Northwestern will play their home games in both 2024 and 2025 at scenic Martin Stadium

It’s the best time of the year, the start of college football. For the Northwestern Wildcats, the start of the year means playing home games in a temporary stadium. Since 1926, the Wildcats have played their games at Ryan Field. But at the end of the 2023-24 season, Ryan Field was completely demolished and is undergoing a massive $800 million renovation from the ground up. For the 2024 and 2025 seasons, Northwestern will have to make the adjustment of playing their home games at Lanny & Sharon Martin Stadium. This field was the former home to Wildcat soccer and field hockey, but with the addition of some bleachers and big video boards, it will serve as home for the football team for the next couple of years. Located within 200 feet of Lake Michigan, Martin Stadium sits approximately 15,000 people. With the wind coming off the lake and a limited number of fans, time will tell if the Wildcats will get a true home-field advantage. 

David Braun starts his first official year as Northwestern’s head coach. Braun served as interim head coach following the departure of Pat Fitzgerald and Braun deservedly earned the full-time coaching position midway through the 2023 season while leading the team to an 8-5 finish and a win against Utah in the Las Vegas Bowl. The Wildcats also bring in offensive coordinator Zach Lujan fresh off of winning back-to-back FCS championships as an offensive coordinator for South Dakota State. Northwestern is looking for continued improvement from Braun even though the Wildcats are projected near the bottom of the Big Ten.

Last year's MAC champions, the Miami Redhawks, are looking for a repeat championship and a chance at the College Football Playoff. Head coach Chuck Martin is becoming a legend at Miami and should become the all-time winningest coach in program history by the end of the year. QB Brett Gabbert is looking to stay healthy this season and lead the Redhawks to another successful season. On defense, the Redhawks are returning the MAC Defensive Player of the Year in linebacker Matthew Salopek. The rest of the defense is a mixed bag with players coming and going via the transfer portal. 

On the sunny Saturday afternoon, both teams had slow starts to the first quarter with each team punting on their opening drive. After a shanked punt of only 28 yards, Northwestern had great field position and the Wildcats got the scoring started with a field goal. Miami put together a drive that featured QB Brett Gabbert finding several targets including two passes to Cade McDonald for 28 yards. However, the Redhawks struggled to run the ball and after an 11-play, 6-minute drive finished with a field goal to tie the game. 

Northwestern struggled with snapping the ball in the second quarter which led to 2 fumble recoveries for Miami. The first led to a missed 50-yard field goal following a rather ineffective possession from Miami. Northwestern’s run game started to pick with Cam Porter and Caleb Komolafe sharing the carries. However, that drive ended at the 1-yard line after Miami recovered a dropped snap on a QB sneak. Luckily for the Wildcats, Miami ran out of time and took a knee to end the first half. Northwestern’s defensive line, led by Mac Uihlein smothered Miami’s offense, only allowing 25 rushing yards in the first half. 

During halftime, Wildcat Coach Braun told his players to settle down and realize that they are much better than how they were playing. And that’s what they did. With their first drive of the half, Quarterback Mike Wright showed off his skills, finding tight end Thomas Gordon for a 25-yard gain. The very next play, Wright scrambled for 13-yards and the Wildcat’s first touchdown of the season. Miami continued to struggle with the Wildcat defense, only picking up 2 first downs in the third quarter. Northwestern ended the third quarter with momentum following back-to-back first-down receptions to Bryce Kirtz. 

After Northwestern ended their drive with a field goal, the Redhawk’s offense was still not effective, starting the 4th quarter with an interception. Eventually getting the ball back, the Redhawks decided not to go for a 4th & 3 but settled with a field goal to cut the Northwestern lead to a single possession margin. The Wildcat’s run game chewed up the clock, but with a missed field goal, Miami found themselves with the ball down 13-6 and only 3 minutes left to tie the game. In an attempt to move the RedHawk offense down the field quickly, quarterback Brett Gabbert did not see DB Robert Fitzgerald jump the passing lane, and Northwestern sealed the game with an interception.  

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What the loss means for 0-1 Miami

Miami had moments of brilliance but fell short in the season opener. The Redhawks are definitely missing running back Rashad Amos (transferred to Ole Miss in the offseason) and they struggled to establish a consistent ground game, finishing the afternoon with only 40 rushing yards. Brett Gabbert displayed impressive skill, going 22-37 for 227 yards but he had two costly interceptions. Gabbert's favorite receiver was Cade McDonald who had 8 receptions with 105 yards. However, Miami lacked a reliable second receiving option, making them stagnant at times when McDonald was covered. Leading tackler Matt Salopek was all over the field for the Miami defense with 10 tackles and a fumble recovery. Unfortunately, Miami failed to record a sack against a strong Northwestern offensive line. The non-conference loss won't impact the RedHawk's MAC championship aspirations, but the non-conference slate still features Cincinnati and Notre Dame, so Miami will need to pull an upset or two to avoid a losing record entering MAC play. 

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What the win means for 1-0 Northwestern

Although they started slow, Northwestern’s offense shows promise. Transfer quarterback Mike Wright finished the game with 18-30 passing and 178 yards with no interceptions. Although probably not the goal for Coach Braun, Wright also led his team with 65 yards rushing and he was clearly one of the most athletic players on the field. The defense will definitely be heavily relied upon this year and they had a great first showing against the Redhawks. The defensive line was able to create lots of pressure and wracked up 4 sacks and 6 tackles for loss. Look for linebackers Mac Uihlein and Xander Mueller to continue to make big plays throughout the season. This win is a big confidence booster for a "new" coach, with a new offensive coordinator, and a new quarterback, playing in a new stadium.