College Football Old School Game of the Week: Northwestern Prevails over Michigan in Wild Shootout

Northwestern wide receiver Sam Simmons runs into the end zone for what would be the game-winning touchdown in the Wildcats' win over Michigan in 2000.

While many Northwestern football fans think the Wildcats' 1995 season where they went to the Rose Bowl after 23 straight losing seasons was the greatest in school history, the 2000 season was another magical ride for the fans of the purple and black.

The Wildcats put together a number of memorable wins including the one over Michigan on November 4th in front of a sellout crowd at Ryan Field in Evanston, Illinois.

The Wildcats entered the game ranked #21 with a 6-2 record and a shot to go back to the Rose Bowl.

Under second-year head coach Randy Walker, the Wildcats had a no-huddle, spread offense predicated on the run in hopes of keeping opponents' defenses on their heels.

The scheme worked as the Wildcats stunned the Wisconsin Badgers 47-44 in double overtime in Northwestern's conference opener, then beat the Minnesota Golden Gophers 41-35 when quarterback Zak Kustok threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to Sam Simmons as time expired on a "Hail Mary" pass.

The exciting wins over Wisconsin and Minnesota plus the high-powered offense which featured running back Damien Anderson, who up to this point had already run for 1,330 yards and scored 17 touchdowns, helped draw a sellout crowd at Ryan Field as the Wildcats hosted the #12 ranked Michigan Wolverines.

Michigan also entered with a 6-2 record and were in contention for the Rose Bowl under head coach Lloyd Carr, who was in his sixth season as the Wolverines' head coach.

While maybe not as explosive as the Northwestern offense, Michigan's offense was pretty stout with quarterback Drew Henson, running back Anthony Thomas, and wide receiver David Terrell leading the Wolverines' attack.

The Michigan defense came into the Northwestern game on a roll after shutting out Indiana and Michigan State in the Wolverines' previous two game, giving them confidence that maybe they could slow down the Wildcats.

But Michigan's defense as well as the fans in Evanston and watching on TV had no idea what there were in store for.

The Wildcats got the ball to start the game at their 15-yard-line where after picking up one 1st down, Anderson got the ball and ran for 22 yards to the Northwestern 49-yard-line, which was followed by a 39-yard run to the Michigan 12-yard-line.

Four plays later, the Wildcats were in the end zone as Kustok snuck it in for a one-yard touchdown to give Northwestern a 7-0 lead just 2:17 into the game.

Northwestern running back Damien Anderson carried the ball 31 times for a total of 268 yards and scored two touchdowns.

Michigan would begin its initial possession of the game at their 33-yard-line as it took them only two plays to drive into Northwestern territory as a 21-yard pass from Henson to Marquise Walker gave the Wolverines a 1st down at the Wildcats' 39-yard-line.

The Wolverines would drive to the 10-yard-line when Henson threw an apparent touchdown pass to Terrell, only to have called it back because of an ineligible man downfield which pushed Michigan back five yards to the Northwestern 15-yard-line.

But on the very next play, the Wolverines would be given a 1st & goal as a pass interference in the end zone put the ball at the two-yard-line where it took Thomas two tries to get into the end zone as he was able to punch it in from the one-yard-line to tie the game 7-7 midway through the first quarter.

After forcing a Northwestern punt, the Wolverines got the ball back at their 20-yard-line where it took them seven plays to travel 80 yards for another touchdown as a 54-yard run by Thomas help set up Henson's 11-yard touchdown pass to Terrell to give Michigan a 14-7 lead with 3:06 left in the opening quarter.

The Wildcats would get the ball back at their 20-yard-line where a 21-yard-run by Anderson to start the drive followed by a 24-yard pass from Kustok to Sam Simmons help get Northwestern to the Michigan 16-yard-line.

But the Wolverines would hold the Wildcats to a 24-yard field goal by Tim Long which made it 14-10 as the game moved into the second quarter.

Michigan would begin its ensuing possession at their 33-yard-line as Ronald Bellamy ran for 28 yards on a reverse on to give the Wolverines a 1st down at the Northwestern 39-yard-line.

From there, Henson would take over as he completed a 21-yard-pass to Walker on 3rd & 8, then found Thomas for 16 yards on 1st & 22 after a holding penalty had pushed the Wolverines back 10 yards, then hit Terrell for a 10-yard touchdown to increase the Michigan lead to 21-10 with 11:30 left in the second quarter.

Following a Northwestern three-and-out, the Wolverines got the ball at their 40-yard-line where after Thomas ran for 10 yards on back-to-back carries, Henson was dropped for a 13-yard-loss on a quarterback sack by Wildcats defensive lineman Conrad Emmerich to set up 2nd & 23 from the Michigan 37-yard-line.

That is when Henson handed the ball off to Thomas who ran for 15 yards to set up 3rd & 8 when Henson found Walker for 16 yards and a 1st down at the Northwestern 32-yard-line.

Then after picking up another 1st down, Henson connected with Terrell for their third touchdown of the half, a 22-yarder which increased the Wolverines' lead to 28-10 with just over six minutes left in the second quarter.

Michigan wide receiver David Terrell would catch nine passes for 117 yards and score three TDs.

It seemed like the Wolverines had control of the game until the Wildcats' offense awoke on their next drive which began at the Northwestern 23-yard-line.

Kustok would hit Jon Schweighardt for 12 yards on 2nd & 8 at the Wildcats' 25-yard-line, then connected with Simmons for 18 yards and a 1st down at the Michigan 45-yard-line where Kustok handed it off to Anderson, who ran for 38 yards to set up 1st & goal the  Wolverines' seven-yard-line.

Anderson would then run it in for the seven-yard touchdown to cut the Michgian lead to 28-17 with 4:01 left in the first half as it took the Wildcats just two minutes to travel 77 yards in seven plays.

Walker would roll the dice on the ensuing kickoff as he called for a surprise onside kick that was recovered by Northwestern defensive back Harold Blackmon to give the Wildcats the ball at the Michigan 43-yard-line.

From there, the Wildcats would drive 39 yards in eight plays, with the big play being a 25-yard pass from Kustok to Schweighardt on 3rd & 14 at the Michigan 47-yard-line, to set up a 22-yard field goal by Long to cut the Wolverines' lead to 28-20 with 1:18 left before halftime.

The Wildcats would then hold to Michigan to a three-and-out to get the ball back at the Wolverines' 46-yard-line with 44 seconds and one timeout, enough time to drive down for another score.

A 12-yard pass from Kustok to Simmons helped set up Long's 43-yard field goal as time expired in the first half with the Wolverines on top 28-23 to end a wild first half which saw both teams combine for 51 points and 651 yards of total offense.

But the fun was only beginning.

Michigan got the ball to start the second half and promptly drove 71 yards in seven plays as Henson completed all four of his passes for 61 yards on the drive, culiminating with a 11-yard touchdown pass to tight end Bill Seymour to increase the Wolverines' lead to 35-23 just 2:24 into the second half.

The Wildcats would get the ball at their 21-yard-line and seem poised to respond to the Michigan touchdown with a score of their own as Anderson ran for 26 yards on the second play of the drive to give Northwestern a 1st down at its 47-yard-line.

But an illegal block pushed the Wildcats back 17 yards which was followed Kustok being dropped for a three-yard-loss to set up 2nd & 30 from the Northwestern 27-yard-line.

Kustok would run for seven yards on 2nd down, then just for six yards on 3rd down as he went out of bounds only to be hit by Michigan linebacker Eric Brackins, drawing a 15-yard penalty and giving the Wildcats an automatic 1st down at the Michigan 45-yard-line.

Following the penalty, Kustok would connect with Kunle Patrick for 30 yards on 2nd & 6 from the Michigan 41-yard-line, then hit tight end David Farman for an one-yard touchdown to make it an one-score game again.

The Wildcats would go for two but failed to convert to keep it 35-29 in favor of the Wolverines with 8:44 left in the third quarter.

Back came the Wolverines as they would drive 65 yards in 11 plays with Thomas carrying the ball eight times for 33 yards on the drive, including the one-yard touchdown to push the Michigan lead to 42-29 with 4:36 left in the third quarter.

Michigan running back Anthony Thomas would run for 199 yards on 37 carries and score three TDs.

It would only take the Wildcats less than a minute to respond as Louis Ayeni returned the ensuing kickoff 54 yards to the Michigan 46-yard-line where after an one-yard run by Kustok, Anderson busted loose for a 45-yard touchdown run to make it 42-36 with 3:40 left in the third quarter.

The Wildcats would try another surprise onside kick but this time the Wolverines would ready for it as they recover it to take over at the Northwestern 39-yard-line.

However, the Wolverines would unable to move the ball and had to settle for a 52-yard field goal by Hayden Epstein which increased Michigan's lead to 45-36 with 2:28 to go in the third quarter.

The Wildcats would get good field position to start its next drive as Epstein's kickoff went out of bounds to give Northwestern the football at its 35-yard-line.

From there, Kustok would complete three passes to Simmons that totaled 20 yards then hit Teddy Johnson for 22 yards to give Northwestern a 1st & goal at the Michigan seven-yard-line as the third quarter came to a close.

After a false start penalty pushed the Wildcats back five yards, Kustok would weave his way through the Michigan defense for a 12-yard touchdown on the first play of the fourth quarter to cut the Michigan lead to 45-43.

The Wolverines would take over at their 30-yard-line when Northwestern forced the first turnover of the game when Wildcats defensive end Dwayne Missouri knocked the ball loose from Henson on a quarterback sack which was recovered by defensive tackle Javiar Collins at the Michigan 19-yard-line.

However, the Wolverines' defense would allow a 1st down, forcing the Wildcats to settle for a 41-yard field goal by Long to give Northwestern a 46-45 lead with 12:30 to go in the fourth quarter.

The Wolverines would shake off the turnover with a 11-play, 71-yard drive which saw Henson complete five of six passes for 53 yards, with three of those completions going to Terrell for 31 yards, to set up an one-yard touchdown run by Thomas to give the lead back to Michigan at 51-46 with 8:34 remaining as the Wolverines would go for two but fail as Henson's pass fell incomplete.

After an exchange of punts, the Wildcats got the ball at their 10-yard-line with 3:35 left and needing a touchdown to retake the lead.

The drive began with a 20-yard pass from Kustok to Patrick for a 1st down at the Northwestern 30-yard-line, followed by a five-yard run by Anderson, then a 21-yard run by Kustok to put the Wildcats in Michigan territory at the Wolverines' 44-yard-line.

Then after an incomplete pass and a run by Anderson for no gain to set up 3rd & 10, Kustok found Johnson for 36 yards to give the Wildcats 1st & goal at the Michigan eight-yard-line.

Northwestern quarterback Zak Kustok would complete 27 of 40 passes for 322 yards and two touchdowns while running for 55 yards on 16 carries and scoring two more touchdowns.

However, the next three plays would pick up only one yard, setting up a do-or-die 4th & goal from the seven-yard-line when Kustok connected with Johnson for an apparent seven-yard touchdown, only to have called back because of an ineligible man downfield to nullify the touchdown and push the Wildcats five yards to the Wolverines' 12-yard-line.

That is when Kustok lofted a pass for the left side of the end zone toward a wide open Anderson, only to have the running back drop the sure touchdown to force a turnover on downs to give Michigan the ball back at the Wolverines' 12-yard-line with 1:36 left.

It seemed like Anderson's drop was going to be the deciding factor in the game as the Wolverines needed one 1st down to put the game away.

Thomas got seven yards on 1st down to set up 2nd & 3 when Thomas got the ball again and broke through the middle to run past the 22-yard-line for the apparent game-clinching 1st down, only to have Wildcats safety Sean Wieber strip the ball from Thomas, leading to a fumble that was recovered by cornerback Raheem Covington, giving the Wildcats ball at the Michigan 30-yard-line with 46 seconds to go.

Kustok would connect with Anderson for five yards, then with Johnson for 14 yards to give the Wildcats a 1st down at the Michigan 11-yard-line when the Wildcats called timeout with 23 seconds left.

That is when Kustok found Simmons on a crossing route as Simmons made the catch and then ran into the end zone for the go-ahead touchdown to give Northwestern a 52-51 lead with 20 seconds left.

The Wildcats would go for two and get it when Kustok connected with Johnson in the left corner of the end zone to make it 54-51.

Now it was the Wolverines who were asking for a miracle as Walter Cross returned the ensuing kickoff 19 yards to the Michigan 36-yard-line, giving Henson 15 seconds and two timeouts to drive into field goal range.

Henson would connect with Walker for 17 yards for a Michigan 1st down at the Northwestern 47-yard-line as Michigan called timeout with eight seconds left.

Then, Henson hit Terrell for eight yards to the Wildcats' 39-yard-line as Michigan spent its last timeout with four seconds left.

With no time left to pick any more yards and stop the clock, Carr sent in the field goal unit in hopes of sending the game into overtime as Epstein would attempt a 57-yard field goal.

The year before, Epstein made a 56-yard field goal against Michigan State, so the Wolverines felt they had a chance to tie the game, especially with the way the last two minutes had gone.

But Epstein wouldn't get a chance to kick as the snap bounced off holder John Navarre' s hands, leading to a wild scramble where Navarre threw a pass to Evan Coleman, who was tackled at the Northwestern 33-yard-line to end the game with the Wildcats on top 54-51.

Northwestern fans stormed the field and tore down the goalposts after the game which featured 171 plays from scrimmage for 1,189 yards(averaging nearly seven yards per play)and 105 points.

The loss ended Michigan's hopes of making it to the Rose Bowl as they would finish the season with a 9-3 record and #10 final ranking the Coaches poll while finishing #11 in the AP poll after winning their last three games, including a 31-28 win over Auburn in the Citrus Bowl.

As for the Wildcats, they would be humbled the following week as they lost 27-17 to 2-win Iowa, which dropped them into a tie with Purdue and Michigan for the Big 10 title as all three times would finish with a 6-2 conference record with Purdue earning the trip to Pasadena because of their wins over Michigan and Northwestern. 

The Wildcats would also finish with a 8-4 record as they were demolished 66-17 by the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Alamo Bowl.

The 2000 season would be the best season of the Randy Walker tenure as he would go 26-33 over the next five years, finishing with a winning record only once in 2005, before his untimely death in 2006.