Wildcats trying to earn respect

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Northwestern coach Pat Fitzgerald didn't know his team was an underdog for Saturday's game. Until a reporter told him Tuesday.

He didn't argue about it. And you don't get a sense he will worry much about it.

"I've been here at Northwestern long enough to know there are a lot of things out of our control and one of those is respect," Fitzgerald said. "What we can control is the way that we prepare for the opportunity on Saturday.

"As Coach (Joe) Paterno just said, I don't have a whole lot of time to worry about that stuff."

Fitzgerald said a team gains respect "by the way that you go about your business and the way you carry yourself and the way you perform with your opportunities on Saturday."

A year ago, a loss to Illinois in the season finale cost the Wildcats a bowl trip. Northwestern can keep the Illini out of the postseason with a win Saturday.

Despite a 5-6 record, Fitzgerald isn't about to bash Illinois.

"I know they played the Buckeyes a lot better than we played them and that's the last opponent we have to compare each other against," Fitzgerald said. "They'll obviously be juiced up for this game. It's a huge game for their program as it is for ours. I don't think our fans and our students and especially our seniors could ask for anything more in our last game here in Ryan Field."

Fitzgerald is working his third game against Illinois as a head coach. He also played against the Illini and was an assistant on Randy Walker's staff for five seasons. His overall record against Illinois as a player and coach is 6-5.

"It's always a battle," Fitzgerald said. "They've always been 60-minute football games. There's nothing but the utmost respect, I believe, between two universities here in the great state of Illinois."

Feeling better. C.J. Bacher, who has missed part of the season with a hamstring injury, will start at quarterback Saturday for the Wildcats. And Mike Kafka, who left Saturday's game at Michigan with a concussion, also will be available.

"We've got a pretty darn good situation here in Evanston right now from the standpoint of the ability of Mike Kafka to lead our football team also," Fitzgerald said. "Both guys are healthy and ready to go and compete."

Busy guy. The Illinois coaches will pay special attention to Northwestern receiver Eric Peterman, who leads the Wildcats with four touchdowns and is second on the team with 44 catches.

The two-time News-Gazette All-Stater from Springfield Sacred Heart-Griffin is an engineering major.

"He's taken on every challenge that he possibly could," Fitzgerald said. "He is tremendously giving of his free time. The play on the field speaks for itself.

"He may be coming toward the end of maybe his college career, but his future is so bright it's unbelievable. He's being more heavily recruited by Fortune 500 companies than maybe anybody in the country."

Moving on. Fitzgerald said he will miss Purdue's Joe Tiller, who is coaching his final game Saturday against Indiana.

"He's the one who brought the spread offense to the Big Ten," Fitzgerald said. "He really changed the landscape from a standpoint schematically on offense and in the way defenses had to adjust to it. But what I think I'll miss the most is Joe's personality, his love of life, his sense of humor and the person he is."

What about Joe Paterno, who many think is in his last year at Penn State?

"Ask me that question when he retires," Fitzgerald said.

Missing piece. Northwestern will play Saturday's game without running back Tyrell Sutton, who sustained a wrist injury earlier in the season. Sutton is the school's No. 3 career rusher, just behind No. 2 Darnell Autry.

With backup Omar Conteh also hurt, Northwestern will start Stephen Simmons. The sophomore has 109 yards on 40 carries, averaging 2.7 yards per try. He has one touchdown.

Before getting hurt, Sutton had 776 rushing yards and six touchdowns. He also caught 30 passes for another 276 yards and two touchdowns.

"Any time you lose a great player, it alters you a little bit," Illinois coach Ron Zook said. "But what they do with their throwing game, they've just maybe gone a little bit more to that. They're going to be able to run the football."

Aches, pains. Zook said Tuesday that defensive tackle Josh Brent is feeling better after sustaining a sprained knee against Ohio State.

"I couldn't tell anything when he was running," Zook said.

Quarterback/receiver Eddie McGee was improved Monday, Zook said, while recovering from turf toe.

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