2006 Northwestern Wildcats football team

2006 Northwestern Wildcats football
2006 Northwestern Wildcats football
Conference	Big Ten Conference
Record	4–8 (2–6 Big Ten)
Head coach	Pat Fitzgerald (1st season);
Offensive coordinator	Garrick McGee (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Greg Colby (5th season)
Base defense	4–3
Captains	Erryn Cobb ; Bryan Heinz; Shaun Herbert; Nick Roach;
Home stadium	Ryan Field

2006 Big Ten Conference football standings

Team	W		L	W		L
No. 2 Ohio State $	8	–	0	12	–	1
No. 8 Michigan %	7	–	1	11	–	2
No. 7 Wisconsin	7	–	1	12	–	1
No. 24 Penn State	5	–	3	9	–	4
Purdue	5	–	3	8	–	6
Minnesota	3	–	5	6	–	7
Indiana	3	–	5	5	–	7
Northwestern	2	–	6	4	–	8
Iowa	2	–	6	6	–	7
Illinois	1	–	7	2	–	10
Michigan State	1	–	7	4	–	8

$ – BCS representative as conference champion % – BCS at-large representative Rankings from AP Poll

The 2006 Northwestern Wildcats football team represented Northwestern University in the Big Ten Conference during the 2006 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Head coach Randy Walker died unexpectedly on June 29, 2006 of an apparent heart attack at the age of 52. Pat Fitzgerald, seen by many before the tragedy as Walker's eventual successor, was promoted from linebackers coach and recruiting coordinator to head coach on July 7. The Wildcats also had to replace their offensive coordinator, offensive line coach, and Brett Basanez, the team's former four-year starter at quarterback and holder of dozens of school records. The 2006 season was not as successful as previous years.

Northwestern began their season with a win at Miami, Walker's alma mater, in an emotional game that featured several tributes to the late coach. However, the season went downhill from there. The second game was a blowout loss to I-AA New Hampshire. The low point of the season came on October 21 with a home loss to Michigan State in which the Spartans staged the largest comeback in Division I-A history. A win against Illinois in the final game gave the Wildcats a 4–8 record for the year and saved them from finishing last in the Big Ten. The high point of the season, despite coming in defeat, was Northwestern's close and competitive play against undefeated and #3 ranked Michigan. Despite being held to -13 rushing yards, the Wildcats came within one-possession of tying the game early in the third quarter and prevented the Wolverines from scoring in the fourth quarter en route to a 17–3 final.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	6:30 pm	at Miami (Ohio)*	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPNU	W 21–3	20,476
September 9	1:00 pm	New Hampshire*	Ryan Field Evanston, IL		L 17–34	20,108
September 16	1:00 pm	Eastern Michigan*	Ryan Field Evanston, IL		W 14–6	21,935
September 22	7:00 pm	at Nevada*	Mackay Stadium Reno, NV	ESPN2	L 21–31	16,176
September 30	2:30 pm	at Penn State	Beaver Stadium University Park, PA	ABC	L 7–33	108,837
October 7	11:00 am	at Wisconsin	Camp Randall Stadium Madison, WI	ESPN+	L 9–41	81,704
October 14	11:00 am	Purdue	Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ESPN+	L 10–31	27,171
October 21	11:00 am	Michigan State	Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ESPN+	L 38–41	29,387
October 28	11:00 am	at No. 2 Michigan	Michigan Stadium Ann Arbor, MI (rivalry)	ESPN	L 3–17	109,114
November 4	11:00 am	at Iowa	Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	ESPN+	W 21–7	70,585
November 11	2:30 pm	No. 1 Ohio State	Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ABC	L 10–54	47,130
November 18	12:00 pm	Illinois	Ryan Field Evanston, IL (Sweet Sioux Tomahawk)	ESPN360	W 27–16	22,242
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time