AHSFHS.org


Search Site








Northwestern Football Team History


Northwestern Wildcats
Northwestern University
 Evanston, IL
Founded: 1851
Stadium: Ryan Field
Capacity: 47,130
Colors: Purple & White
Coach: David Braun
Conference: Big 10-

Team Home Summary  Coaches Games by Year Opponents Rankings Bowls Conference

Northwestern 
Team Timeline
First Team: 1875  
  1994 - Michigan State self-forfeited all wins in the 1994 season, resulting in Northwestern's loss to Michigan State being retroactively changed to a win.
 
Championships
National Championships
None
Conference Championships
  1903, 1926, 1930, 1931, 1936, 1995, 1996
2000
Division Championships
  2018, 2020
 
Team Records
 Overall Record 571-709-44
 Winning Pct. 45%
 Vacated Wins 0
 Forfeit Games 0
 Adjusted Record 571-709-44
 Winning Pct. 45%
 National Championships 0
 Conference Titles 0
 Division Titles 0
 Conference Record 277-456-15
 All American Players 
 NFL Players (#2)
 Home Record 386-340-30
 Away Record 174-353-13
 
By The Numbers
 Seasons 137
 Winning Seasons (#1) 62
 Losing Seasons (#1)70
 Most Wins in A Season 10 (2017)
 Most Loses in A Season 11 (2022)
 10 Win Seasons 5
 Most Points Scored in a Game 97 (11/5/1904)
 Most Points Scored in a Season 441 (2000)
 Most Points Allowed in a Game 78 (10/25/1913)
 Most Points Allowed in a Season 505 (1981)
 Largest Margin of Victory 97 (11/5/1904)
 Largest Margin of Defeat 76 (11/11/1899)
 Most Points Both Teams in a Game 105 (11/4/2000)
 Last Shutout 11/18/2017
 Last Time Shutout 10/26/2019
 Shutouts All-Time 167
 Been Shutout All-Time 181
 
Streaks
 Longest Win 9 (10/14/2017-8/30/2018)
 Longest Losing  34 (9/22/1979-9/18/1982)
 
Bowl Records
 Overall Record 7-10-0
 Rose 1-1-0
 Cotton 0-0-0
 Orange 0-0-0
 Fiesta 0-0-0
 Sugar 0-0-0
 
By the Decade
 2020-29  22-34
 2010-19  71-56
 2000-09  61-61
 1990-99 44-69
 1980-89 18-90-2
 1970-79 28-80-1
 1960-69 38-56-1
 1950-59 33-54-3
 1940-49 42-44-3
 1930-39 43-30-8
 1920-29 40-37-1
Next Game
 11/23/2024 (Sat)  
@ Michigan in a Conference Game
Last Time: Northwestern lost 7-33 in 2021.
All-Time:
 Northwestern vs. Michigan 15-59-2 20.3% 
 
2024 Season
 Sat., Aug. 31  vs. Miami Ohio  13-6 W
 Fri., Sep. 6  vs. Duke  20-26 L
 Sat., Sep. 14  vs. Eastern Illinois  31-7 W
 Sat., Sep. 21  @ Washington  5-24 L
 Sat., Sep. 28  OPEN 
 Sat., Oct. 5  vs. Indiana  24-41 L
 Fri., Oct. 11  @ Maryland  37-10 L
 Sat., Oct. 19  vs. Wisconsin  3-23 L
 Sat., Oct. 26  @ Iowa  14-40 L
 Sat., Nov. 2  @ Purdue  26-20 W
 Sat., Nov. 9  OPEN 
 Sat., Nov. 16  vs. Ohio State  7-31 L
 Sat., Nov. 23  @ Michigan  
 Sat., Nov. 30  vs. Illinois  
 
2024 Season Totals
  Record3-7
  Scoring180-228
  Conference Record0-5
  Home Record2-4
  Away Record1-3
 
2024 Big 10  Standings
 Season   Conference 
Indiana 10-05-0
Oregon 11-04-0
Washington 6-54-1
Michigan 5-53-1
Penn State 9-13-1
Southern California 5-53-2
Maryland 5-52-2
Michigan State 4-62-3
Minnesota 6-42-1
Rutgers 6-42-2
Nebraska 5-51-2
UCLA 4-61-3
Wisconsin 5-51-2
Illinois 7-3
Iowa 6-40-1
Northwestern 3-70-5
Ohio State 9-1
Purdue 1-90-4
 
Longest Running Rivalry
 Northwestern & Illinois have played 117 games.
Northwestern has won 56 games.
Illinois has won 56 games.
with 5 tie games.
 
Record when scoring..... (since 2000)
 Scoring  Record 
 less than 10 0-37
 10 or more 154-114
 20 or more  137-62
 30 or more 77-16
 40 or more 31-4
 
Record when allowing..... (since 2000)
 Points Allowed  Record 
 less than 10 34-1
 10 or more 120-150
 20 or more 68-138
 30 or more 24-102
 40 or more 10-48
 
  
 
Some records may be incomplete.

NOTES:
(1) Winning and losing seasons counted only if team plays at least 8 games.
(2) NFL Players counted for any player that participated in a regular season game.

Great Moments in College Football History

In the 1940s, college football teams competed for the Oil Bowl, the Salad Bowl and the Raisin Bowl, which were all played on New Year's Day.