Notebook: Braun optimistic about GameAbove Sports Bowl, player retention
Northwestern accepted their bid to the GameAbove Sports Bowl on Sunday and will head to Detroit, Mich. on Friday, Dec. 26, to play Central Michigan.
The Chippewas finished 7-5 (5-3 MAC) and have struggled against Power Four opponents this season. They lost to Pitt, 45-17, and then to Michigan, 63-3.
Still, head coach David Braun has his team focused on the opportunity ahead.
“Central Michigan, the job that Coach [Matt] Drinkall has done in his first year at CMU is really impressive,” Braun said. We know we have a great opponent in front of us, an opponent that will be highly motivated.”
Here are some notes from Braun’s bowl game press conference.
2026 QB outlook
Northwestern sits at 6-6 (4-5 Big Ten), with a veteran starting quarterback in Preston Stone who will be playing his last game of college football. They also have redshirt freshman Ryan Boe, who has appeared in spots and run-first packages throughout the season.
While Braun values the bowl practices this game afford them and will try to get young players reps over the next couple weeks. But Braun made it clear that he sees this game just like he did the Vegas Bowl against Utah in 2023: as a chance to get a win.
“Priority No. 1, and we’ve talked about the the goals of this program, but one of the goals is to dominate the postseason,” he said. “We aspire to have our postseason opportunities moving forward be the College Football Playoff, but that also involves bowl opportunities. What our seniors deserve, what our leadership deserves is for us to be at our absolute best in our last game, with an opportunity to win a bowl championship.
“With that being said, with us not being in school after this week, after finals are complete, there is an incredible opportunity to be mindful about the way we’re practicing. … We’re getting our young guys a ton of reps.”
Northwestern brought Stone in out of the portal as a clear-cut starter after the 2024 season, naming him the man for the job in the summer, once he proved himself in spring ball. As he is set to leave after this bowl game, the vacuum at quarterback opens once more.
Braun thinks that Boe is capable of stepping up to fill that starting role. He said that the Wildcats most likely will again be looking for a transfer quarterback in this cycle, but maybe not a clear-cut starter and instead someone who can compete with Boe for the top job.
“Ryan Boe is someone that this program really believes in. We believe he is a starting-caliber winner in the Big Ten, can’t be more excited about Ryan Boe being with us next year,” he said. “Also, with an understanding that in the Big Ten, you don’t have to look far to recognize that you better have two, if not three quarterbacks in your program that you believe can step into the Big Ten arena on the road and help you win the football game.
“As we evaluate that, we’re really excited about the addition of [Class of 2026 signee] Johnny O’Brien, we’re really excited about [No. 3] Marcus Romain. But those guys have not played any Big Ten football and for us to serve our program and roster best, if we have to evaluate and look at bringing in a so-called more experienced quarterback, that’s something we have to evaluate.”
It seems like Northwestern is hoping to get back to a homegrown player at quarterback. If they bring in a transfer, it would be to battle Boe, not slot straight in as the starter.
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Injury updates
Braun gave injury updates on three of the key players that missed the Illinois game to close the season: running back Caleb Komolafe, defensive end Aidan Hubbard and running back Joseph Himon II.
Komolafe and Hubbard were both scratched before kickoff in the Wildcats’ 20-13 loss to the Illini, but Braun said he is “really confident” that both can be back for the bowl game.
Himon, on the other hand, was injured early in the Illinois game itself, after his second carry, and didn’t return.
“[Himon] is more up in the air,” Braun said. “Long term for Joe, not a concern. But in terms of the next couple weeks with his injury, I don’t want to say pessimistic, but very confident in Caleb and Aidan being back. We’ll know more about Joe here later this week.”
Braun says Northwestern will retain its stars
In the modern era of the transfer portal, teams are constantly looking to either add to their rosters, or protect their players from other programs.
Although they haven’t been perfect, Northwestern has done a very good job of retaining their key players against the lure of the portal. The team is going through between players and coaches now, and Braun is optimistic that the best Wildcats will be coming back.
“Our position coaches had one-on-one meetings with our guys at the end of last week, and then I’ll dive into a bunch of one-on-one meetings here over the course of the next couple weeks,” he said. “What I can tell you, and I don’t know specifically what I’m allowed to share, but but I can tell you that, of the young men that played significant football for us in the Big Ten, we anticipate almost 100% of those guys to return to Northwestern.”
Braun knows though that in this era, no matter the program, no one is going to pitch a perfect game at keeping their roster together.
“I’d be lying to you if I told you there’s not going to be [transfers]. We anticipate a couple guys looking to transfer, and a lot of times that comes from situations of maybe a young man that wants a bigger role,” he said. “[They’ll say] ‘Coach, I got my degree from Northwestern, I have a year left of eligibility, if it doesn’t feel like I’m going to have an opportunity to play a ton…I want to explore an opportunity to go do that’.
“That’s something we’ll always navigate with honesty and transparency and support guys in those desires, but we anticipate, once again, having a retention rate that we’re all really proud of.”
