Wildcats roll to 1st win of season behind Hull
Evan Hull ran for 126 yards and two touchdowns, leading Northwestern to its first victory of the season with a 24-6 win over Indiana State on Saturday at Ryan Field in Evanston.
Hull led the way for a Wildcats rushing unit that finished with 209 yards, surpassing last week’s 117 total yards against Michigan State by halftime. He ran for 51 yards on Northwestern’s opening drive and capped it with a 3-yard touchdown run.
“When you look at where you’re at as a Big Ten team playing against a FCS team, you have to pound the ball,” Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald said. “For the most part, when we targeted things right and executed I thought we did a good job.”
The Wildcats (1-1) never trailed in their first matchup between the programs, rebounding from a 38-21 loss to the Spartans.
After throwing for 283 yards against Michigan State, Northwestern quarterback Hunter Johnson went 9-for-16 for 66 yards with a touchdown and an interception in his second start.
Freshman Anthony Tyus III rushed for 71 yards on 10 carries for the Wildcats, who outgained Indiana State 275-169 in total yards.
“The credit goes to our guys,” Fitzgerald said. “They were the ones who executed cleaner, they looked like they had fun. We’re far from where we need to be and that’s what’s most exciting to me as this group’s coach: We can be so much better and we have to commit to that and I know the guys will.”
Indiana State’s Anthony Thompson passed for 132 yards and a touchdown, completing 21 of 34 passes in his second start after transferring from Northern Illinois. The Sycamores managed only 31 rushing yards on 22 carries.
The Wildcats went 92 yards and scored on a Johnson 25-yard pass to Malik Washington to make it 14-0 with 1 minute, 42 seconds left in the first quarter.
Brandon Joseph energized Northwestern to start the second half. He returned a punt 46 yards that set up a 47-yard field goal and returned the next punt 50 yards.
Hull added his second touchdown at 7:37 of the fourth quarter when he scored on a 13-yard run to make it 24-0.
“It’s very motivating for the offense, especially when they give us so many short fields,” Hall said of the team’s strong defense. “When we come into the huddle and we have that momentum, it’s so important to capitalize on it.”
Indiana State got on the board late when Thompson completed a 9-yard touchdown pass to Zach Larkin with 3:32 remaining. Despite allowing the two early scores, the Sycamores kept it a two-possession game at halftime.
“We came in to win the game and we were confident we could,” Indiana State coach Curt Mallory said. “We didn’t flinch. We came here to battle and that’s what this team is about. We’ll continue to stick together.”
The Wildcats will play their first road game of the season Saturday against Duke.