Iowa football look ahead: Everything is coming up Pat Fitzgerald

We sometimes throw the phrase 'Statue Coach' in when talking college football. Every school has one or has had one or is looking for one.

Who are the statue coaches in the Big Ten West? Kirk Ferentz probably doesn't want to be mentioned here, but he's eight wins from Iowa's victories record of 143. That was, of course, set by Hayden Fry, who does have a statue ... in Coralville and not at the stadium. That's a whole other post. Ferentz is a 'Statue Coach' even if he never has an actual statue.

Wisconsin's Paul Chryst? Too soon. Any other possibilities? No, P.J. Fleck has yet to coach at game at Minnesota (it only feels like he's been there 100 years).

Oh hey, Pat Fitzgerald.

You know all about him. He helped NU to the Rose Bowl as an all-American linebacker. He was a 31-year-old linebackers coach when then-NU head coach Randy Walker died after a heart attack in 2006.

In his 11 seasons as the Wildcats' head coach, Fitzgerald has become the school's winningest coach and has taken the Wildcats to seven bowls (it had gone to just six pre-Fitzgerald). NU had one bowl victory pre-Fitz and now has three.

Those all are things that make a statue coach. So is money. This summer, Northwestern agreed to a 10-year contract extension with Fitzgerald. Because Northwestern is a private school, the numbers haven't been released, but statue coach. We're talking at least $4 million annually through 2027. The school also is putting its money where its facilities are. NU is building a 500,000-square foot athletics facility on the shore of Lake Michigan for $260 million.

Are you kidding me with this view? These new Northwestern facilities were done right: August 23, 2017

Are you kidding me with this view? These new Northwestern facilities were done right: pic.twitter.com/7x0JGtM3VK

— Alex Roux (@arouxBTN)

Anything else that Fitzgerald checked off during the offseason? Oh, he openly criticized the Big Ten playing football on Friday nights and the league went ahead and moved two Northwestern games slated for Friday night to Saturday morning.

But wait, wait, not everything came up Fitzgerald. Perhaps the most important rule change made going into 2017 was stricter enforcement of the coach's box. Violators are subject to a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalties.

Fitzgerald can get kind of demonstrative.

What makes the Wildcats a dark horse pick in the West?: The Wildcats return a lot on offense and they lost their best player on defense, linebacker Anthony Walker (opted for the NFL draft), but it's defense that positions NU well in the West.

Six experienced defensive linemen return, including ends Xavier Washington and Joe Gaziano who combined for 14 tackles for loss and nine sacks last year. Junior Nate Hall, who finished third on the team in tackles last year, is poised to make a jump and help soften Walker's loss. Safeties Godwin Igwebuike and Kyle Queiro are proven run defenders (Igwebuike led NU with 108 tackles last season).

The Cats also return cornerbacks Montre Hartage and Trae Williams. Northwestern's secondary picked off 16 passes last season (tied for third in the Big Ten).

QB, RB and ...

: Quarterback Clayton Thorson threw for 3,182 yards, 22 TDs and just nine interceptions. He improved from year 1 to year 2 and should keep climbing.

Running back Justin Jackson has three 1,000-yard seasons, including 1,524 and 15 TDs last year. He's been in the top 10 of the B1G in rush attempts his three seasons at NU.

The Wildcats need to replace just one offensive lineman. They also need to replace wide receiver Austin Carr, who led the B1G with 90 catches, 1,247 yards and 12 TDs.

There's no Carr, but NU does return three of last year's top four receiving targets and will add Oregon graduate transfer Jalen Brown.

Hawkeyes Look Ahead

Oct. 21 at Northwestern (Ryan Field)

Time and TV: TBA

Week before: vs. Illinois

Week after: vs. Minnesota (Kinnick Stadium) Time and TV are TBA

On the horizon: vs. Ohio State, Nov. 4

Northwestern Wildcats

Coach: Pat Fitzgerald (77-62, 12th season at Northwestern)

2016 record: 7-6, 5-4 in the Big Ten West Division (T-4th)

Scoring offense: 26.0 points per game (7th in B1G, 87th nationally)

Total offense: 398.2 yards per game (5th B1G, 73rd nationally)

Scoring defense: 22.2 points allowed per game (6th B1G, 23rd nationally)

Total defense: 404.4 yards allowed per game (10th B1G, 60th nationally)

Series: Iowa leads series, 50-25-3

Last meeting: The game was in Kinnick Stadium and it was the week after the Hawkeyes fell to North Dakota State, the best FCS program ever. And it was an extremely uncharacteristic game for the Hawkeyes.

Northwestern took the fight to Iowa, piling up six sacks and rushing for 198 yards. On third-and-6 from NU's 47 with about a minute left and Iowa down seven, Ifeadi Odenigbo pressured Beathard into a late throw in the right flat that cornerback Trae Williams picked off to seal it, ending NU's three-game losing streak to Iowa. Odenigbo had four sacks and pass protection still is very much a front-burner topic for Iowa's offensive line going into 2017.

l Comments: (319) 398-8256; marc.morehouse@thegazette.com