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We got our first double dip of the year! Two players sport No. 39 for the Wildcats, so we get to write about both! Sometimes, both guys are pretty similar, others, such as the No. 2 duo of starting QB Kain Colter and freshman running back Dwight White, might not be as equally divided.
Anyway, both dudes are walk-ons, and both played quarterback in high school. Does everybody play quarterback in high school? I never did. I mean, my school never had a football team, but, still. I figure they'd have asked.
No. 39, Joe Cannon, Sophomore, safety
Who he be: CANNON is a walk-on defensive back from beautiful Oconomowoc, Wisconsin, whose high school team I presume is named the Octopi. He has a Rivals page! But didn't get any offers out of high school. As noted, he played QB in high school, but was switched to safety, and then his team went 14-0 his senior year, so he probably wasn't a great QB.
CANNON: CANNON.
Looking forward: CANNON probably won't get any playing time at safety this season, but Northwestern's secondary picture is still shaky and walk-ons can get in on the picture there.
Dearly departed: Today we remember Jacob Schmidt, "The Ball-carrier", as he was fondly known. Sadly, we'll probably remember little awesome about Schmidt, since during his time at Northwestern, the Wildcats were so much more efficient through the air than through the ground-and-pound, and when Schmidt carried the ball, it meant they weren't passing. He didn't have the explosiveness of other backs, but could often be counted on to pick up third downs. His last year was his best, averaging a career-high 4.4 yards per carry. Oddly enough, he had a 100-yard running game against Indiana this year and pretty much ran down Nebraska's throat to victory in the fourth quarter. We will not talk about his goal-line fumble against Michigan State in 2010.
No. 39, Zak Kucera, freshman, punter
Who he be: Zak's a freshman walk-on! He was fourth in career passing at West Geauga High in Ohio, but punting!
Notable Zak K's in Northwestern football history: 1. Zak Kustok
2. Zak Kucera
Looking forward: Punters sometimes start as walk-ons at Northwestern, but Brandon Williams has the position handled for now and there's a few other walk-on punters, so yeah!