David Braun, graduate of Kettle Moraine High School, has rallied beleaguered Northwestern
MADISON – David Braun appeared devastated, though far from defeated.
“I think you saw a team that embodied what team really looks like,” Northwestern’s interim head coach said after the Wildcats’ crushing 10-7 loss to Iowa last week. “A group that stuck together. A group that kept battling. A group that never pointed fingers. A group that just tried to find a way to find a way to get it done, through thick and thin.
“That showed up throughout the entire game.”
Let’s be blunt.
Northwestern (4-5, 2-4 Big Ten) isn’t going to win the Big Ten West Division title in 2023. But the work Braun has done as the team’s interim head coach has been remarkable.
The graduate of Kettle Moraine High School left his job as defensive coordinator at North Dakota State in January to run the Wildcats’ defense under head coach Pat Fitzgerald.
When Fitzgerald was fired in July because of allegations of hazing within the program, Braun was promoted to interim head coach.
He was suddenly responsible for leading a program full of players – some he barely knew. Most of those players were part of teams that went 2-16 in the Big Ten and 4-20 overall in the previous two seasons.
Kettle Moraine High School graduate David Braun has Northwestern playing hard, smart
The Northwestern team Braun is bringing to Camp Randall Stadium this week isn’t teeming with marquee talent.
But the Wildcats have performed at a level few observers expected back in July.
Northwestern scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to force overtime against visiting Minnesota and then prevailed in the extra period, 37-34.
That marked the Wildcats’ first Big Ten victory since the 2022 opener against Nebraska. They battled at Nebraska before falling, 17-9, but then surprised visiting Maryland, 33-27, in Evanston.
Against Iowa, the Wildcats forged a late 7-7 tie before faltering and giving up the game-winning field goal with 14 seconds left.
“You got a group that’s…I’ve used the word crushed,” Braun explained. “You just have a group that is disappointed. They’re sad…
“And they don’t just care about the result. They care about one another. They just want to battle for the group…You want to find a way to win and then go celebrate with your team.
“I’m confident that our guys will let this sting. It should sting. But I’m very confident that you’re going to have a group back in the facility on Monday that is ready to rock.”
A glance at the Big Ten statistics reveals a Northwestern team that is in the top five of just one of the major statistical categories in league games.
The Wildcats are third in pass defense, allowing 159.8 yards per game. They are 10th in scoring offense (17.7 ppg), ninth in scoring defense (25.5 ppg), seventh in total defense (307.2 ypg) and 12th in total offense (276.5 ypg).
Luke Fickell impressed with what he has seen from Northwestern this season
UW coach Luke Fickell acknowledged the statistics don’t jump off the page but noted the Wildcats might be better than the numbers suggest.
“I think Northwestern has put themselves in good position pretty much every week to have an opportunity,” he said. “They’re smart. They play to their strengths. They don’t beat themselves.
“And they’ve got a few more playmakers than maybe people recognized from the get-go.”
Fickell also noted he sees a veteran team that is mentally tough.
“They’ve got a lot of seniors,” he said. “I think you can look across the board and see (experience). Yes, there’s been some things that have happened and rattled them, but they’ve come together.
“You see those teams that are built from within and built the right way. And what that means is sometimes down the stretch they’ve gotten better. They’re a little better than maybe what they were at the beginning of the year, in the midst of all the stuff that was going on.”
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This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Kettle Moraine HS graduate David Braun leading Northwestern
