- Pat Fitzgerald won the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Chuck Bednarik Award twice.
- Otto Graham was the No. 4 overall pick in the 1944 NFL Draft.
- Damien Anderson ran for 2,063 yards and 23 touchdowns in 2000, which are single-season records.
Through the 2024 college football season, the Northwestern football program’s record is well under .500.
Northwestern did appear in the 2023 Las Vegas Bowl. They overcame the NCAA football odds as a 6.5-point underdog and beat Utah 14-7.
Today, football bets on the Wildcats and more are available at the BetMGM online sportsbook.
See the five best Northwestern football players below.
5 Best Northwestern Wildcats Football Players, Ranked
| Rank | Player | Position | Northwestern Years |
| 1 | Pat Fitzgerald | LB | 1993-1996 |
| 2 | Otto Graham | QB | 1941-1943 |
| 3 | Damien Anderson | RB | 1998-2001 |
| 4 | Justin Jackson | RB | 2014-2017 |
| 5 | Darnell Autry | RB | 1994-1996 |
Northwestern Wildcats All-Time Greatest Football Players
1. Pat Fitzgerald
Fitzgerald was Northwestern’s head coach from 2006 to 2022, but decades before that, he was a decorated linebacker for the program.
He played there from 1993 to 1996.
He was a two-time Bronko Nagurski Trophy (best defensive player) and Chuck Bednarik Award (defensive college player of the year) winner. He also won the Jack Lambert Trophy (top linebacker), was a two-time consensus All-American, two-time Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, and two-time first-team All-Big Ten.
He’s enshrined in the Northwestern Athletic and College Football Hall of Fame.
2. Otto Graham
Graham played for Northwestern back in the 1940s, from 1941 to 1943.
He was a first-team and third-team All-American, won the Chicago Tribune Silver Football (Big Ten Conference MVP), was first-team All-Big Ten, and was two-time second-team All-Big Ten.
Not only was he a quarterback, but he also returned punts. In his first game with the program on Oct. 4, 1941, he returned a 90-yard punt for a touchdown and ran and passed for two more scores. They beat Kansas State 51-3.
He went on to be the No. 4 overall pick in the 1944 NFL Draft and is enshrined in the College Football Hall of Fame.
3. Damien Anderson
Anderson played four seasons for Northwestern from 1998 to 2001.
As a running back, he had 4,485 yards (second) and 38 touchdowns (second).
In 2000, he ran for 2,063 yards and 23 touchdowns. These are both single-season Northwestern records.
He was a consensus All-American, first-team All-Big Ten, and second-team All-Big Ten.
4. Justin Jackson
Another running back, Jackson was at Northwestern from 2014 to 2017.
He finished his career with 5,440 rushing yards (first), 41 touchdowns (first), 42 total touchdowns (eighth), and 5,464 total yards (10th).
Jackson was first-team All-Big Ten and two-time second-team All-Big Ten.
5. Darnell Autry
Autry played three seasons at Northwestern from 1994 to 1996. He ran for 3,793 yards (third in program history) and 35 touchdowns (third). These stats came despite just 120 carries for 556 yards and one touchdown as a freshman.
For context, if he played four seasons, he would’ve finished with 5,057 rushing yards and approximately 47 rushing touchdowns if you take his three-year average and add on an additional year.
He was first-team All-American, second-team All-American, and two-time first-team All-Big Ten.
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