braun's third season looking to bounce back after going from winning eight games in 2023 to finishing 4-8 last year and near the bottom of the Big Ten with a 2-7 mark. Only Maryland and Purdue had worse records in league play. Northwestern has a new quarterback in SMU transfer Preston Stone and one more season playing in a temporary lakefront stadium before moving into what figures to be a sparkling new home. New QB Northwestern struggled at quarterback the past few seasons. The Wildcats hope Stone can change that. Things didn't go the way Stone would have liked last year, when he started the first three games before Kevin Jennings took over. The Mustangs advanced to the College Football Playoff. But in 2023, Stone started the first 12 games, throwing for 3,197 yards with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions before breaking a leg in the regular-season finale. SMU went on to win the AAC championship. Jack Lausch, who started the final 10 games for Northwestern last season, informed Braun in June that he was leaving the team to focus on baseball. Keep an eye on Left tackle Caleb Tiernan earned an 88.9 pass blocking grade from Pro Football Focus last season that ranked sixth among all tackles. He gave up just one sack over the final six games. Run it Northwestern's running backs combined for 910 yards rushing a year ago, with Cam Porter, Joseph Himon II and Caleb Komolafe accounting for 897 of them. All three are back. Porter led the team with 501 yards and Himon was second with 257, but the Wildcats will need to get more from their run game. They were 17th in the Big Ten in rushing at 98.5 yards per game. Lakefront living Northwestern will play five of its seven home games in one of college football's most unique settings, plus two more at Wrigley Field against No. 14 Michigan and Minnesota. The Wildcats were 2-3 on campus last season and lost both conference games, to Indiana and Wisconsin. But with its location along the lake and views of the Chicago skyline, the pop-up stadium was a stunner. Wisconsin's strength coach even made good on a promise and took the plunge after the Badgers' victory. The place is getting a bit of an upgrade this year, with more premium seating and improved audio and video. The schedule Though the Wildcats miss defending national champion Ohio State, the schedule is hardly a breeze. Northwestern opens against a potential playoff team when it visits Tulane on Aug. 30, and No. 7 Oregon, the defending Big Ten champion, visits on Sept. 13. The games against Michigan and Minnesota at Wrigley Field are on Nov. 15 and 22. The Wildcats also have some difficult road games, with trips to No. 2 Penn State on Oct. 11, USC on Nov. 7 and No. 12 Illinois on Nov. 29. Northwestern's home opener is against Western Illinois on Sept. 5.
Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Chicago Tribune
All is well with Molly Welge. As Marquette recruit becomes a starter for Benet, ‘we expect her to be a star.'
Benet middle hitter Molly Welge may be the best player you've never seen. The 6-foot-3 senior recorded 34 kills and eight blocks in limited playing time last season, when she was a backup to starters Lynney Tarnow and Gabby Stasys. Stasys is a freshman at Yale, so Welge has moved into the starting lineup. 'I think people are in for an awakening because she played a lot last year, just not in the role that we expect her to play this year,' Benet coach Brad Baker said. 'We expect her to be a star. We expect her to be one of our go-to players, and we're excited for her.' Senior setter Ellie Stiernagle is excited to work with Welge, a Marquette commit who will form a fearsome duo in the middle with the 6-5 Tarnow, a Wisconsin commit. 'She's grown so much,' Stiernagle said of Welge. 'She's an absolute dog on the court right now. I can literally set her from anywhere and she'll just slam the ball down.' Welge intends to do that with regularity. 'As a middle, I really don't get set a lot,' she said. 'So every time I do get set, I'm just trying to put the ball down and get a kill and batter the ball every time I touch it.' That's something Welge did mostly in practice last season. She watched from the bench as the Redwings (40-2) reached the Class 4A state championship match for the third straight year. 'I'm really excited to step into a new role and do the best that I can,' Welge said. 'I've got a good connection with Ellie already. We can make that even better and continue to do our thing.' Welge gives the Northwestern-bound Stiernagle plenty of options. 'She's super versatile,' Stiernagle said. 'She will literally hit any set I give her, even if it's a little iffy. 'She's very athletic. She goes really fast on both pins, especially blocking. We get a lot of blocks from her, so she's a really great middle right now.' Welge wasn't bad at all a year ago. She was just part of a stacked roster that included 12 Division I commits, so she had to wait her turn. 'I honestly think it made me better and more competitive,' she said. 'Practices were really competitive. Lynney and Gabby made me compete harder. 'No matter what my role is on the team, I'm trying to do that 100%. I'm excited to keep competing.' Stiernagle has witnessed the result of Welge's competitive fire. 'Even last year, she gave both middles a run for their money,' Stiernagle said. 'Every day she was super competitive, like never backing down. 'She got so much better during this last club season, and you can see it right now.' Baker has liked what he has seen so far. Opponents, however, might not. 'Her blocking game, she's always been quick, and now her blocking has really improved,' Baker said. 'We think offensively she could be better than Gabby. 'I don't know who is going to stop her. She's been pretty unstoppable in practice, and we don't expect that to change.' It's a frightening prospect for opponents considering Tarnow has been unstoppable for a couple of seasons. Most teams are happy to have one great middle, and Benet has two. 'She's going to be a very key part of our offense this year,' Stiernagle said of Welge. Welge would have started long ago on just about any other team, but she wouldn't trade her experience at Benet for more playing time. 'It's such a competitive environment,' she said. 'Everyone is here for a reason. Everyone wants to get better. We're all pushing each other every day. It's just a really great competitive environment, and I'm really grateful to be a part of it.' The Redwings aren't favored to win the state title this season, although they're considered to be a contender. That's just fine with Welge. 'I think we're going to be competing even harder this year now that we lost some girls,' she said. 'But I think the mindset doesn't change, no matter who is on the court. 'I think we're going to be a team to look out for. We always finish strong.'
Associated Press
a day ago
- Associated Press
While new stadium takes shape, Northwestern looks to re-establish winning foundation
EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — The steel frame for Northwestern's new home stands out as a beacon of promise on the site of the old stadium. The sections filled in by concrete are more signs of progress. A little more than a year after the school broke ground on a new Ryan Field, the framework for something special appears to be in place. 'It truly will be the best football venue in the country,' coach David Braun said. 'It won't affect us in 2025. It's certainly affecting our recruiting in a positive manner. But so much to look forward to in 2026.' As for what Northwestern has to look forward to this year? The Wildcats come into Braun's third season looking to bounce back after going from winning eight games in 2023 to finishing 4-8 last year and near the bottom of the Big Ten with a 2-7 mark. Only Maryland and Purdue had worse records in league play. Northwestern has a new quarterback in SMU transfer Preston Stone and one more season playing in a temporary lakefront stadium before moving into what figures to be a sparkling new home. New QB Northwestern struggled at quarterback the past few seasons. The Wildcats hope Stone can change that. Things didn't go the way Stone would have liked last year, when he started the first three games before Kevin Jennings took over. The Mustangs advanced to the College Football Playoff. But in 2023, Stone started the first 12 games, throwing for 3,197 yards with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions before breaking a leg in the regular-season finale. SMU went on to win the AAC championship. Jack Lausch, who started the final 10 games for Northwestern last season, informed Braun in June that he was leaving the team to focus on baseball. Keep an eye on Left tackle Caleb Tiernan earned an 88.9 pass blocking grade from Pro Football Focus last season that ranked sixth among all tackles. He gave up just one sack over the final six games. Run it Northwestern's running backs combined for 910 yards rushing a year ago, with Cam Porter, Joseph Himon II and Caleb Komolafe accounting for 897 of them. All three are back. Porter led the team with 501 yards and Himon was second with 257, but the Wildcats will need to get more from their run game. They were 17th in the Big Ten in rushing at 98.5 yards per game. Lakefront living Northwestern will play five of its seven home games in one of college football's most unique settings, plus two more at Wrigley Field against No. 14 Michigan and Minnesota. The Wildcats were 2-3 on campus last season and lost both conference games, to Indiana and Wisconsin. But with its location along the lake and views of the Chicago skyline, the pop-up stadium was a stunner. Wisconsin's strength coach even made good on a promise and took the plunge after the Badgers' victory. The place is getting a bit of an upgrade this year, with more premium seating and improved audio and video. The schedule Though the Wildcats miss defending national champion Ohio State, the schedule is hardly a breeze. Northwestern opens against a potential playoff team when it visits Tulane on Aug. 30, and No. 7 Oregon, the defending Big Ten champion, visits on Sept. 13. The games against Michigan and Minnesota at Wrigley Field are on Nov. 15 and 22. The Wildcats also have some difficult road games, with trips to No. 2 Penn State on Oct. 11, USC on Nov. 7 and No. 12 Illinois on Nov. 29. Northwestern's home opener is against Western Illinois on Sept. 5. ___ Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college football: and
