1987 Northwestern Wildcats football team

The 1987 Northwestern Wildcats team represented Northwestern University during the 1987 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their second year under head coach Francis Peay, the Wildcats compiled a 2–8–1 record (2–6 against Big Ten Conference opponents) and finished in ninth place in the Big Ten Conference.[2]

1987 Northwestern Wildcats football
ConferenceBig Ten Conference
Record2–8–1 (2–6 Big Ten)
Head coach
Defensive coordinatorBob Junko (2nd season)
CaptainGame captains[1]
Home stadiumDyche Stadium
Seasons
← 1986
1988 →
1987 Big Ten Conference football standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   T W   L   T
No. 8 Michigan State $ 7 0 1 9 2 1
No. 16 Iowa 6 2 0 10 3 0
Indiana 6 2 0 8 4 0
No. 19 Michigan 5 3 0 8 4 0
Ohio State 4 4 0 6 4 1
Minnesota 3 5 0 6 5 0
Purdue 3 5 0 3 7 1
Illinois 2 5 1 3 7 1
Northwestern 2 6 0 2 8 1
Wisconsin 1 7 0 3 8 0
  • $ – Conference champion
Rankings from AP Poll

The team's offensive leaders were quarterback Mike Greenfield with 1,265 passing yards, Byron Sanders with 778 rushing yards, and George Jones with 668 receiving yards.[3]

Schedule

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DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendanceSource
September 12at Duke*L 16–3119,600[4]
September 19at Missouri*L 3–28
September 261:00 p.m.Northern Illinois*T 16–1627,336
October 3at IndianaL 18–3538,553
October 1011:30 a.m.Minnesota
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL
RaycomL 33–4522,104
October 171:05 p.m.No. 19 Michigan State
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL
L 0–3829,113
October 24at WisconsinW 27–2470,012
October 3112:00 p.m.at MichiganL 6–29104,101
November 7Iowa
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL
L 24–5238,694
November 14at PurdueL 15–2050,468
November 21Illinois
  • Dyche Stadium
  • Evanston, IL (rivalry)
W 28–1027,104
  • *Non-conference game
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

Personnel

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1987 Northwestern Wildcats football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
QB Greg Bradshaw
RB Stanley Davenport
TE Bob Driscoll
QB Mike Greenfield
WR Marcus Lang
RB Torrio Osborne
RB Byron Sanders
RB Curtis Spears
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
Special teams
Pos. # Name Class
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  •   Injured
  •   Redshirt

References

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  1. ^ "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). 2007. p. 149. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
  2. ^ "1987 Northwestern Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  3. ^ "1987 Northwestern Wildcats Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
  4. ^ "Duke maintains its mastery over NU". Chicago Tribune. September 13, 1987. Retrieved February 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.