Scouting the Northwestern Wildcats defense

Penn State football takes on Northwestern tomorrow at Beaver Stadium in the fifth game of the 2022 season. At this point, teams have a full four-game sample size to work from in film study leading up to the game, which is when head coach James Franklin says you can start game-planning for a team’s tendencies in-season. “I think you’re doing that all the time. When I think it really becomes legitimate is by game four, because most people are doing a four-game breakdown of who they’re playing. That’s when you have enough of a sample size to say, ‘Okay, they have a legitimate tendency.” So with the few hours left before the game, let’s study up on Northwestern and give fans an idea of what the Wildcats have been doing through the first four games of the season. This article will not be an extensive film breakdown nor a complete workup of specific plays, but overarching schemes, weaknesses, and strengths of the team.