Northwestern coach David Braun on playing 'very good' Michigan: 'Exciting challenge for this football team'

Northwestern and Michigan are two teams in the bottom half of the Big Ten standings still fighting for a bowl berth. Michigan is one win away, and Northwestern needs two more victories, to reach bowl eligibility. The two teams will match up Saturday in Ann Arbor.

Wildcats head coach David Braun expressed his excitement for the matchup during his Monday press conference.

“Incredible opportunity in front of us in Ann Arbor against a very good Michigan team — very talented, a team that is certainly line-of-scrimmage based,” Braun said. “[Michigan is] gonna look to establish the run game, stay committed to the run game. Very talented up front. Defensive coordinator with a ton of NFL experience, very multiple, very well-thought out, very much pressure-oriented. Saw a lot of looks from Ohio State — pressure — much more than they had shown in the past leading into our game. Would anticipate a heavy dose of pressure from Michigan’s defense this week.

“But it’s an exciting challenge for this football team, a football team that we feel is improving in some areas. Certainly have a lot of work to do. We have two more guaranteed opportunities, and excited to go on the road and put ourselves in a position to win a football game and work toward bowl eligibility.”

Northwestern quarterback Jack Lausch — a 6-foot-2, 209-pound redshirt sophomore — has struggled under pressure this season, averaging 4.8 yards per attempt compared to 6.3 when he’s kept clean. He registered only 3.2 yards per pass while under pressure against Ohio State, which occurred on 47.7 percent of dropbacks. Overall, Lausch completed 21 of 35 pass attempts for 201 yards with no touchdowns or interceptions.

“I think Jack is feeling more comfortable week to week with some of that pressure,” Braun said. “We have to understand our opponent. I’m sure that they’re gonna find ways to work to manipulate protections and find some ways to pressure.

“Where Jack was at his best on Saturday was decisive decision-making and trusting what he was seeing and trusting his wide receivers. That’ll have to continue this week.”

Braun noted that Michigan’s defensive line is a strength, and that his offensive line — which has had some moving pieces throughout the season — will have to put together a strong performance.

“It’s absolutely essential,” he said of his line coming together. “As a football team this past Saturday, we were certainly far from perfect. And to be honest with you, you don’t need to be perfect, you just need to be at your best. I saw a group of guys up front against Ohio State that managed a lot of different looks relatively well, good communication on the sideline and guys that were straining in the run game.

“And I know the run stats that you look at on the sheet postgame is not where we wanted it to be; if you look at designed, called runs against Ohio State, I think we were averaging like 3.8 yards per carry, which is an indication that this group has it within them to establish the run game.

“If you can do that against an operation like Ohio State … Michigan will present a lot of the same issues, in terms of their personnel and their multiple looks. But we’re gonna have to find a way to have a balanced attack against a team like this, especially on the road.”

On the other side of the ball, Michigan has been run-heavy, attempting only 24.2 pass attempts per game, the 13th-fewest in the nation. Michigan ranks only 73rd nationally in rushing offense, though, averaging 155.5 yards per contest.

“I mean, if [Northwestern defensive coordinator] Tim McGarigle was sitting up here with me, he would tell you probably No. 1 for us defensively in the Big Ten is to stop the run. That will certainly get tested this week against Michigan. 

“You always have to evaluate what you’re potentially giving up or exposing yourself to, and that commitment to stopping the run game. Michigan has a very talented tight end that can create some matchup issues.

“You go back and look at some of the Minnesota game, and some of the plays that Michigan was able to hit in the passing game was against some loaded boxes. So you just have to continue to make sure that you have balance in the structure of your plan.

“But what I can say with absolute conviction is that if we don’t effectively stop the run against Michigan, it’s not gonna be the outcome we’re looking for.”

Michigan has used senior Davis Warren as the primary quarterback, with junior Alex Orji being sprinkled in as a runner. The Wildcats saw a dual quarterback system in a 26-20 win over Purdue Nov. 2, and that experience could help prepare them for what they’ll see inside The Big House.

“I think there is some carryover from that Purdue prep,” Braun remarked. “And then also just understanding how Michigan specifically is utilizing it.

“At the end of the day, you go back and look at the Minnesota game, both quarterbacks are certainly capable of throwing the football, it’s just understanding tendency and how they’re utilizing each. But we’re gonna have to do a good job of making sure we have a balanced plan that can certainly account for the dropback pass, some of the access throws that they like to throw to the field and then being sound against the quarterback run game.”

Michigan’s offense has struggled with turnovers, with 16 giveaways on the season. Given that Braun believes both teams will slow the game down, whoever wins the takeaway battle will have a leg up.

“It’s gonna be huge. It’s gonna be huge,” he said of the turnover margin. “I mean, if you look at these two teams as Northwestern and Michigan match up, it’s most likely going to be a limited possession football game, so every possession is so critical. Fourth-down stops will be critical.

“We gotta do a better job of creating takeaways as a football team right now, and then any turnover offensively or on special teams just can’t happen.”

How Northwestern will prepare for Michigan Stadium

Northwestern is playing the bulk of its home games this season at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium, a temporary venue that holds around 12,000 fans, as the new Ryan Field is being built. Michigan Stadium, meanwhile, has a capacity of 107,601 — nearly 100,000 more than what Northwestern has played its home games in front of.

“I think it’s an exciting opportunity for our team,” Braun said of the upcoming matchup at The Big House. “That’s what’s really neat about the Big Ten is these incredible venues that you have an opportunity to play in. So excited for what’s ahead in 2026 for the ‘Cats, in terms of the new Ryan Field. Add the new Ryan Field to the list … the new Ryan Field’s going to be the best stadium in all of college football.

“Excited for us, opponents will be talking about our venue. But The Big House is gonna have an impact on our ability to operate offensively and on special teams. The way that we prepare is no different than the way that we prepare for all our road games. But we gotta understand that crowd noise will play a factor, and that’ll certainly be a part of our plan all week long, in terms of pumping that crowd noise into our practices.

“And then our guys gotta do a great job of really eliminating interference, whether it’s the tunnel situation at Michigan, whether it be the crowd noise, whatever that looks like. I’m confident that our group will handle that the right way and focus on what really matters, and that’s the 60 minutes of football we gotta go play.”

David Braun talks former Michigan WR A.J. Henning

Former Michigan wide receiver A.J. Henning totaled 25 receptions in three seasons in Ann Arbor. He has 90 combined since joining Northwestern in 2023 — 45 in 2023 and 45 in 2024. He’s making a big impact, leading the Wildcats with 3 touchdown grabs and ranking second on the team with 468 receiving yards.

“As a player, the production speaks for itself,” Braun said of Henning. “I think the thing that really stands out to me about A.J. is the way that, it’s not easy to transition as a transfer, especially at a place like Northwestern, that’s incredible and awesome but also unique in terms of some of the rigor that exists with academics here. 

“I think A.J. did a great job of building credibility first, and doing that through his work ethic and who he is as a teammate. That ability has just continued to blossom and grow in his time here.

“And you really find out about a person when adversity hits, and I think some of the things that we experienced in our passing game early on in the year, with transitioning at the quarterback position, some inexperienced quarterback play … not that Jack wasn’t growing, but some early starts for him in his career. And A.J.’s commitment to his team, his work ethic, his consistency and availability in practice and for games is something that just really stands out.

“He gets dinged up against Wisconsin; he’s back at practice on Tuesday. I think A.J. has only missed one practice this entire year — fall camp throughout the entire season. The workload that’s on that guy, that’s incredibly impressive. But it just speaks to his competitiveness, his commitment to this team. And to see him continue to have opportunities to impact games on Saturdays for us is something that we’re all really excited about.”