Today was Northwestern starting quarterback Dan Persa’s 22nd birthday. Many of his approximately 2,500 Facebook friends posted well wishes on his Facebook wall. But with a 48-27 loss to the in-state rival Illini, in an ultra-hyped contest that injury precluded him from taking part, I’m guessing he’s had better birthdays than this.
Persa brought a lot to NU’s table: a 15-4 TD pass to INT ratio, #1 in the nation in fewest interceptions thrown percentage (302 attempts), 74% completion percentage (also tops in all of college football, and a Big Ten record), The Silver Football trophy candidate also led the team in rushing yards.
His replacement in today’s Wrigleyville Classic, redshirt freshman Evan Watkins, finished 10-20 for just 135 yards, one interception, no touchdown passes. He also ran 7 times for 15 yards. Obviously, there was a huge drop-off in offensive production with NU being sans Persa.
Illinois Head Coach Ron Zook on how Persa’s injury affected NU: “How much did not having Martez Wilson affect our defense last year?”
Well, a lot! Illinois’ defense was terrible last season, and they’re much better this season with Tez in place.
When you lose three-quarters of your offense, as the Cats have with Persa now gone, you have to make some adjustments. So I asked Watkins after the game how much of the game plan has changed.
“It was pretty similar to what we’ve been doing all year,” he said.
Ok so really not all that much I guess. However, NU running back Mike Trumpy, nephew of Bob Trumpy, former tight end with the Cincinnati Bengals and a four-time All-Pro NFL player (and famous television announcer) had a career high 129 rushing yards, on an average of 10 yards a carry.
Trumpy had the best rushing performance since Mike Kafka went for 217 versus Minnesota in November 2008. Trumpy got most of his yards on an 80 yard TD scamper, the longest run by an NU player since 1986. It’s safe to say that an increased workload for Trumpy will be part of how NU runs their offense in these two final games.
Speaking of stellar NU rushing performances, I spoke on Friday with Damien Anderson, the school’s all-time leading rusher. And I asked him about how different things are going to be for the Cats now with Persa out of the mix.
“Great question. Dan Persa is dynamic, the kid can do it all, he really is the heart and soul of that team. I was talking with a Northwestern alum, a legend of sorts, Barry Gardner. He played about a decade in the NFL and he was talking about the same thing,” Anderson said.
“One man’s tragedy becomes another man’s triumph. And he said what do you mean? When Pat Fitzgerald broke his leg, you stepped in and had some great years at Northwestern and then got drafted early in in the second round to the Philadelphia Eagles, and he ended up laughing and saying yeah, you got a great point,” Anderson continued.
I really think he was having a MVP, Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year type season before he got hurt, and I wonder if they’re going to take into account the last two games, but you tell me besides (Michigan Wolverines QB Denard) Robinson, whose playing better than him?”
I then brought up Persa’s best quality: which doesn’t even show up in the stat sheet, his escapability.
“As you mentioned, he can extend the play, the conversion rate he gets just with legs, his accuracy on the run, the guy’s incredible. He isn’t the biggest, the fastest, the tallest but he plays with such a passion, such a reckless abandon. I’ll put it out there, my son has his jersey because this kid is the real deal, and I just love watching him play,” Anderson said.
Paul M. Banks is CEO of The Sports Bank.net , a Midwest webzine. He’s also a regular contributor to the Tribune’s Chicago Now network, Walter Football.com, Yardbarker Network, and Fox Sports.com
You can follow him on Twitter @thesportsbank