Saturday, Sept. 25 -- 2:30 p.m. ET
Huskie Stadium -- DeKalb, IL
ESPN3
Two teams looking to even their final non-conference records will meet Saturday when Northern Illinois hosts the Maine Black Bears.
NIU opened with a dramatic 22-21 at Georgia Tech. A heartbreaking 50-42 home loss against Wyoming followed, and #25 Michigan pounded the Huskies 63-10 last week.
Maine went the opposite way, dropping its first two before pulling out a 31-26 win over Merrimac last week.
Here's more on the two teams . . .
MAINE BLACK BEARS (1-2, 0-0 Colonial)
>> The FCS member of the Colonial Athletic Conference jumped out to a 10-0 lead against Merrimack. The latter took its only lead of the game at 13-12. While Maine retook the lead just over a minute later, the Warriors pulled within 29-26 with 29 seconds remaining. The PAT was returned by Maine for a two-point defensive conversion for the 31-26 final score.
>> Merrimack actually had a 362-265 advantage in total yards and 26-16 edge in first downs. However, the Warriors committed four turnovers. Maine played turnover-free ball, although it was penalized 12 times for 118 yards.
>> The Bears totaled 124 yards on the ground, averaging 3.4 ypc on 36 trips. Junior Elijah Barnwell paced UM with 17 carries for 78 yards and a TD, while Freddie Brock added 10 rushes for 47 yards with a score.
>> Freshman Derek Robertson completed 11-of-22 passes for 141 yards and a touchdown. On the year, he is completing just 42.2 percent of his pass attempts.
>> Freddie Brock caught two passes totaling 64 yards with one TD.
>> Kicker Jonny Messina has connected on all seven PAT attempts and two-of-three field goals, with a long of 34 yards.
NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES (1-2)
>> The Huskies managed 10 points against an undefeated #25 Michigan team last week. John Richardson nailed a 21-yard first quarter field goal and Cole Tucker tallied the game's only fourth quarter score with a nine-yard TD pass midway through the period.
>> While NIU produced just 208 yards of offense, Michigan rolled up 606 yards and 28 first downs.
>> Huskie QB Rocky Lombardi completed 9-of-17 passes for just 46 yards, with one TD and one interception. He also led NIU rushing with seven carries for 72 yards. Harrison Waylee rushed 12 times totaling 34 yards.
>> Trayvon Rudolph caught three balls, totaling 14 yards.
>> Lance Deveaux Jr. led the Huskie defense with eight tackles.
>> Two of the Huskies’ first three games have each been decided in the final minutes.
-- In the season opener at Georgia Tech, Tyrice Richie made a diving catc of Rocky Lombardi’s two-point conversion pass in the back of the end zone with 38 seconds to play, giving the Huskies a 22-21 win.
-- Versus Wyoming, NIU came back from 26 points down in the final 20 minutes of the game to take a 43
>> FCS SUCCESS: Since moving to the “major college” ranks in 1969, NIU has enjoyed success versus opponents in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). NIU owns a 16-3 record versus FCS opponents since 2000 and has won seven of its last eight games. The
Huskies’ last win over an FCS team came in 2019 when NIU defeated Illinois State in the 2019 season opener at Huskie Stadium.