Make no mistake about it, Northern Illinois coach Jerry Kill wants his team playing fast tonight.
In order to do that at 6:30 p.m. against Eastern Michigan (0-8, 0-4 MAC West), at Huskie Stadium, Kill believes he has learned from something that happened earlier this season to the Huskies (5-3, 3-1 MAC West.)
?I thought we played so hard at Purdue [a 28-21 victory] that when we played Idaho [a 34-31 loss] everybody wanted to say ?Well you had a letdown.? I just think our kids physically were tired and we played slow and methodically,? Kill said after Tuesday?s practice.
That?s why the Huskies shortened practice considerably this week and did not practice with pads on, nor was there much hitting. That?s by design to ensure what happened against Idaho doesn?t happen on a five-day turnaround against the Eagles.
?If we go out here and shoulder pads like this the past two days, then our bodies are going to be beat up and slow,? Kill said. ?By doing what we?re doing, we should be fresh, or fresher than we would be.?
Offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover said playing fast also means playing with a consistently quick tempo.
By doing that, and doing it with fresher bodies, the Huskies can run their offensive more effectively, like they did this past Saturday in the fourth quarter against Akron.
?Early in the season we had a lot of guys downfield getting involved in second and third blocks, working to help spring big plays,? Limegrover said. ?We?ve started to get back to that and that?s what we stressed.?
In what likely will be quarterback DeMarcus Grady?s third consecutive start with Chandler Harnish?s unspecified right knee injury keeping him out of Tuesday?s practice, Kill hopes that continued improvement from Grady and an emphasis on playing with speed and a fast tempo will lead to putting away the Eagles sooner rather than later.
?I don?t think there?s any question that we need to come out there with some energy,? Kill said. ?Even though we didn?t get a lot of points early in the game, we dominated the first quarter of last week?s game. I think we need to do the same. We need to come out with lots of energy and a lot of focus. It gives us a chance to get Grady a lot better.?
5 KEYS TO THE GAME
1. End it early
Eastern Michigan is coming off a road trip to Arkansas this past Saturday, then had to board a bus again on Wednesday to travel to DeKalb. Eagles coach Ron English had the team practice in pads on Monday
with plenty of hitting. Compare that with the team that doesn?t have to travel, NIU, and went without pads this week, and getting ahead early can effectively deflate what should be a tired EMU team.
2. Continue to pressure
The Huskies have notched 11 sacks in the past two games while effectively eliminating any sort of run game for Miami (Ohio) and Akron. That formula has led to success and there?s no reason why NIU can?t do it again against the Eagles. Look for Brandon Bice, Jake Coffman, D.J. Pirkle and an emerging freshman named Nabal Jefferson to provide the heat up front.
3. Shore up the depth at secondary
Injuries have forced inexperienced players like Jody Van Lannen, Tommy Davis and Rashaan Melvin to see an uptick in their playing time at safety and cornerback. Their learning curve has steepened and the experience they?re getting now is a great teacher. But it hasn?t completely translated to success yet. NIU coaches will be monitoring their growth as Eastern Michigan will throw looks at the Huskie secondary that they haven?t seen on film.
4. Get Me?co back on track
While Chad Spann has been fantastic for the Huskies over the past month, Me?co Brown has similarly slowed in his rushing and blocking. Eastern Michigan presents one of the easiest challenges on the schedule in terms of a run defense. Giving Brown a few more carries and allowing him to get right could pay dividends down the line.
5. Don?t show too much
This is more of a looking-ahead type of key, but the next opponent on NIU?s schedule is Ball State. The Cardinals are on a bye this week and can sit back, watch and take notes on the Huskies while NIU doesn?t have that luxury.
In order to do that at 6:30 p.m. against Eastern Michigan (0-8, 0-4 MAC West), at Huskie Stadium, Kill believes he has learned from something that happened earlier this season to the Huskies (5-3, 3-1 MAC West.)
?I thought we played so hard at Purdue [a 28-21 victory] that when we played Idaho [a 34-31 loss] everybody wanted to say ?Well you had a letdown.? I just think our kids physically were tired and we played slow and methodically,? Kill said after Tuesday?s practice.
That?s why the Huskies shortened practice considerably this week and did not practice with pads on, nor was there much hitting. That?s by design to ensure what happened against Idaho doesn?t happen on a five-day turnaround against the Eagles.
?If we go out here and shoulder pads like this the past two days, then our bodies are going to be beat up and slow,? Kill said. ?By doing what we?re doing, we should be fresh, or fresher than we would be.?
Offensive coordinator Matt Limegrover said playing fast also means playing with a consistently quick tempo.
By doing that, and doing it with fresher bodies, the Huskies can run their offensive more effectively, like they did this past Saturday in the fourth quarter against Akron.
?Early in the season we had a lot of guys downfield getting involved in second and third blocks, working to help spring big plays,? Limegrover said. ?We?ve started to get back to that and that?s what we stressed.?
In what likely will be quarterback DeMarcus Grady?s third consecutive start with Chandler Harnish?s unspecified right knee injury keeping him out of Tuesday?s practice, Kill hopes that continued improvement from Grady and an emphasis on playing with speed and a fast tempo will lead to putting away the Eagles sooner rather than later.
?I don?t think there?s any question that we need to come out there with some energy,? Kill said. ?Even though we didn?t get a lot of points early in the game, we dominated the first quarter of last week?s game. I think we need to do the same. We need to come out with lots of energy and a lot of focus. It gives us a chance to get Grady a lot better.?
5 KEYS TO THE GAME
1. End it early
Eastern Michigan is coming off a road trip to Arkansas this past Saturday, then had to board a bus again on Wednesday to travel to DeKalb. Eagles coach Ron English had the team practice in pads on Monday
with plenty of hitting. Compare that with the team that doesn?t have to travel, NIU, and went without pads this week, and getting ahead early can effectively deflate what should be a tired EMU team.
2. Continue to pressure
The Huskies have notched 11 sacks in the past two games while effectively eliminating any sort of run game for Miami (Ohio) and Akron. That formula has led to success and there?s no reason why NIU can?t do it again against the Eagles. Look for Brandon Bice, Jake Coffman, D.J. Pirkle and an emerging freshman named Nabal Jefferson to provide the heat up front.
3. Shore up the depth at secondary
Injuries have forced inexperienced players like Jody Van Lannen, Tommy Davis and Rashaan Melvin to see an uptick in their playing time at safety and cornerback. Their learning curve has steepened and the experience they?re getting now is a great teacher. But it hasn?t completely translated to success yet. NIU coaches will be monitoring their growth as Eastern Michigan will throw looks at the Huskie secondary that they haven?t seen on film.
4. Get Me?co back on track
While Chad Spann has been fantastic for the Huskies over the past month, Me?co Brown has similarly slowed in his rushing and blocking. Eastern Michigan presents one of the easiest challenges on the schedule in terms of a run defense. Giving Brown a few more carries and allowing him to get right could pay dividends down the line.
5. Don?t show too much
This is more of a looking-ahead type of key, but the next opponent on NIU?s schedule is Ball State. The Cardinals are on a bye this week and can sit back, watch and take notes on the Huskies while NIU doesn?t have that luxury.
