2008 Previews and Predictions

The annual college football magazines have appeared at the newsstands, offering their picks and predictions. The slate of previews typically begins with the annual magazines from Athlon and Lindy's and concludes with the Big Ten's August media event, when the conference announces its official front runner.

Typically, the print prognosticators do not favor NU. Of course, most of these previews are written by magazines trying to sell copies, and favoring the biggest teams (that is to say, the teams with the biggest followings) is a profitable strategy. However, NU has occasionally bucked that trend and the conventional thinking: in 2001, coming off its Big Ten title, NU was a Big Ten favorite in many of the preseason predictions.

For the past few years, however, most media typically place NU at ninth place in the conference, ahead of Indiana and one school from the group of Illinois, Michigan State or Minnesota. There is also what I call the "Heinz Line" at the 57 spot nationally: if a magazine favors NU, it will place the 'Cats just above the 57th spot among the ranked Division I-A teams; a bad prognostication consigns NU to a lower rank. If the sportswriter has no overly optimistic or pessimistic feel for the team, he will invariably rank NU at 57. This year, however, appears to be an exception, as you'll see from the list of previews below. The "Heinz Line" doesn't appear to hold.

As for last year's previews and predictions, several sources tied for the most accurate prediction, picking NU to win at least six games and compete for a bowl slot. The least accurate picks were by the always-wrong Sporting News, who picked NU last in the conference, and Rivals, who also tabbed NU for the basement.

As has been the case since summer 2000, HailToPurple.com is posting a recap of what the larger 'Net and print publications have predicted so far for NU in 2008.

The 2008 Wildcat Predictions:

The first magazine out this spring was Lindy's, and it dropped NU from the 57th spot, where it had the 'Cats last year, to 82nd, predicting that NU will finish 11th in the conference. Mark it down: Lindy's will find itself, for the first time, holding the title of "least accurate prediction" at the end of the season. The magazine adds insult to injury by calling Fitzgerald "a determined coach. . . who will want to get out of NU," apparently forgetting just who Coach Fitzgerald is. Lindy's rates NU's special teams and every defensive unit either 10th or last in the Big Ten
Want to wash the bitter taste of Lindy's out of your maws? Look no further than Sports Illustrated, which has an uncharacteristically optimistic prediction. SI places NU 50th nationally, over Notre Dame (52nd) and-- shockingly-- over Michigan (54th). NU rates 7th in the Big Ten; in addition to Michigan, SI puts NU over Purdue, Minny, and Indy. It predicts a 7-5 record overall, and 4-4 in the conference. Eric Peterman is singled out as a star player.
The Fox Sports affiliate CollegeFootballNews.com ranks NU 51st in the nation, ahead of Indiana and Minnesota. This is the highest position that CFN has placed NU above the "Heinz Line" in years. CFN predicts a 6-6 record, with the 'Cats sweeping its non-conference slate (a bold, bold pick!), but struggling to only two wins in the Big Ten. CFN cites the center as the key, make or break position for NU this fall.
Athlon magazine is also mildly optimistic for the Wildcats, placing them 53rd nationally and 8th in the Big Ten, over Purdue and the MinnyIndies.
The folks over at Rivals have tapped the Heinz Line, putting NU at 57th, and 8th in the conference, over Iowa (!) and IndyMinny. They spotlight Keegan Kennedy, mentioning his potential to be All-Big Ten. Of course, they also single out John Gill, C.J. Bacher, and Tyrell Sutton. "Don't be shocked if Northwestern is within striking distance of first place in the Big Ten in November." -- Quite a leap from Rivals' last-place prediction for NU in '07.
Always anticipated, Phil Steele has said that "seven of my eight power ratings have Northwestern winning seven or more games." Steele has NU in the Insight Bowl vs. Oklahoma State. Since the Insight Bowl typically goes to the sixth place Big Ten team, this equates to the highest prediction for the conference finish. Huzzah!
USA Today rates NU 11th in the Big Ten. Does anyone over 14 years old still read USA Today?
Dennis Dodd at CBS's Sportsline doesn't see much for the 'Cats this year. He puts NU at 10th in the conference, ahead of Minnesota. "Pat Fitzgerald did wonders in two seasons after taking over for Randy Walker. The Wildcats were 6-6 last season and could be knocking on the door of a bowl this season. Quarterback C.J. Bacher could be the Big Ten's most entertaining quarterback this side of Juice Williams. Nomad defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz inherits a respectable defense. Defensive tackle John Gill is an NFL prospect."
Webmaster James Howell calculates weekly "Power Rankings" during the season. His 2008 preseason power ratings have NU in 75th place nationally, and tenth place in the conference, ahead of the Gophers.
Another, more famous power rating is published by Sagarin, who also puts NU 10th in the Big Ten (ahead of Indiana, however), and has NU 74th nationally.
The Chicago Tribune simply remarks, "There is no reason to think the Wildcats can't win eight games." The Trib notes that NU must perform with more consistency than it did last season, "which it transformed into a roller-coaster ride that was wildly inexplicable and ultimately unsuccessful."
ESPN SportsCenter's Mel Kiper made a surprise pick by picking Northwestern as, well, his surprise pick. Kiper sees NU going 8-4.
Andy Gamm's The Final Score has NU tied for 9th in the conference. Gamm also thinks that NU will sweep the non-conference and win two in the Big Ten, potentially getting an at large bowl berth.