American college football season
The2016 Northwestern Wildcats football team representedNorthwestern University during the2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led byPat Fitzgerald who is in his 11th season as the team's head coach. The Wildcats home games were played atRyan Field inEvanston, Illinois. They were members of the West Division of theBig Ten Conference.
Northwestern announced its 2016 football schedule on July 11, 2013. The 2016 schedule consists of 7 home and 5 away games in the regular season. The Wildcats will host Big Ten foesIllinois,Indiana,Nebraska, andWisconsin, and will travel toIowa,Michigan State,Minnesota,Ohio State, andPurdue.[1]
The team will host all three non–conference games which are against theDuke Blue Devils from theAtlantic Coast Conference (ACC),Illinois State Redbirds from theMissouri Valley Conference, and theWestern Michigan Broncos from theMid-American Conference (MAC).
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|
| September 3 | 11:00 a.m. | Western Michigan* | | ESPNU | L 21–22 | 30,635 |
| September 10 | 2:30 p.m. | No. 10(FCS)Illinois State* | | BTN | L 7–9 | 30,748 |
| September 17 | 7:00 p.m. | Duke* | | BTN | W 24–13 | 34,464 |
| September 24 | 6:30 p.m. | No. 20Nebraska | | BTN | L 13–24 | 40,284 |
| October 1 | 11:00 a.m. | atIowa | | ESPNU | W 38–31 | 67,047 |
| October 15 | 2:30 p.m. | atMichigan State | | BTN | W 54–40 | 75,625 |
| October 22 | 11:00 a.m. | Indiana | | BTN | W 24–14 | 35,417 |
| October 29 | 2:30 p.m. | at No. 6Ohio State | | ESPN | L 20–24 | 107,296 |
| November 5 | 11:00 a.m. | No. 8Wisconsin | | ABC | L 7–21 | 42,016 |
| November 12 | 11:00 a.m. | atPurdue | | BTN | W 45–17 | 30,548 |
| November 19 | 2:30 p.m. | atMinnesota | | BTN | L 12–29 | 38,162 |
| November 26 | 11:00 a.m. | Illinois | | BTN | W 42–21 | 30,022 |
| December 28 | 1:00 p.m. | vs. No. 23Pittsburgh* | | ESPN | W 31–24 | 37,918 |
- *Non-conference game
- Homecoming
- Rankings fromAP Poll released prior to game
- All times are inCentral time
|
- Schedule source:[2]
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Broncos | 0 | 6 | 10 | 6 | 22 |
| Wildcats | 7 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| #10(FCS) Redbirds | 0 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 9 |
| Wildcats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 7 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Blue Devils | 0 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 13 |
| Wildcats | 7 | 0 | 10 | 7 | 24 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| #20 Cornhuskers | 0 | 10 | 14 | 0 | 24 |
| Wildcats | 0 | 7 | 6 | 0 | 13 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Wildcats | 10 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 38 |
| Hawkeyes | 7 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 31 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Wildcats | 7 | 12 | 21 | 14 | 54 |
| Spartans | 14 | 3 | 14 | 9 | 40 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Hoosiers | 3 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 14 |
| Wildcats | 14 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 24 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Wildcats | 0 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
| #6 Buckeyes | 10 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 24 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| #8 Badgers | 0 | 10 | 3 | 8 | 21 |
| Wildcats | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Wildcats | 7 | 7 | 21 | 10 | 45 |
| Boilermakers | 10 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Wildcats | 0 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 12 |
| Golden Gophers | 6 | 6 | 3 | 14 | 29 |
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| Fighting Illini | 0 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| Wildcats | 14 | 7 | 14 | 7 | 42 |
Pittsburgh–Pinstripe Bowl
[edit] | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
|---|
| #22 Panthers | 3 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 24 |
| Wildcats | 0 | 14 | 7 | 10 | 31 |
Weekly Awards| Player | Award | Date Awarded | Ref. |
|---|
| Ifeadi Odenigbo | Co-Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week | October 3, 2016 | [3] |
| Justin Jackson | Big Ten Co-Offensive Player of the Week | October 17, 2016 | [4] |
| Solomon Vault | Big Ten Special Teams Player of the Week | October 17, 2016 | [4] |
| John Moten IV | Co-Big Ten Freshman of the Week | November 12, 2016 | [5] |
| John Moten IV | Big Ten Freshman of the Week | November 29, 2016 | [6] |
| Austin Carr | Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year | November 30, 2016 | [7] |
- ^"B1G RELEASES NINE-GAME CONFERENCE SCHEDULES FOR 2016, 2017" (Press release). Northwestern University Department of Athletics. July 11, 2013. RetrievedDecember 16, 2015.
- ^"2016 Northwestern Wildcats Football Schedule". FB Schedules. RetrievedDecember 16, 2015.
- ^"Big Ten Football Players of the Week".Big Ten Conference. Big Ten Conference. October 3, 2016. Archived fromthe original on October 5, 2016. RetrievedNovember 16, 2016.
- ^ab"Big Ten Football Players of the Week".Big Ten Conference. Big Ten Conference. October 17, 2016. Archived fromthe original on November 17, 2016. RetrievedNovember 16, 2016.
- ^"Big Ten Football Players of the Week".Big Ten Conference. Big Ten Conference. November 14, 2016. Archived fromthe original on November 14, 2016. RetrievedNovember 16, 2016.
- ^"Big Ten Football Players of the Week".Big Ten Conference. Big Ten Conference. November 29, 2016. Archived fromthe original on November 30, 2016. RetrievedNovember 29, 2016.
- ^Pereles, Zach (November 30, 2016)."Austin Carr wins Richter-Howard Receiver of the Year award".Inside NU. RetrievedDecember 16, 2016.
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