EVANSTON, Ill. (AP) — The steel frame for Northwestern's new home stands out as a beacon of promise on the site of the old stadium. The sections filled in by concrete are more signs of progress.
A little more than a year after the school broke ground on a new Ryan Field, the framework for something special appears to be in place.
“It truly will be the best football venue in the country," coach David Braun said. "It won’t affect us in 2025. It’s certainly affecting our recruiting in a positive manner. But so much to look forward to in 2026.”
As for what Northwestern has to look forward to this year?
The Wildcats come into Braun's third season looking to bounce back after going from winning eight games in 2023 to finishing 4-8 last year and near the bottom of the Big Ten with a 2-7 mark. Only Maryland and Purdue had worse records in league play.
Northwestern has a new quarterback in SMU transfer Preston Stone and one more season playing in a temporary lakefront stadium before moving into what figures to be a sparkling new home.
Northwestern struggled at quarterback the past few seasons. The Wildcats hope Stone can change that.
Things didn't go the way Stone would have liked last year, when he started the first three games before Kevin Jennings took over. The Mustangs advanced to the College Football Playoff.
But in 2023, Stone started the first 12 games, throwing for 3,197 yards with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions before breaking a leg in the regular-season finale. SMU went on to win the AAC championship.
Jack Lausch, who started the final 10 games for Northwestern last season, informed Braun in June that he was leaving the team to focus on baseball.
Left tackle Caleb Tiernan earned an 88.9 pass blocking grade from Pro Football Focus last season that ranked sixth among all tackles. He gave up just one sack over the final six games.
Northwestern's running backs combined for 910 yards rushing a year ago, with Cam Porter, Joseph Himon II and Caleb Komolafe accounting for 897 of them. All three are back.
Porter led the team with 501 yards and Himon was second with 257, but the Wildcats will need to get more from their run game. They were 17th in the Big Ten in rushing at 98.5 yards per game.
Northwestern will play five of its seven home games in one of college football’s most unique settings, plus two more at Wrigley Field against No. 14 Michigan and Minnesota.
The Wildcats were 2-3 on campus last season and lost both conference games, to Indiana and Wisconsin. But with its location along the lake and views of the Chicago skyline, the pop-up stadium was a stunner. Wisconsin's strength coach even made good on a promise and took the plunge after the Badgers' victory. The place is getting a bit of an upgrade this year, with more premium seating and improved audio and video.
Though the Wildcats miss defending national champion Ohio State, the schedule is hardly a breeze.
Northwestern opens against a potential playoff team when it visits Tulane on Aug. 30, and No. 7 Oregon, the defending Big Ten champion, visits on Sept. 13. The games against Michigan and Minnesota at Wrigley Field are on Nov. 15 and 22. The Wildcats also have some difficult road games, with trips to No. 2 Penn State on Oct. 11, USC on Nov. 7 and No. 12 Illinois on Nov. 29.
Northwestern's home opener is against Western Illinois on Sept. 5.
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Workers continue construction of Northwestern's new Ryan Field on Thursday, Aug, 14, 2025 in Evanston, Ill., being built on the site of the old one and set to open in 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Seligman)
Construction of Northwestern's new Ryan Field is taking shape on Thursday, Aug, 14, 2025 in Evanston, Ill., being built on the site of the old one and set to open in 2025. (AP Photo/Andrew Seligman)
FILE - Northwestern head coach David Braun helps his team warm up before an NCAA football game against Maryland, Oct. 11, 2024, in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Mike Buscher, File)
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran closed its airspace to commercial flights for hours without explanation early Thursday as tensions remained high with the United States over Tehran’s bloody crackdown on nationwide protests.
The closure ran for over four hours, according to pilot guidance issued by Iran, which lies on a key East-West flight route. International carriers diverted north and south around Iran, but after one extension, the closure appeared to have expired and several domestic flights were in the air just after 7 a.m.
Iran previously shut its airspace during the 12-day war against Israel in June and when it exchanged fire with Israel during the Israel-Hamas war. However, there were no signs of current hostilities though the closure immediately rippled through global aviation because Iran is located on a key East-West route for airlines.
“Several airlines have already reduced or suspended services, and most carriers are avoiding Iranian airspace,” said the website SafeAirspace, which provides information on conflict areas and air travel. “The situation may signal further security or military activity, including the risk of missile launches or heightened air defense, increasing the risk of misidentification of civil traffic.”
Iran in the past has misidentified a commercial aircraft as a hostile target. In 2020, Iranian air defense shot down Ukraine International Airlines Flight PS752 with two surface-to-air missiles, killing all 176 people on board. Iran for days adamantly dismissed allegations of downing the plane as Western propaganda before finally acknowledging it.
The airspace closure came as some personnel at a key U.S. military base in Qatar were advised to evacuate. The U.S. Embassy in Kuwait also ordered its personnel to “temporary halt” going to the multiple military bases in the small Gulf Arab country.
The U.N. Security Council scheduled an emergency meeting on Iran at the request of the United States on Thursday afternoon.
U.S. President Donald Trump made a series of vague statements Wednesday that left unclear what American action, if any, would take place against Iran.
In comments to reporters, Trump said he had been told that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, without providing many details. The shift comes a day after Trump told protesters in Iran that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Islamic Republic’s deadly crackdown.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi also sought to tone down the rhetoric, urging the U.S. to find a solution through negotiation.
Asked by Fox News what he would say to Trump, Araghchi said: “My message is: Between war and diplomacy, diplomacy is a better way, although we don’t have any positive experience from the United States. But still diplomacy is much better than war.”
The change in tone by the U.S. and Iran came hours after the chief of the Iranian judiciary said the government must act quickly to punish the thousands who have been detained.
Activists warned that hangings of detainees could come soon. The security forces’ crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,615, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported. The death toll exceeds that of any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Demonstrators burn a poster depicting Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a rally in support of anti-government protests in Iran, in Holon, Israel Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
A woman mourns next to the flag-draped coffins of a group of security forces, who were killed during anti-government protests, during their funeral ceremony, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
A man hands out posters of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a funeral ceremony for a group of security forces, who were killed during anti-government protests, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
People take part in a rally in support of anti-government protests in Iran, Berlin Germany, Wednesday, June 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
Policemen protect the British Embassy during a protest by hardline supporters of the Iranian government, as people ride on their motorbike in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)
