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Northwestern Insider Has “Massive Respect for Raiola,” But Predicts Wildcat Win
TJ Birkel
October 22, 2025
by T.J. Birkel
Northwestern Insider Has “Massive Respect for Raiola,” But Predicts Wildcat Win
Nebraska will try to rebound from one of the most disappointing performances of the Matt Rhule era by welcoming Northwestern to town on Saturday. The Wildcats are very similar to the Minnesota team that just thoroughly beat the Huskers: they run the ball well, prioritize defense, and play smash mouth football. The Big Red will need to bring the juice for an 11am kickoff in Lincoln, against a team they absolutely cannot take for granted.
Interview with Sam Walter, Co-Host of the West Lot Pirates, a Northwestern Football Podcast
David Braun is in his third year of leading the Northwestern program, having gone 8-5 in 2023 and 4-8 in 2024. Bringing his squad into this game at 5-2, Braun has the look of another Pat Fitzgerald in Evanston. What’s the current view of Coach Braun among Northwestern fans?
It’s funny, the answer to this question right now may not be the same answer if you had asked us a month ago. In general, I’d say that Braun is very well liked among the Northwestern faithful. I think we all appreciate the way that he has kept this team focused on the here and now. It would have been easy to rest on the laurels of going into Happy Valley and knocking off Penn State and then put out a dud against Purdue last weekend, but Braun really had these guys dialed in.
Starting quarterback Preston Stone has completed 59% of his passes for 1,213 yards, with 10 touchdowns and 7 interceptions this season. Is he the centerpiece of this offense, or is it more the multiple running backs who have so far combined for more than 1,300 yards on the year?
Without a doubt the centerpiece of this offense is the RBs and the OL. Stone has done a great job shaking off his dreadful performance in the opener at Tulane where he threw 4 picks. He has done a great job settling in to what this offense is designed to do. This team wants to…
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