Jan. 21, 2011

EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern's moniker as the "Cardiac 'Cats" seems to be catching on nationwide as the Wildcats were ranked the sixth most exciting football team to watch in 2010 by Thuuz.com, a company that sends alerts to fans in real time based on how exciting a game is.

Thuuz.com averaged the excitement ratings of 92 of the 120 FBS schools and released its rankings for 2010, with the Wildcats checking in at sixth. Northwestern is one of three Big Ten schools among the top-10, joining Michigan (fourth) and Iowa (10th) and helping the Big Ten rank as the most exciting conference during the last season.

Northwestern had its share of exciting games in 2010, beginning with the 23-21 victory over Vanderbilt in the season opener. Seven of the Wildcats' games were decided by a touchdown or less, including the dramatic 21-17 fourth quarter comeback against Iowa at Ryan Field on November 13. NU found itself on the winning end of three other nailbiters, defeating Central Michigan 30-25, winning 29-28 at Minnesota and holding off Indiana 20-17 in Bloomington.

This is not the first time head coach Pat Fitzgerald's Wildcats have been among the nation's most exciting teams as Northwestern ranked seventh in 2009, thanks in part to the victory over Iowa in Iowa City and the overtime thriller against Auburn in the Outback Bowl.

Thuuz.com's 2010 Most Exciting Football Teams

1. UAB
2. Auburn
3. Georgia Tech
4. Michigan
5. East Carolina
6. Northwestern
7. North Carolina
8. Rutgers
9. Georgia
10. Iowa
11. Arizona State
12. Southern Miss
13. North Carolina State
14. South Florida
15. Kansas State
16. San Diego State
17. Indiana
18. Southern California
19. Illinois
20. Louisville

Conference Rankings
1. Big Ten
2. Big East
3. Conference USA
4. ACC
5. SEC
6. Pac-10
7. Big XII
8. Mountain West
9. Western Athletic