Northwestern Wildcats is a group composed of athletic teams representing Northwestern University. The Wildcats are composed of approximately 19 varsity teams, and is one of the founding members of the NCAA Division I Big Ten Conference. It also has the distinction of being the only private university that is included in the said conference.
The group is headed by James J. Phillips, its athletics director, and its mascot is ìWillie the Wildcat.î The Wildcats were not always known by their current nickname, as before 1924, the group was known as ìThe Purple,î which may be one of the reasons why the current teamís colors is purple and white. Interestingly, the audience follows a certain tradition before football games, wherein the audience jingles their car keys during the game before every punt and kickoff.
The Wildcats have been known to produce a number of notable football players such as John L. Driscoll, Brian Gowens, John Kidd, Mike Kafka, Kevin Bentley, and more.