Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1038527
Game 6 vs. Nebraska < < < 5 MATCHUP B1G BOUNCE BACK Northwestern snapped a three-game losing streak with a big time Big Ten road win at No. 20 Michigan State, 29-19. The victory was the Wildcats' third-straight over the Spartans and their second inside Spartan Stadium in the last three years. NU picked up its ninth win in its last 10 Big Ten contests and extended its road winning streak to five games. BIG TEN ROAD WARRIORS The Wildcats have won five-straight Big Ten road contests dating back to last season. The Wildcats are averaging 34.0 points per game over their last five road games. NU's last road loss came over an entire calendar year ago at No. 10 Wisconsin on Sept. 30, 2017, 33-24. FIFTY BIG TEN WINS Dan and Susan Jones Family Head Football coach Pat Fitzgerald earned his 50th career Big Ten victory with the Wildcats defeating Michigan State. With a win over Nebraska, Fitzgerald would even his Big Ten record at 51-51. FLYNN NAGEL'S PERFORMANCE Senior wide receiver Flynn Nagel recorded his second double- digit catch performance of the season with 10 receptions for 11 yards at No. 20 Michigan State. Nagel consecutive games with a catch streak of 23 is second in the Big Ten behind only Ohio State's K.J. Hill. The senior enters this week's contest versus Nebraska ranked 12th nationally and second in the Big Ten with 7.2 receptions per game is fourth in the Big Ten in both receiving yards (402 and receiving yards per contests (80.4). Nagel is also just one of two Big Ten players with 10-plus catches in a pair of games this season (Rondale Moore, Purdue). THORSON BACK FULL TIME After splitting time in the first three contests of the season while returning from offseason surgery, senior quarterback Clayton Thorson has played every snap over the last two weeks. Thorson had his best game of the season versus No. 20 Michigan State, completing 31-of-47 passes for 373 yards and a career-high tying three touchdowns, while also rushing for a score. He is the only quarterback in the Big Ten with two games of 350-plus yards passing this season. THORSON CHASING BIG TEN HISTORY With a two-yard quarterback sneak in the fourth quarter versus Michigan State, senior quarterback Clayton Thorson became just the third Big Ten player ever to pass for 8,500 yards and rush for 20 touchdowns. Thorson needs just 152 passing yards to join J.T. Barrett (Ohio State) as the only players in conference history to pass for 9,000 yards and score 20 touchdowns on the ground. JOE GAZIANO GAZ HIM AGAIN Junior defensive end Joe Gaziano recorded a sack in the victory at Michigan State, giving him a team-high 3.5 this season. Gaziano moved into a tie with Dwayne Missouri (1997-2000) for sixth in program history with 17 career sacks. More impressively, of Gaziano has reached the mark in just 18 career sacks with 14 of them coming versus conference opponents. The Scituate, Massachusetts, native became just the fifth sophomore since 2000 to lead the Big Ten in sacks last season with nine, eight of which came during conference play. YOUNG RECEIVERS BREAKING THROUGH Sophomore wide receiver Kyric McGowan and true first-year wideout JJ Jefferson each hauled in the first touchdowns of their careers at MSU. McGowan caught a 77-yard touchdown pass from Clayton Thorson, marking the 'Cats longest score through the air since a 90-yard connection from Dan Persa to Jeremy Ebert against Rice in 2011. Jefferson made a diving catch in the end zone for a 34-yard score in the second quarter. The young wideouts have started to find their stride in the Wildcats' offense as of late, with McGowan recording 100-plus all-purpose yards in two of the last three games and Jefferson recording a catch of 34-plus yards in back-to-back games [36- yard catch versus Michigan]. THE NO. 51 MEANS SOMETHING Sophomore linebacker Blake Gallagher, who wears the same No. 51 made famous by head coach Pat Fitzgerald, recorded his secondstraight double-digit tackle performance with a team- high 11 at Michigan State. Gallagher now leads the Big Ten with 9.8 tackles per game [ranks 25th nationally] and is second in total tackles with 49. He is one of only two players in the Big Ten with 10-plus tackles in three games this season (Mohamed Barry, Nebraska).