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What Northwestern’s Pat Fitzgerald said after win over Iowa
Published:
It’s not how you start, but how you finish.
That’s the message to take from Northwestern’s 21-20 victory over Iowa in Iowa City on Saturday afternoon.
The Wildcats got off to a rough start, with turnovers giving the Hawkeyes an early 17-0 lead. But the Northwestern rushing attack and defensive front end settled in and took charge of the game.
A steady dose of runs wore down the Hawkeyes’ defensive front line, and a pair of gutsy fourth down conversions called by Wildcats coach Pat Fitzgetald helped to swing momentum back to the Wildcats. While the offense didn’t come up with many big plays, the unit ran for 143 yards on the ground, with Isaiah Bowser carrying 25 times for 85 yards to go along with two touchdowns from Jessie Brown.
Petyton Ramsey was solid behind center completing 11-of-18 for 130 yards – he rushed for an additional 26 yards.
Fitzgerald had high praise for his squad after the game.
Fitz says Lees got a "freak deal" on Thursday but then felt fine before he went down today. Would say he's day-to-day.
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
"They're young and they're talented…They're growing up in front of us, and we're excited to get Greg back really soon."
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
Fitz: "The wind was a factor, I'm assuming there wasn't a ball throw more than 15 yards into the wind by any team. That ball was going toward the boundary on Kyric and took a snap hook at the last second…I like the way he responded."
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
"We feel like we got lucky on that second-to-last drive, they had a guy open. But I thought our defensive guys responded really well…we work the snot out of situational football. We were good in two-minute defense and not so good in four-minute offense."
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
Fitz: "It feels like it's always close against Iowa."
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
"These are the games you gotta win if you want to have a special year."
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
Fitz: "Really proud of our guys, really proud of their resilience…I hope I never come back to Kinnick without fans."
— Inside NU (@insidenu) October 31, 2020
Scott Schultz covers Michigan State Football, along with Breaking News for B1G Football & Basketball for Saturday Tradition. He also serves as an Automotive News Editor & Writer, and Softball Writer elsewhere on the web. Follow him on Twitter @SRSchultz.