Huskies received more support when they battled on their gridiron this year than in the team’s past few seasons.

NIU, which was undefeated until its loss in the MAC Championship game Friday, saw higher attendance at home games and several sold-out games.

“I have gone to every game but one because I went home to hunt that weekend,” said freshman history major Corey Smith.

Huskie Stadium attendance averaged 20,650 people, according to Athletics.

“My favorite aspect of the game is the atmosphere that you get when you’re in the crowd,” Smith said. “I do tend to attend weekend games more than weekday games because schoolwork tends to have a bigger impact on days during the week.”

NIU’s games against Eastern Illinois and Akron had the highest attendance with 23,595 people.

“Sometimes it’s hard to go out to the games just because of the weather,” said junior engineering major Christopher Frank. “If it’s too extreme the game isn’t as much fun.”

Prices for the Poinsettia Bowl packages range from $30 for game tickets to $1,678 for tickets, travel and a hotel stay. More information is available online at www.niusportstravel.com/.