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- The Northwestern Wildcats defeated Western Illinois 42-7 in their home opener on Friday night, September 5, 2025, at Martin Stadium in Evanston.
- This victory followed a disappointing 23-3 loss to Tulane the previous week in New Orleans, prompting Northwestern to rebound against an FCS opponent.
- Preston Stone threw for 245 yards on 21 completions out of 29 attempts, accounting for three touchdowns without any interceptions. Meanwhile, Cam Porter rushed 12 times for 91 yards and scored a touchdown before leaving the game in the third quarter due to a lower-body injury.
- Northwestern's defense forced eight pass breakups, allowed just one third-down conversion by the third quarter, and outgained Western Illinois 526 to 181 in total yards.
- Coach David Braun expressed optimism about building confidence from the win despite Porter's injury and emphasized respecting their upcoming first Big Ten opponent next Saturday.
32 Articles
32 Articles
5 takeaways from Northwestern’s rout of WIU, including Cam Porter’s injury and Preston Stone’s rebound effort
Friday night at Northwestern’s lakefront Martin Stadium was a chance for a breath. Sandwiched between an ugly season-opening loss at Tulane and next weekend’s Big Ten opener against No. 6 Oregon was the arrival of Western Illinois — an FCS opponent that had lost by 49 points to Illinois a week earlier. Northwestern seized the opportunity, cruising to a 42-7 victory it will use to build self-belief, no matter the quality of the opponent. “Any tim…
Preston Stone throws three touchdown passes in Northwestern's rout of Western Illinois
New quarterback Preston Stone passed for 245 yards and his first three touchdowns with Northwestern, leading the Wildcats to a 42-7 rout of Western Illinois on Friday night in Evanston.Hayden Eligon II, Hunter Welcing and Drew Wagner pulled in Stone's scoring passes.Cam Porter rushed for a touchdown and 91 yards as Northwestern (1-1) dominated its home opener at Martin Stadium, its temporary lakeside field. Backup QB Ryan Boe fought off a defend…
Associated Press News
New QB Preston Stone, Northwestern roll to 42-7 rout over Western Illinois
New quarterback Preston Stone passed for 245 yards and his first three touchdowns with Northwestern, leading the Wildcats to a 42-7 rout of Western Illinois.
Henry Herald
Rockdale Citizen & Newton CitizenNorthwestern rings up 526 yards in rout of Western Illinois
Preston Stone passed for 245 yards and three touchdowns and Cam Porter rushed for 91 yards and a score as host Northwestern thumped Western Illinois 42-7 on Friday in Evanston, Ill.
Rapid Recap: Northwestern 42, Western Illinois 7
Northwestern’s home crowd let out a collective gasp when graduate student quarterback Preston Stone’s second pass of a Friday night contest with Western Illinois was nearly intercepted. After tossing four picks and fumbling the ball twice in his Wildcat (1-1, 0-0 Big Ten) debut at Tulane last week, all eyes were on the SMU transfer...
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