DeKALB – NIU football (1-4, 0-1 MAC) travels back to Ohio to play its second consecutive conference road game taking on the University of Akron (1-4, 0-1 MAC).

The Huskies head to Akron following a closely contested 35-33 defeat against the University of Toledo last Saturday. 

“Obviously, we had our challenges last week, Toledo is a good offense,” said NIU head football coach Thomas Hammock. “Definitely thought there were some things we could have done better early in the game but was very pleased with how they stepped up in the fourth quarter.”

NIU recorded its highest point total and yardage of the season despite suffering its fourth consecutive loss. Hammock expressed satisfaction with the way his team rallied. 

“I thought last week was some positive we could take from the Toledo game,” Hammock said. “It wasn’t the result that we wanted but saw some guys take some steps in the right direction that we have to continue to build upon. Guys got some confidence.”

DEFENSE SEEKS REDEMPTION 

The Huskies’ defense struggled to contain the Rockets’ offensive onslaught, as NIU allowed a total of 542 yards and permitted five touchdowns during the game. 

Hammock said he believes this performance highlights the need for defensive adjustments and the minimization of miscues moving forward. 

“I thought there were some things we need to clean up from a scheme standpoint,” Hammock said. “When you show certain things on tape, people were going to continue to try to attack those weaknesses. We’ve already started the process of cleaning up some things from a review of the game. We can try to minimize some things from a defensive standpoint.”

CLOSING LATE 

The Huskies have a 1-3 record in one-possession games this season, securing their sole victory against Boston College in Week 1. 

Redshirt junior tight end Chris Carter said the team is drawing upon the knowledge they’ve gained from past close-game scenarios to net positive results moving forward. 

“We’ve got to stand on the fact that we’ve been there before,” Carter said. “So just executing at all moments because like we kind of brought up earlier, we have to stop at the end of the game. So just continuing to believe that we can achieve the goals that we set for ourselves and continue to execute.”

Akron stands at a 1-4 record after five weeks of play. Hammock isn’t overlooking this team and acknowledges important matchups that warrant close attention.

“They have an offense that can create a lot of problems with their ability to stretch the field vertically and horizontally,” Hammock said. “They have quarterbacks that know where to go with the ball, they got receivers that can make plays, they got running backs who can run downhill. So we have a tremendous challenge.”

UP NEXT 

The Huskies battle the University of Akron at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at InfoCision Stadium. The game will be streamed on ESPN+, and live stats will be available via SideArmStats.