EAST LANSING, Mich. _ When coach Pat Fitzgerald declared after Northwestern's Sept. 24 loss to Nebraska, "we can't do the things that losers do," and pledged to "fix" the problem, few believed he could.
At that point Northwestern was 1-3 with a home loss to Illinois State and an offense that put fans to sleep faster than an Ambien.
The Wildcats have not lost since that night. And perhaps even more surprising, they are playing wildly entertaining football.
They notched a 54-40 victory Saturday at Michigan State, their highest output since beating Indiana 59-38 in 2011.
And to think, the over-under for this game (i.e. expected point total) was 42.
Northwestern is now 3-3 and 2-1 in the Big Ten. September seems long ago.
Fitzgerald made a half-serious plea to reporters to stop asking about the beginning of the season.
"We weren't very good," he said. "I have zero answers other than that we didn't coach well enough and didn't play well enough, but we have stayed the course and kept grinding. Good things usually happen when you respond."
Perhaps this performance at Spartan Stadium will turn out to be a microcosm for the season.
Northwestern trailed 14-0 midway through the first quarter after Clayton Thorson made a bad decision, firing across the field on third-and-6. His pass was a gift to cornerback Justin Layne, who returned it for a touchdown.
"It was my fault; everyone realized it," Thorson said.
But from that moment on, Thorson was spectacular. He finished 27 of 35 for 281 yards, three scores and the lone interception. He also rushed for a 9-yard touchdown, opting not to pitch before charging up the middle.
"We're usually yelling, 'No, no,' when he cuts it back," joked tailback Justin Jackson, who scored on touchdowns of 29 and 26 yards.
Thorson closed out the game in style, hitting Austin Carr with a fourth-down pass on a corner route that made it 54-37 with about five minutes to play. Michigan State fans began exiting en masse, something the NU players noticed.
"The silence was deafening," Thorson said. "It felt good."
Said defensive end Ifeadi Odenigbo: "When A.C. scored, everyone started packing. We said, 'Yes, this is a victory.' "
Odenigbo pointed out that NU's last two road games fell on homecoming, often a sign of low respect for the opponent.
"We got a taste of that at Iowa," he said. "We talked about it: This is our homecoming here."
Their actual homecoming will be Saturday, when Indiana visits Ryan Field.
Northwestern, which entered the game 107th nationally in total offense, had season highs with 490 yards and 26 first downs. The offense was balanced (281 passing, 209 rushing), did not commit a single holding penalty and went 10-for-19 on third down.
Angry fans were ready to escort offensive coordinator Mick McCall out of Evanston, Ill., after the first four weeks, but the Wildcats have completely flipped the script.
Michigan State, meanwhile, remains in free fall. Since clubbing Notre Dame to start 2-0, the Spartans have lost four straight, three at home. The 54 points were the most they've ever allowed in a home game.
Asked about his team's poor tackling, Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio replied: "I'm not going to sit up here and point fingers at particular players. It's a team sport. And without watching the film, it's difficult to say who missed what."
And easy to say Northwestern is in the midst of a remarkable turnaround.
