Four Northwestern players named to All-Big Ten Defense Team

With the regular season over, the Big Ten released its All-Big Ten Defense today, and four Northwestern players found themselves on the roster. Godwin Igwebuike, Paddy Fisher, Joe Gaziano, and Kyle Queiro were all named to the 2017 All-Big Ten Defense team by the coaches and the media. Northwestern also had four players in the Honorable Mentions category (Nate Hall, Tyler Lancaster, Samdup Miller, and KUHBS)

As a team, Northwestern had the fourth-most players named to the All-Big Ten Defense team, only behind Ohio State, Wisconsin and Michigan. If there were any doubts that Northwestern is near the top of college football in developing defensive talent, this list should put them to bed.

Godwin Igwebuike was named Second Team All-Defense at defensive back by the coaches and the media. The standout senior safety made 72 tackles and 2 interceptions in 2017, locking down the heart of Northwestern’s secondary.

He was joined in the honors by Kyle Queiro, who had a monster season. Although primarily a safety, he played nickel cornerback whenever the team needed him. He had 58 tackles, 5.5 tackles for loss, and 4 interceptions. It was a banner year for Queiro, who was named Third Team All-Big Ten on both lists.

Paddy Fisher, already named Big Ten Defensive Freshman of the Year, found himself on the list as well after a fantastic season. Fisher was named to the Second Team by the coaches and Third Team by the media, an astonishing accomplishment for a freshman. Fisher had infinity 110 tackles for Northwestern, leading the team by a substantial margin. He also had 4 forced fumbles, 8 tackles for loss and an interception to his name. He should be on this list for years to come.

Sophomore Joe Gaziano made Third Team All-Big Ten as a redshirt sophomore, another sign that Northwestern is rapidly becoming a defensive powerhouse. Gaziano had 8 sacks in 2017 and was the driving force behind Northwestern’s second half defensive line dominance.

Nate Hall, Tyler Lancaster, and Samdup Miller were on the list as Honorable Mentions. All three also had great seasons and contributed to Northwestern ending the regular season 24th in defensive S&P+. Freshman kicker Charlie Kuhbander made the Honorable Mentions list on Special Teams.