Sutton's absence hurts Wildcats
Pat Fitzgerald whistled as he walked to the podium Monday.
Surprisingly, his tune wasn't taps.
"There is a good football team in our locker room," Fitzgerald said two days after Northwestern fell 58-7 to Ohio State, the team's worst loss since a 62-10 thrashing against Iowa in 2002.
"Saturday, we took a big step backward. … The signs, to me, were that we were ready to play, based on the way that we prepared. We left it here. We didn't take it with us to Columbus. We need to rekindle that flame."
But can NU trigger a turnaround without its top spark plug?
The prognosis on running back Tyrell Sutton remains gloomy after the junior missed his second straight game with a right ankle injury. Sutton sat out practice Monday as he underwent tests and visited a specialist about the ankle.
Fitzgerald confirmed that Sutton decided he couldn't play after testing the ankle during pregame warmups Saturday. The fact that Sutton has twice removed himself from the field -- first against Nevada and then Saturday in his return home to Ohio -- suggests the injury could be serious.
"We've got great trust and respect for the way our players feel and how their body responds," Fitzgerald said. "Both games, against Duke and against Ohio State, he has been champing at the bit to play. And his ankle just isn't responding."
TV cameras showed Sutton standing alone during NU's pummeling.
"I can think back to times when I broke my leg against Iowa (in 1995) that I was by myself, too," Fitzgerald said. "When you get yourself prepared to play and your injury doesn't respond the way you want it to, it's not easy.
"Part of maturing and part of growing is then to help the rest of the team. As the game went along, I saw steps made by Tyrell to help."
Junior running back Omar Conteh made his first collegiate start Saturday, but Fitzgerald still considers Conteh and senior Brandon Roberson co-starters. NU finished with zero net rushing yards.
"We miss (Sutton), but I don't think people are consumed with it or playing worse because of it," center Trevor Rees said. "We trust the guys that are in the backfield."
Taking a toll: Several team captains said they were "embarrassed" by the Ohio State loss, but shock was the overriding emotion for free safety Reggie McPherson.
"I really am stunned," McPherson said. "We've played a lot of football. It's not like we're young and we don't know what we're doing. It is stunning that the score could get out of hand like that. I expect much more out of us."
Inches to go: Starting cornerback Sherrick McManis (concussion) sat out practice Monday but is expected to be cleared for contact Thursday, Pat Fitzgerald said. … Junior defensive end Kevin Mims has moved ahead of David Ngene on this week's depth chart after starting the last three games. Mims leads NU in tackles for loss (5). … Fitzgerald hopes to decide Wednesday whether linebacker Eddie Simpson can play against Michigan. Simpson has missed the last two games with a leg injury but felt "pretty good" Monday. … The Oct. 6 game at Michigan State will kick off at 11 a.m. and be televised by the Big Ten Network.