This week the Northwestern Wildcats football team (1-2, 1-0 Big Ten West) returns from it’s bye week to welcome the Michigan Wolverines to Ryan Field this Saturday. On Monday the team began the week with it’s game week press conference as they usually do, but as the day progressed the school revealed some sad and surprising news. Sophomore running back Jeremy Larkin announced his retirement from organized football. The native of Cincinnati was recently diagnosed with cervical stenosis, a condition related to spinal stenosis. Unfortunately injuries of this type can happen with contact sports and in this case (as with most athletes with this condition) it will prevent Larkin from continuing his career.
Here is a statement from Northwestern’s Athletic Department announcing the unfortunate news regarding Larkin:
Larkin was a three-star recruit out of Cincinnati’s LaSalle High School. When he committed to NU he was ranked as Ohio’s 18th best college prospect (and the 10th best all-purpose running back nationally) after he piled up 8,326 career all-purpose yards and 95 total touchdowns. He also won two state championships and even played some basketball. As a freshman in Evanston last year he got a good share of playing time even with Northwestern’s all-time leading rusher, Justin Jackson, on the roster. In 16 games Larkin has posted 849 rushing yards, 242 receiving yards, and 10 total touchdowns.
Heading into this season, the Wildcats were initially going to use a running back-by-committee in the wake of Justin Jackson’s graduation and entry into the NFL. But Larkin stood out during training camp over the summer and won the starting job heading into the season opener at Purdue. Without Larkin, the Cats’ will need to reassess this part of their offense. The good thing is that they have the talent to do so. Northwestern may very well return to the by-committee approach, here are the players that they will use moving forward….
Junior John Moten IV-
Moten is the most experienced back currently on the roster. He was the No. 2 man behind Jackson for three seasons and was productive in his opportunities. Moten has 86 career carries for 416 yards and 3 touchdowns, he also has 86 receiving yards. With his experience he could emerge as the new leader at the running back position. But rest assured he’ll get a good chunk of the snaps.
Senior Chad Hanaoka-
Despite being the only senior at this position, the Hawaiian-born Hanaoka has been mostly an observer on game day as evidenced by his two carries for seven yards. With Larkin no longer on the roster now Hanaoka will get more chances to play. During his high school years in Honolulu, Hanaoka won two state championships and was a team captain. Most of his damage done however was as a receiver where he caught 122 passes for 1,235 yards and 16 touchdowns. His versatility will be useful in this offense.
Sophomore Jesse Brown-
While Brown gets rave reviews in practice, he has yet to take a snap in a game this season. His nine carries for 64 yards and a touchdown came during his freshman year in 2017. The three-star recruit from Georgia ran for 3,300 yards and 26 touchdowns before committing to Northwestern, which means that he’s already a proven talent. Now he has his chance to make an impact.
Freshman Isaiah Bowser-
Bowser only has one carry this season (which went for no gain) and it came in last week’s historic loss to Akron. Beyond that, most of this freshman’s impact has been during practice. During training camp he pushed Larkin and Moten for the starting job. Perhaps now, he can at least work his way into the top of the running back rotation.
Freshman Drake Anderson-
The Chandler, Arizona native -and son of Northwestern great Damien Anderson– is another young Wildcat who has yet to see the field of play. When he committed to the Wildcats in 2017, Anderson was a three-star recruit and was ranked the 11th best player in Arizona. He played a major role in leading Chandler High School to the Arizona 6A State Championship last year as a high school senior. He had 2,319 yards from scrimmage and 37 total touchdowns as his team posted a 12-2 record en route to the championship. Now it’s time to for him to put his talents on display in the Big Ten Conference.
Senior quarterback Clayton Thorson could also be used more as a runner providing that he’s no longer limited by his “pitch count“. Thorson has shown that he can move his feet when needed as he has 294 carries for 487 yards and 18 scores in a Wildcats uniform. With one less running back available to him, Thorson could be used in more draws, option plays, and bootlegs in order to keep this Wildcats offense a balanced one. And having a balanced offense will be key as the “Cardiac Cats” head into the Big Ten portion of their 2018 schedule. When Northwestern takes the field this weekend, they’ll be looking to snap a two-game losing streak.
