The 1986 Northwestern Wildcats team represented Northwestern University during the 1986 NCAA Division I-A football season. In their first year under head coach Francis Peay, the Wildcats compiled a 4–7 record (2–6 against Big Ten Conference opponents) and finished in eighth place in the Big Ten Conference.[2]
The team's offensive leaders were quarterback Mike Greenfield with 1,653 passing yards, Stanley Davenport with 703 rushing yards, and Curtis Duncan with 437 receiving yards.[3] Kicker John Duvic was selected as a first-team All-Big Ten player by the Associated Press,[4] while tight end Rich Borresen received first-team All-Big Ten honors from the UPI.[5]
Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | Result | Attendance | Source |
|---|
| September 6 | | Duke* | | L 6–17 | 21,514 | [6] |
| September 20 | | Army* | - Dyche Stadium
- Evanston, IL
| W 25–18 | 31,123 | [7] |
| September 27 | | at Princeton* | | W 37–0 | 8,750 | [8] |
| October 4 | | Indiana | - Dyche Stadium
- Evanston, IL
| L 7–24 | 24,873 | [9] |
| October 11 | 7:00 p.m. | at Minnesota | | L 23–44 | 58,177 | [10] |
| October 18 | | Wisconsin | - Dyche Stadium
- Evanston, IL
| L 27–35 | 34,462 | [11] |
| October 25 | | at No. 11 Iowa | | L 20–27 | 67,250 | [12] |
| November 1 | | Purdue | - Dyche Stadium
- Evanston, IL
| L 16–17 | 25,417 | [13] |
| November 8 | 12:30 p.m. | at No. 11 Ohio State | | L 9–30 | 89,808 | [14] |
| November 15 | 1:00 p.m. | Michigan State | - Dyche Stadium
- Evanston, IL
| W 24–21 | 26,711 | [15] |
| November 22 | | at Illinois | | W 23–18 | 70,568 | [16] |
- *Non-conference game
- Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
- All times are in Central time
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Personnel
| 1986 Northwestern Wildcats football team roster
|
| Players
|
Coaches
|
Offense
| Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
| OL
|
|
Michael Baum
|
| TE
|
|
Rich Borresen
|
| QB
|
|
Greg Bradshaw
|
| RB
|
|
Ron Burton Jr.
|
| RB
|
|
Stanley Davenport
|
Jr
|
| WR
|
|
Walter Ding
|
| TE
|
|
Bob Driscoll
|
| WR
|
|
Curtis Duncan
|
| QB
|
|
Mike Greenfield
|
Jr
|
| OL
|
|
Steve Hofmann
|
| WR
|
|
George Jones
|
| WR
|
|
Marcus Lang
|
| WR
|
|
Randy McClellan
|
| OL
|
|
Tom Nickles
|
| RB
|
|
Brian Nuffer
|
| RB
|
|
Claudell Robertson
|
| RB
|
|
Greg Schultz
|
| OL
|
|
Jeff Stainton
|
| OL
|
|
John Yale
|
|
Defense
| Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
| LB
|
|
Alan Brown
|
| LB
|
|
Bob Bucaro
|
| DL
|
|
Bob Dirkes
|
| DL
|
|
Dave Helding
|
| DL
|
|
Ted Karras
|
| LB
|
|
Tom Kaukialo
|
| DB
|
|
Todd Krehbiel
|
| DB
|
|
Rich Myers
|
| DB
|
|
Kyle Palmer
|
| LB
|
|
Charles Plant
|
| DB
|
|
Jeff Robinson
|
| LB
|
|
John Ruden
|
| DL
|
|
Kelvin Scott
|
| DB
|
|
Brett Whitley
|
|
Special teams
| Pos. |
# |
Name |
Class
|
| P
|
|
Shawn Carpenter
|
| K
|
|
John Duvic
|
|
- Head coach
- Coordinators/assistant coaches
- Legend
- (C) Team captain
- (S) Suspended
- (I) Ineligible
Injured
Redshirt
|
- No position listed: Curtis Spears
References
- ^ "Year-by-Year Results" (PDF). 2007. p. 149. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 16, 2019. Retrieved March 14, 2019.
- ^ "1986 Northwestern Wildcats Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
- ^ "1986 Northwestern Wildcats Stats". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 22, 2016.
- ^ "Harbaugh heads All-Big Ten team". The Michigan Daily. November 26, 1986. p. 8.
- ^ "Woodson, Waiters Both All-Big Ten". Logansport Pharos-Tribune. November 25, 1986. p. 10.
- ^ "Duke's big plays stop NU". Chicago Tribune. September 7, 1986. Retrieved February 1, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "NU tops Army". Chicago Tribune. September 21, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Kloehn, Steve (September 28, 1986). "Northwestern Overwhelms Princeton, 37–0". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Philadelphia, Pa. p. 11-E – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Hoosiers deck Northwestern". The Cincinnati Enquirer. October 5, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Minnesota 44, Northwestern 23". The Greenville News. October 12, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Emery's running carries Badgers". The Duluth News Tribune. October 19, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Hawkeyes hold on to top Northwestern". The Sioux City Journal. October 26, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Purdue wins on field goal". The Indianapolis Star. November 2, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "OSU claws 'Cats for 8th in row". The Lima News. November 9, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Northwestern shocks Spartans". The Des Moines Register. November 16, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Northwestern defeats Illinois 23–18". St. Louis Post-Dispatch. November 23, 1986. Retrieved April 22, 2025 – via Newspapers.com.
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