There’s only only thing standing between Northwestern and a pivotal Big Ten West showdown against Wisconsin — Rutgers. Here are three matchups to watch for as the Wildcats ship up to New Jersey for their first ever B1G Showdown against New York City’s Big Ten Team.

Northwestern rushing attack vs rutger defense

Northwestern’s rushing game has been absolutely abysmal since Jeremy Larkin retired — the ‘Cats are averaging just 22.7 rushing yards per game in the three games they’ve played without Larkin. Mick McCall and the Northwestern offense have a chance to regain some confidence on the ground this week as they’ll be up against a Scarlet Knight defense that ranks No.