Northwestern came into Saturday’s matchup against Michigan State considerably better than its 1–3 record would indicate.
In two of their three losses, the Wildcats had blown double-digit leads, including a 17–0 cushion last week against Michigan and an 18-point margin in an inexplicable home loss to Akron.
Against Sparty, Northwestern once again jumped out to a first-half lead and this time hung on to win, 29–19, in East Lansing, beating Michigan State for the third straight time and seriously damaging the Spartans' Big Ten hopes in the process.
Northwestern quarterback Clayton Thorson was basically the entire offense, throwing for 373 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.