It was fitting that Saturday’s NIU home-opener was decided on a pair of ugly field goal attempts.

Most of the Huskies’ 22-21 victory over Arkansas State was as unsightly as a plaid sports coat, but in the end, Willy Roy Jr.‘s 25-yard line drive was good and Ryan Jose’s 39-yard attempt sailed wide to give the Huskies a come-from-behind win.

NIU (1-1) tied a school record with its 14th-straight home victory.

Roy’s game-winning field goal came at the end of an eventful 13-play drive at the end of the fourth quarter. With the Huskies behind 21-19, NIU faced a third and 13 on its own 36. Quarterback Stacey McKinney fired a rocket that bounced off receiver Rakeem Short’s hands and deflected directly to the Huskies’ Larry Wynn for a 25-yard gain.

But NIU needed more good luck to keep the drive alive. Facing a fourth-and-one on the Indians’ 32, fullback Adam Dach bulled his way up the middle for a short gain. The ensuing measurement gave NIU a first down by inches. “That was a close one,” Dach said. “We’re real fortunate we got a fair spot.” Five plays later, Roy connected on his game-winner.

The field goal was the first in Roy’s career and the win was the first for NIU coach Charlie Sadler.

“It feels great to get the first one,” Sadler said. “(But) we made it as hard as we could make it … We kept shooting ourselves in the foot.”

One Huskie who had no trouble with his footwork was Dach, who gained a career-best 195 yards on 24 attempts.

Despite Dach’s performance, and tailback Steve Rodgers’ two TD runs, the 0-3 Indians had a chance to notch their first win at drizzly Huskie Stadium with 18 seconds left.

After Roy’s kick, Arkansas State drove from its own 32 to the Huskies’ 21. Facing a fourth-and-one, Indians coach Al Kincaid sent out his junior kicker to try a 39 yarder with the wind. The kick had plenty of distance but sailed barely wide to the right.

Roy, a former standout for NIU on the soccer field, said only one thought ran through his head before his attempt. “I just kept thinking, ‘put it through the uprights,'” he said. “The rush (after the kick) is just unbelievable. It’s something I’ve never experienced before.”

A crowd of 14,583 saw Roy and his teammates grab an early lead. On NIU‘s first possession, Dach rambled for a 27-yard gain followed after one play by a 52-yard TD for the senior fullback. ASU quarterback Roy Johnson and Rodgers traded TDs before Indians’ fullback Jerrold Seymore somehow emerged from a pile of bodies on an NIU punt to scamper for a 50-yard TD.

Seymore put ASU ahead 21-12 on a one-yard run in the third quarter before McKinney pitched to Rodgers on an option and the junior tailback ran 18 yards to bring the Huskies within 21-19.

There was no more scoring until Roy lined up for his potential game-winner. And what was the rookie coach Sadler doing during Roy’s attempt? “I was crossing my fingers,” Sadler said.