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Northwestern heads into rivalry week needing a win against Illinois to clinch a bowl berth. Despite a poor showing against Minnesota, the Wildcats have made no changes to their depth chart for the last game of the regular season.
The one positive from this is that Austin Carr remains in the depth chart, so he may have a chance to play against Illinois. However, we'll have to wait until the injury report on Thursday to know how healthy the Big Ten's best receiver truly is.
Changes are in bold italics
| Starter/1st String | Backup/2nd String | |
| Quarterback | Clayton Thorson | Matt Alviti |
| Running Back | Justin Jackson | John Moten IV |
| X-Receiver | Austin Carr | Andrew Scanlan |
| Y-Receiver | Flynn Nagel | Macan Wilson |
| Z-Receiver | Solomon Vault | Bennett Skowronek |
| Superback | Garrett Dickerson | Cameron Green |
| Left Tackle | Blake Hance | Sam Coverdale |
| Left Guard | J.B. Butler | Connor Mahoney |
| Center | Brad North | Jared Thomas |
| Right Guard | Tommy Doles | Andrew Otterman |
| Right Tackle | Eric Olson | Ben Oxley |
| Starter/1st String | Backup/2nd String | |
| Defensive End | C.J. Robbins | Joe Gaziano |
| Defensive Tackle | Jordan Thompson | Fred Wyatt |
| Defensive Tackle | Tyler Lancaster | Alex Miller |
| Defensive End | Xavier Washington | Ifeadi Odenigbo |
| SAM Linebacker | Brett Walsh | Jaylen Prater |
| MIKE Linebacker | Anthony Walker Jr. | Nathan Fox |
| WILL Linebacker | Nate Hall | Joseph Jones |
| Cornerback | Montre Hartage | Roderick Campbell |
| Safety | Godwin Igwebuike | Tommy Odell |
| Safety | Kyle Queiro | Jared McGee |
| Cornerback | Trae Williams | Marcus McShepard |
| Starter/1st String | Backup/2nd String | |
| Kicker | Jack Mitchell | Matt Micucci |
| Punter | Hunter Niswander | Matt Micucci |
| Kickoff Specialist | Jack Mitchell | Matt Micucci |
| Kick Returner | Solomon Vault | |
| Punt Returner | Flynn Nagel | |
| Long Snapper | Chris Fitzpatrick |