Harsh reality time: The Northern Illinois Huskies can whine all they want about not getting a bowl bit after going 10-2 and beating Maryland and Alabama, but they have no one to blame but themselves. They had to beat Bowling Green and Toledo, didn't do it, and missed out on the post-season fun. Yeah, it's not fair that lesser teams from big conferences got to go bowling, but NIU should be far more upset that it didn't win the MAC West. Take care of business, and everything else works itself out.
This year's team is good enough to get the job done even after some key personnel losses thanks to the balance from top to bottom. There are things that need working on, but there isn't one glaring weakness that teams will be able to exploit. All the wins and all the success over the last few years has been great, and now it's time to actually win a game it needs to.
The Huskies haven't beaten Toledo since joining the MAC going 0-7 and lost last year to Bowling Green when it needed a win the most. Now the Rockets and Falcons have to come to DeKalb and the MAC East teams on the slate aren't in NIU's class. This has to be the year Joe Novak and his crew finally put it together and write their own bowl invite.
The Schedule: After dealing with the possible payback game at Maryland, the Huskies get every break in the book with MAC West rivals Bowling Green and Toledo in DeKalb while facing lightweights UCF and Akron from the East. The league road games aren't bad with UCF, Western Michigan, Ball State and Eastern Michigan all winnable.
Best Offensive Player: Senior OT Jake VerStraete. QB Josh Haldi is more valuable and RB A.J. Harris and WR Dan Sheldon will have huge seasons, but VerStraete is the one the NFL scouts are drooling over and the one that will be millionaire next year at this time.
Best Defensive Player: Senior LB Brian Atkinson. The 223-pound star on the outside will move to the middle where he'll be one of the fastest linebackers in the MAC. He'll take Nick Duffy's old spot and be the new leader of the D.
Key player to a successful season: Michael Turner wasn't the only star of the offense, but he was the main man rushing for 1.648 yards and 14 touchdowns. The ball will be shared among several backs, but it would help if big, fast junior A.J. Harris becomes the workhorse. He has next-level skills that he has to develop.
The season will be a success if ... the Huskies win the MAC title. The schedule is too favorable and the team is too good to shoot any lower.
Key game: November 10th vs. Toledo. The showdown with Bowling Green will be the first step in the fight for the MAC title, but Toledo is the big prize for the Huskies. The Huskies have to break the hex the Rockets hold over them and get a win.
2003 Fun Stats:
- Third quarter scoring: Northern Illinois 124 - Opponents 43
- Penalties: Opponents 83 for 702 yards - Northern Illinois 67 for 615
- Northern Illinois red zone offense: 48 scores in 49 chances. 32 touchdowns and 16 field goals (one missed field goal)
This year's team is good enough to get the job done even after some key personnel losses thanks to the balance from top to bottom. There are things that need working on, but there isn't one glaring weakness that teams will be able to exploit. All the wins and all the success over the last few years has been great, and now it's time to actually win a game it needs to.
The Huskies haven't beaten Toledo since joining the MAC going 0-7 and lost last year to Bowling Green when it needed a win the most. Now the Rockets and Falcons have to come to DeKalb and the MAC East teams on the slate aren't in NIU's class. This has to be the year Joe Novak and his crew finally put it together and write their own bowl invite.
The Schedule: After dealing with the possible payback game at Maryland, the Huskies get every break in the book with MAC West rivals Bowling Green and Toledo in DeKalb while facing lightweights UCF and Akron from the East. The league road games aren't bad with UCF, Western Michigan, Ball State and Eastern Michigan all winnable.
Best Offensive Player: Senior OT Jake VerStraete. QB Josh Haldi is more valuable and RB A.J. Harris and WR Dan Sheldon will have huge seasons, but VerStraete is the one the NFL scouts are drooling over and the one that will be millionaire next year at this time.
Best Defensive Player: Senior LB Brian Atkinson. The 223-pound star on the outside will move to the middle where he'll be one of the fastest linebackers in the MAC. He'll take Nick Duffy's old spot and be the new leader of the D.
Key player to a successful season: Michael Turner wasn't the only star of the offense, but he was the main man rushing for 1.648 yards and 14 touchdowns. The ball will be shared among several backs, but it would help if big, fast junior A.J. Harris becomes the workhorse. He has next-level skills that he has to develop.
The season will be a success if ... the Huskies win the MAC title. The schedule is too favorable and the team is too good to shoot any lower.
Key game: November 10th vs. Toledo. The showdown with Bowling Green will be the first step in the fight for the MAC title, but Toledo is the big prize for the Huskies. The Huskies have to break the hex the Rockets hold over them and get a win.
2003 Fun Stats:
- Third quarter scoring: Northern Illinois 124 - Opponents 43
- Penalties: Opponents 83 for 702 yards - Northern Illinois 67 for 615
- Northern Illinois red zone offense: 48 scores in 49 chances. 32 touchdowns and 16 field goals (one missed field goal)
