Northwestern is coming off a massive victory over Penn State, and it's now time to consolidate the break. The 'Cats get Purdue this weekend at their home, lakefront stadium at 2 p.m. CT. This one was always circled as a winnable game, one Northwestern had to have if it wanted to make a bowl game. It still is.

Purdue is 2-4 heading into the game with wins over Southern Illinois and Ball State. If you can beat Penn State on the road, then you have to be able to beat the Boilermakers at home. This should be a win for the 'Cats, but it's Big Ten football. They still have to bring their best, as David Braun would say.

Here are three keys for the Wildcats to get their fifth win of the season and sit just one short of clinching a bowl appearance.

Continue solid secondary play

Purdue has a clear offensive strength throwing the football. Despite their record, the Boilermakers are fifth in the conference in passing yards per game with 270.5. Quarterback Ryan Browne has racked up 1,541 yards passing already with seven touchdowns.

His Achilles heel, though, is turnovers -- Browne has also thrown seven picks this year. If the 'Cats secondary can pounce on that and force him to make a couple mistakes, then Northwestern will probably win this game.

The 'Cats back end has also been pretty solid on the season. They've allowed the sixth least yards through the air in the Big Ten with 160.3. If they continue that trend and are able to control Browne and No. 1 receiver Michael Jackson II, it's going to be a good day in Evanston.

Anto Saka plays

The 'Cats' star EDGE missed the win over Penn State with an injury. Somehow, it didn't matter, and Northwestern got the win anyway.

But, don't get it twisted, Saka is a crucial cog in this Wildcat defense. It's very important that he returns on Saturday against the Boilermakers, something Braun said he "expects" in a presser earlier this week.

In order to take advantage of Browne's pension for mistakes, the 'Cats have to pressure him. Saka, even if he doesn't wrap up and finish plays as much as some might like, is always applying the pressure. His presence changes the game on Saturday.

David Braun plays his cards correctly

There's been reason to criticize Braun over the course of his Northwestern career. The 'Cats were bad last year, and it was a disappointment coming off of a bowl season the year before. Braun also had a really ugly anti-analytics streak on fourth downs for much of his first couple of years.

But Northwestern's coach shut up a ton of people last weekend. As my colleague, Gavin Dorsey, wrote after the game, it was Braun's signature win. He deserves a ton of credit for how he's motivated this team and kept them fighting even when things didn't look great early in the year.

Braun has his Wildcats in an impressive spot right now, two wins from another bowl appearance. But it's crucial that he gets his team up for this game. To get to six, beating Purdue is a major swing. There are much harder games remaining on the schedule.

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