Editor’s note: This story was updated at 3:55 p.m. to include the length and annual base salary of Majkrzak’s contract.
DeKALB — NIU’s week-long search for Rashon Burno’s replacement has come to a close, and the Huskies have found the head coach who’ll lead them into the Horizon League.
After parting ways with Burno on March 7, NIU formally announced Matt Majkrzak as the 30th head coach in school history on Tuesday morning. Multiple outlets first reported the hire on Monday morning.
Majkrzak will receive a five-year contract that will pay him an annual base salary of $330,000, according to the memorandum of understanding obtained by the Northern Star through a Freedom of Information Act request.
At just 36 years old, Majkrzak becomes the youngest head coach at NIU since Jim Molinari, who was 34 when he took the reins in 1989. He will be the second-youngest head coach in the Horizon League, behind only Youngstown State’s Ethan Faulkner (35).
The move breaks from NIU’s recent trend of hiring Division I assistants to lead the program. It marks the first time the Huskies have brought in a head coach from outside Division I since 1976, when NIU Hall of Famer John McDougal was hired straight out of West Aurora High School.
“We are thrilled to welcome Matt Majkrzak to the NIU family to lead our men’s basketball program,” NIU athletic director Sean Frazier said in a release. “He brings a tremendous record of success from his previous head coaching stops and is a true rising star in the profession. Matt has a proven track record of recruiting student-athletes in the Midwest who succeed both athletically and academically and I am extremely excited to have him taking over our program as we enter a new era in the Horizon League.”
Majkrzak, pronounced MACK-er-zack, comes to DeKalb after seven seasons at Northern Michigan, where he compiled a 136-73 record and twice earned Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Coach of the Year honors. In his final four seasons, he guided the Wildcats to consecutive GLIAC championships — two regular-season titles and two conference tournament crowns — and NCAA Division II tournament appearances. NMU was one of only three D2 programs to achieve that feat.
This season, Northern Michigan went 25-5 and claimed a share of the GLIAC regular-season title before falling to Grand Valley State in the conference championship game. The Wildcats earned an at-large bid to the national tournament and opened with an 86-85 come-from-behind victory over Rockhurst on Saturday. Their postseason run ended a day later with an 86-68 loss to Walsh in the second round on Sunday, finishing the 2025-26 campaign with a school-record 27 wins.
“I am extremely excited and grateful to lead the Northern Illinois University men’s basketball program,” Mjakrzak said. “I’m so thankful and appreciative to Sean Frazier, Courtney Vinson, President Freeman, and the rest of the committee for entrusting me with this position. Immediately it became clear the passion and energy that existed for Northern Illinois University and athletics. We can’t wait to engage with Huskie Nation and fire up a fan base that deserves a winner. Moving into the Horizon League is a perfect time to come in and build a culture that achieves excellence in the classroom, community, and on the floor.
“My wife Lindsey and I couldn’t have loved our seven years at Northern Michigan more, and I am so grateful for the opportunity. We created many lifelong friends and relationships. We are excited to get to DeKalb, and become active members of the University, athletic department, and community.”
Majkrzak, a native of Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, has few ties to Illinois but brings extensive coaching experience across the Midwest. Prior to his time at Northern Michigan, he spent one season as head coach at Bryant & Stratton College-Wisconsin, where he led the Bobcats to a 25-8 record and their first-ever region championship game appearance.
Before that, Majkrzak was an assistant at Bemidji State in Minnesota for four seasons, serving as Mike Boschee’s top lieutenant for the final two years. Earlier in his career, he worked two seasons as a graduate assistant at Chadron State College in Nebraska and spent four years as a student assistant for Brian Wardle at Green Bay — NIU’s future Horizon League rival. Majkrzak also founded an Amateur Athletic Union program, the Wisconsin Jets, in 2011 and coached five teams over two summers.
In recent years, Majkrzak’s teams have been known for their team-oriented, disciplined style of play, driven by smart ball movement and high possession efficiency. Northern Michigan has ranked top five in the GLIAC in assists, turnover margin, assist-to-turnover ratio and opposing rebounds allowed in each of the past five seasons. His squads have also been among the league’s most efficient offensively, placing top five in points, field goal percentage and 3-pointers made in four of the last five years.
Majkrzak will be introduced to the NIU community in a press conference at the Convocation Center, with the date and additional details to be announced later this week.
