This Saturday, NIU football will contend with several factors it has not been met with so far this season.

The match-up with Army (0-1) will be the first road game for the Huskies (1-1) as they travel to a location that head coach Dave Doeren knows can be unfriendly territory.

“We head off to our first true road game, I’d guess you’d say, of the year,” Doeren said in a press conference. “[We’re] heading out to West Point to play a team that plays extremely well at home. They’ve won their last three there. I know they’ve struggled on the road, but they’re a very good home football team.”

Not only will NIU have to overcome Army’s home-field advantage, it will have to plan and execute said plan for an atypical offensive and defensive philosophy.

Army features the triple-option offense, which allows the quarterback to be able to adapt to what he sees in front of him. This includes either running the ball himself, pitching it off to a back, or passing the ball downfield.

Senior quarterback Trent Steelman has been an effective player in his time at Army, being the only quarterback in school history to post 2,000 career rushing and passing yards. Steelman also led the team in rushing touchdowns last season with 12.

However, Doeren made sure his team was not caught off guard with this scheme, making it a bullet point in his off-season regimen.

“The speed of how they come at you on the option and how they handle the football, it’s a very difficult simulation for the defense,” Doeren said in a press conference. “We took time. Four days of spring ball we had a couple minutes of each practice where we would do it, and we did it in fall camp two or three times. We got a little jump-start Sunday when we went out there with our walk through. So the kids know their assignments. It’s just how fast it comes at you and defending those blocks.”

NIU will also have to match wits on its offensive end with the flex defense of Army. Doeren believes they found success last season in running the ball versus Army.

Redshirt freshman center Andrew Ness believes that the running game is not only a key for this game, but it is becoming an identity for the team.

“It’s going to continue because that is how our offense is,” Ness said in a press conference. “You try and get as many guys the ball as we can because we have a ton of talent on offense.”

The Huskies will have to continue to play as they’ve been playing lately. They must also be prepared for Army’s style of play.

“It’s very physical,” Doeren said in a press conference. “It’s mentally challenging, as well. It’s a grind when they’re cutting you and bearcrawling your defensive line and it’s old school football every single snap.”

Redshirt sophomore safety Dechane Durante believes that the physicality of the defense is something to take pride in and is a focus every time out, not only against a team like Army.

“Definitely, in the first game, we set the standard for ourselves playing tough against Iowa,” Durante said. “The second game was the same. This year, we’re trying to take a physical outlook on everything, try to come to every game and not give up points and play hard.”