Sports writer Patrick Smith breaks down Ohio’s impact players before they face off against the Huskies at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at Huskie Stadium. NIU hasn’t lost the last game of a regular season since the 2009-10 season.

Quarterback:

Senior quarterback Derrius Vick is having a solid year through 11 games. He has 1,809 passing yards with 10 touchdowns and six interceptions — all while keeping a rating of 134. He’s completed over 63 percent of his passes and has thrown for 180 yards-per-game. Vick was recently sidelined due to an injury, leading to redshirt junior JD Sprague stepping in for him in the team’s last game against Ball State. Sprague filled in nicely, throwing for 275 yards, three touchdowns and no picks on 15-22 passing. He’s played nicely whenever his number has been called this season, throwing for six touchdowns and one interception and completing over 57 percent of his passes this year. The Bobcats will be dangerous at the quarterback position regardless of who starts in Tuesday’s game.

Running Back:

Senior Daz’mond Patterson and sophomore A.J. Ouellette have combined to make a great combo at running back for the Bobcats this season. Patterson has 497 rushing yards and nine touchdowns on 102 carries in 11 games and averages 4.9 yards-per-carry. He’s having his best season mainly because of his increased involvement in the offense. Ouellette has five touchdowns and 502 yards on 107 attempts and averages 4.7 yards-per-carry. The two combine for just more than 90 yards every game, giving Ohio a balanced attack in the backfield. The Bobcats average around 180 yards-per-game on the ground as a team and have run the ball almost 100 times more than they’ve passed. It will be interesting to see if they look for a run-heavy attack with uncertainty at the quarterback position.

Wide Receiver:

Junior wide out Sebastian Smith has had a breakout season through 11 games in 2015. He has 59 receptions, 721 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, leading the team in all three categories. Smith tallied only 31 receptions, 385 yards and two touchdowns in 2014. He averages roughly 65 yards-per-game and has caught nearly half of the passing touchdowns for Ohio this season. The Bobcats have two receivers with more than 30 catches and four receivers with at least 20 catches. Second behind Smith is redshirt junior Jordan Reid, who has snagged 40 catches for 550 yards and four touchdowns in 11 games this season. Reid averages 13.8 yards-per-catch and 50 yards-per-game. He’s passed all of his 2014 totals and has a chance to keep it up as the season winds down. Smith and Reid make for a deadly duo on the outsides.

Linebacker:

Redshirt sophomore linebacker Quentin Poling has been outstanding for the Bobcats in nine games this year. He led the team with 89 total tackles in 2014 with five sacks and three interceptions. His tackling numbers are down this season, but he still is second on the team with 54 total tackles and has three sacks to go along with three interceptions. He’s also forced two fumbles. Beside him is redshirt junior Blair Brown, who leads the team with 58 tackles in nine games. More than four of his tackles have been for-loss, and he’s also picked up a pair of quarterback hurries. The two of them have combined for 112 tackles this season, creating havoc for opposing offenses. The Bobcats have three players with at least 50 tackles and have picked up more than 700 total tackles as a team.

Defensive Lineman:

Junior defensive lineman Tarell Basham is having a solid 2015 campaign. He has totaled 31 tackles, seven of which have been for-loss, and four sacks in 10 games. He has a chance to surpass his 2014 season totals of 33 tackles and five sacks with a strong outing against NIU. The Bobcats average 164 yards-per-game on the ground on 5.2 yards-per-carry and have given up 18 touchdowns. They’ve also totaled 17 sacks compared to 25 by their opponents. The Huskies’ offensive line has played strong as of late and have a chance to improve even more against a defensive line that hasn’t caused a ton of problems against opposing running attacks this season.

Secondary:

Redshirt senior cornerback Ian Wells leads all Ohio defensive backs with two interceptions and has also picked up 26 total tackles in 10 games this year. He’s also deflected 10 passes and blocked a kick. Wells had 42 total tackles — 33 unassisted — and 12 pass breakups in 2014. His numbers have taken a dip, but he remains a big part of the Bobcats’ defense and receives a lot of help from the linebackers in front of him. Cornerbacks having a ton of tackles isn’t always a good thing, as the responsibility usually lies on the d-line and linebacker core. Wells has gotten the chance to strictly be a shutdown corner, and he’s come up big whenever he’s been called on all year.