Northwestern practice notes: September 11

The Thursday practice during a bye week is not the most exciting experience I've ever had, but let's look at a few takeaways:

-Justin Jackson continues to look like the best option at running back. He broke through for several impressive runs today and could take on an even more important role depending on how Trevor Siemian heals during the bye week.

-On that note, Siemian wasn't practicing again after injuring his right leg near the end of the game against Northern Illinois. However, Fitz said earlier this week that he expects Siemian to be ready for Western Illinois. In the meantime, it was Zack Oliver taking reps with the first team. He looked sharp and had some nice short- to mid-range passes but he didn't test his arm all that much.

-We haven't seen much of Godwin Igwebuike lately, despite his hyped recruitment. To be fair, he's playing behind Ibraheim Campbell, probably NU's best defensive player. But Igwebuike did make an impressive defensive stop in practice, jumping a route over the middle and nearly grabbing the interception. His will be an interesting storyline to follow once Campbell graduates after this year.

-Near the end of practice, approximately 50 kids from the Chicago Youth Sports Alliance showed up to watch. Jury's out as to why they were at a Northwestern football practice instead of in school, but most of them seemed to really enjoy it.

Check out what Kyle Prater had to say after practice...if not for the interview, then for the absurd camera angle because he is literally a foot and a half taller than me.