Northwestern Wildcats Football

The Northwestern Wildcats football team represents Northwestern University. The Wildcats compete in the NCAA’s Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) and are a member of the Big Ten Conference based near Chicago in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern began playing football in 1876. Its football mascot is the Wildcat, a term coined by a Chicago Tribune reporter in 1924, after reporting on a football game where the players appeared as "a wall of purple wildcats". Northwestern Football is also marketed as "Chicago's Big Ten Team" with its proximity and ties to Chicago.