by Pete Fiutak

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Fitzgerald was thrown to the wolves in the most impossible of circumstances. Too young, too green, and needing to somehow keep the program going while also dealing with transition from Walker's loss, Fitzgerald did what he could. By all accounts, he's one of the bright, up-and-coming head coaches, and while he said and did all the right things in deference to Walker's legacy, it's been hard for him to put his stamp on things and take full ownership of one of the most unique programs in college football.

While it's not fair to blame losses just on Fitzgerald — Northwestern had its share of clunkers under Walker, too — it's safe to say the team wouldn't have lost the Duke game last year, it probably wouldn't have lost to Iowa, and it definitely wouldn't have blown the Michigan State game in 2006 and would've at least split with New Hampshire and Nevada if it had a veteran head man at the helm. However, consider those a few steps back to potentially take a giant leap forward.

From the first moment, Fitzgerald has never allowed anyone to have an excuse for anything. He has said he demands a Big Ten championship, and he truly believes he can make Northwestern football something special on a continuous basis. Considering he was one of the key pieces for the mid-1990s teams that were so amazing, it's hard not to believe him.

He has brought in Mick McCall, an inventive offensive mind from Bowling Green, to add a little more zip to the attack. He also snapped up defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz, who was canned by Bret Bielema at Wisconsin this offseason, to attack more on defense. Fitzgerald was an aggressive player and is an aggressive coach, and he has the assistants to fit his style. Now he has the team to follow suit.

Going 6-6 is always a positive at Northwestern, especially since there were three wins over bowl-bound teams, but that should be just the springboard to a big year. QB C.J. Bacher gets almost all his key weapons back, Tyrell Sutton is the league's best all-around back, the defense is loaded with veterans, and the special teams should be excellent. And the coaching is in place.

This is Fitzgerald's time to open up the throttle and see what he and his team are capable of accomplishing. Unlike the last two years, there should be expectations for a winning season and a bowl, and while Fitzgerald has never shot for anything lower, he has to prove he can really be the man who makes Northwestern a steady player in the Big Ten. It starts now.

What to watch for on offense: Bacher to be the triggerman for an interesting offensive scheme. Using more hurry-up and no-huddle, McCall's goal is to control the tempo. A great quarterbacks coach at Bowling Green, McCall will look to get Bacher to make quick reads and quick throws and to make everyone around him better by getting the ball to the veteran playmakers in places where they can do something with it. This was the league's No. 1 passing offense last year, and while it wasn't efficient, it should be this season as Bacher will make more short-to-midrange throws and will try to keep defenses on their heels.

What to watch for on defense: Hankwitz to release the hounds. He doesn't have the most athletic defense around, but it's far speedier and has far more talent than in the past. Fitzgerald has done a good job of recruiting to a type, and Walker brought in some nice talent a few years ago that's ready to shine. After struggling so much to force turnovers and get into the backfield, the Wildcat defensive front will do more blitzing and more attacking than in year's past.

The team will be far better if ... it generates more defensive pressure from the ends. Corey Wootton and Kevin Mims are big, talented veterans on the outside, but the best pass rush last year came from John Gill and the interior. The secondary had talented players who struggled because almost all quarterbacks got 10 days to throw. Wootton and Mims are too experienced with too much upside not to be regulars in the backfield.

The Schedule: The first rule of any schedule: You don't lose to Duke. The second rule of any schedule: You do NOT lose to Duke. The Wildcats blew it at home against the Blue Devils last season, but they'll get another shot. If NU wants to go bowling, it has to win at least three of four, if not all four, against Syracuse, at Duke, Southern Illinois and Ohio before the Big Ten opener at Iowa. Getting at least a split in home games against Michigan State and Purdue, after coming off a bye week, is a must with a strange and difficult finishing kick. Going to Indiana and Minnesota for back-to-back road games wouldn't be that big a deal for anyone else, and those might be must-wins with Ohio State, at Michigan and Illinois to close things out. Missing Wisconsin and Penn State in Big Ten play is a gigantic break.

Best Offensive Player: Senior RB Tyrell Sutton. Hurt for most of last year, Sutton still led the team with 522 rushing yards and caught 30 passes for 282 yards. If the idea of the new offense is to get the ball into the hands of the playmakers as soon as humanly possible, and in a place where they can do something with it, then Sutton is Option 1. Get him the ball in space and good things will happen.

Best Defensive Player: Senior DT John Gill. The 6-foot-3, 290-pounder is starting to emerge as a legitimate pro prospect with good quickness, nice pass-rushing ability, and just enough toughness against the run to be considered an anchor for a veteran line. If he got any pass-rushing help from the ends, he'd be dominant.

Key player to a successful season: Redshirt freshman C Ben Burkett. Everything is in place for the offense to explode. It put up a ton of yards last year, finishing second in the Big Ten, but it could be far better if there's steady pass protection. The emergence of Burkett this spring allowed Joel Belding to move from center to guard, and while Burkett isn't all that big at 6-4 and 265 pounds, he's the type of athletic center who should be great for the offense.

The season will be a success if ... the Wildcats go bowling. The team is better, the schedule isn't awful, missing Wisconsin and Penn State, arguably two of the top three teams in the league this year, and after going 6-6 last season, 7-5 is a must with a trip to somewhere, anywhere, to close out. It would be really nice if there was a win over a really big name, like Illinois or, dream of dreams, Ohio State.

Key game: Sept. 27 at Iowa. For a successful season, the Wildcats have to get hot, really hot, early on. A win in the Big Ten opener would do wonders with an off-week before home games against Michigan State and Purdue. Considering the second half of the season has two road games followed up by Ohio State, at Michigan and Illinois, beating Iowa at Iowa could be a must.

OFFENSE

New offensive coordinator Mick McCall has one main goal going into the season: hurry everything up. The offense will go to a no-huddle, fast-paced attack to get everyone into more of a rhythm, and while a slight change in style and philosophy might seem like an issue, it shouldn't be for the veteran skill players. QB C.J. Bacher's job is to get the ball to his playmakers as quickly as possible, and that shouldn't be a problem with almost all of the top targets returning. RB Tyrell Sutton is a star to revolve around as both a runner and a receiver, but unlike last year, he has to stay healthy. The line is an X factor with three new starters coming in, but last year's group was full of talented veterans and it was mediocre. The new front five is more athletic and a better fit for the new style.

Quarterbacks: Northwestern always seems to get good quarterback play when its quarterbacks are experienced. After a year of Bacher getting all the work, and going through the lumps needed, he should be even stronger and even sharper now that he has a no-huddle, hurry-up offense to work with. This is Northwestern; there aren't a lot of dumb mistakes. The interceptions thrown last year were part of the offensive design problems, and because the receivers weren't in place. Bacher doesn't screw up too much and is a tough, smart leader. Mike Kafka is a nice luxury as the No. 2, and Dan Persa should eventually be a nice option.

Running Backs: Sutton is one of the Big Ten's most dangerous weapons and will be the league's best all-around back if he can stay healthy. Now that Omar Conteh is proven, there should be more of a rotation. These two should add nice balance to the offense that was too reliant on the passing attack last year. The idea in the Mick McCall offense will be to get the ball into the hands of the playmakers where they can do something with it. If Sutton can just make one man miss in the open field, he's gone. All the backs can catch, and they'll all be used on a regular basis in the passing game.

Receivers: Eric Peterman and Ross Lane started every game last year, Rasheed Ward started the first half of the season, and Brewer has been a big part of the offense in the past. This group should be strong now that it has a full year-plus of playing with Bacher. It'll be interesting to see how quickly the veteran receivers take to the new offense. They'll be given plenty of chances to make plays on the move as the idea will be to get the ball in the targets' hands quickly. It'll require adjustments and good rapport with Bacher. This group will have it. There will be plenty of passes to go around for the strong, productive corps. The receivers made plenty of big plays, averaging 11.5 yards per catch, but the outside X position is what's supposed to open up the field and it hasn't happened. Ward has the speed and the experience, but he has to hit more home runs on the outside so the quick, inside passes can be more effective.

Offensive Line: This should be a problem area after losing veterans like Kurt Mattes, Dylan Thiry and Trevor Rees, but the overall production can't be that much worse, and now there's more athleticism up front to do more things on the move. This won't be a dominant line in any one area, and it'll need at least half the season to figure out what it's doing, but it should be fine in time. The coaching staff had no problems quickly shuffling things and trying new combinations this spring, and while the young line needs continuity, getting several players involved in several spots will help the depth. Redshirt freshmen Ben Burkett and Al Netter are two talented young players who'll be the anchors of the line for the next four years. Once they get a little experience, they should be fantastic.

DEFENSE

New defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz wants to attack, attack, attack. He might not have the athletes to go nuts with the blitzing, but the experience is there to be far more consistent. The key will be the line that gets all four starters back after a disappointing season against the run and with little pass rush from the ends. The back seven is more athletic than in the past with promising linebackers that should be good after they get their feet wet. Brendan Smith is back at safety after missing most of last year hurt. His return should help a good secondary that should be far more productive if there's a steady pass rush. Veteran depth is a problem across the board, but the talent level has been upgraded over the past few years.

Defensive Line: With the entire front four returning, and with all the size and all the experience, there's no reason the defense should struggle so much again at generating sacks and plays in the backfield. There's too much beef to be so mediocre against the run. With tackle-sized ends in Wootton and Mims, the Wildcats average around 280 pounds per man. The depth is promising, and there's the potential for a good rotation in a few spots, but any improvement will have to come from Corey Wootton and Adam Hahn growing into bigger factors. Gill is great at getting into the backfield from the inside, but Wotton and Mims struggle to get to the quarterback on a regular basis. In the new defense, they'll be asked to do far more to generate pressure.

Linebackers: Pat Fitzgerald's linebackers always have to live up to a higher standard, and while it might take a little while, this should be a better group than the 'Cats have had in a while. The recruiting has been a bit stronger with an upgrade in overall talent, and now it has to pay off with more takeaways and better production against the run. While former leading tackler Adam Kadela could move, Malcolm Arrington is the most athletic middle linebacker the defense has had in a few years. Prince Kwateng and Quentin Davie aren't speedsters, but they can get around.

Secondary: A slight disappointment last year, hurt mostly by a lack of a steady pass rush, the secondary should be better with Brendan Smith back along with two returning starters. As the pass rush improves in the new attacking scheme, so will the corners, but making more big plays will be vital after coming up with just nine interceptions last year. There's great potential among the reserves, but the defense will still be relying on a slew of redshirt freshmen to play key roles. It could take a while to find the right rotation.

Special Teams: Sophomore Amado Villarreal had a nice first year, nailing 12 of 18 field goals, but he has to be better from midrange. He nailed three of four shots from 40-to-49 yards, but he was just one of five from 30-to-39 yards. In other words, consistence will be the key. He has a good leg, but a banged up hip he needs to get healthy. Also with a dinged hip is sophomore punter Stefan Demos, a decent placekicking option who had a nice first year averaging 40.1 yards per pick while putting a whopping 23 kicks inside the 20. He doesn't have a monster leg, but he's surprisingly consistent. Corner Sherrick McManis is one of the Big Ten's best kickoff returners averaging 23.2 yards per return, while Stephen Simmons was even better averaging 26.8 yards per try with a 99-yard return for a score. Senior Eric Peterman is back after averaging a pedestrian 6.1 yards per punt return.