Stanford did everything in its power to give Northwestern an opening day win, but the Wildcats couldn’t take advantage of their many opportunities, ultimately falling 17-7 in what was a brutal game to watch from start to finish.
Mistakes and injuries plagued the Northwestern offense, which failed to capitalize on a solid defensive performance. The unit turned the ball over four times throughout the game, generating only 210 yards and seven points.
Defensively, the group gave up 365 yards and only 10 points, but poor tackling cost them, as it seemed on every drive that a would-be tackler over-pursued and missed his target.