Anonymous Big Ten coach compares Northwestern to Vanderbilt

Success has come in waves for Northwestern but this past season was a down one. Head coach David Braun led the Wildcats to a 4-8 campaign after making a bowl game during his first go-round. Things can be difficult in Evanston, leading one Big Ten coach to compare them to an SEC program.

Vanderbilt and Northwestern are similar, according to an anonymous coach inside the conference. While the Commodores won a few games this past season, the coach credits Clark Lea‘s bunch for getting competitive in the NIL space. He apparently does not believe Northwestern is doing the same, showing how difficult winning can be in the Big Ten.

“I think the comparison here is Vanderbilt,” the coach said via Athlon Sports. “That program got serious about NIL. It’s hard at Northwestern, but it becomes impossible if they don’t embrace the reality of what it takes in the Big Ten.”

Recruiting has not been easy for Northwestern in recent years. The Wildcats continually find themselves near the bottom when compared to other Big Ten schools, even as the conference expanded. 17th was where Northwestern slotted in the 2025 class, one spot higher than 2024, where they finished dead last. In both instances, the blue chip ratios sat at 0%.

Development is how Northwestern is able to get talented guys on the field. However, another Big Ten coach pointed out how the NCAA transfer portal is eating them up. Once producing players who prove they can play, other schools grab them.

“Things don’t look great here,” a coach said. “The portal is eating up what talent they do have, and the offensive problems are as bad as ever. The talent level is going to be hard to maintain here long-term because they can’t sign and develop without getting picked off by other schools now.”

Similar things get said about Vanderbilt, even if Lea got them back to a bowl game for the first time since the 2018 season. Whether or not the Commodores can replicate the form will be a big storyline inside the SEC. Getting out of the cellar can be a difficult task, showing how Northwestern is similar.

Weirdly enough, there was a home-and-home between these two in the past 15 years. Northwestern hosted Vanderbilt back in 2012 when James Franklin was in charge of the program after traveling to Nashville in 2010. Pat Fitzgerald‘s bunch wound up winning both games, taking a 2-1-1 all-time series lead.