EVENSTON, Ill. -- Quarterback Clayton Thorson scored on a 1-yard run and Northwestern rallied from a sluggish first half for a 17-10 overtime victory over Iowa on Saturday.
Thorson's score was set up by a 23-yard reception by running back Justin Jackson, who broke three tackles on the play to give the Wildcats (4-3, 2-2 in the Big Ten) a first down at the 1-yard line.
"Probably the difference in the game," coach Pat Fitzgerald said of Jackson's reception. "A great player making a big-time play."
Following Northwestern's score, Iowa moved the ball to the 18-yard line, but Nate Stanley's pass for Noah Fant on a fourth-and-3 play fell incomplete, ending the game.