It ended up being too little and too late for NIU against Central Michigan Saturday.

The Huskies (2-3, 0-1 MAC) came up short against the Chippewas (2-3, 1-0 MAC), 48-41.

Despite the final score being close, the overall game wasn’t as tight.

“Obviously we’re happy we won,” said Chippewas head coach Dan Enos in a press release. “Northern Illinois is a very, very good football team. I was just really proud of the way we played.”

The game didn’t start the way the Huskies were hoping, as Central Michigan put up 17 points in the first quarter alone.

“Seventeen points, that’s a good lead,” said NIU linebacker Pat Schiller in a press release. “But it’s nothing we can’t come back from.”

The Huskies put up 10 unanswered points in the second quarter, trailing 17-10 heading into the half.

NIU was never within a touchdown to the Chippewas after the first quarter, despite having chances to either tie or take the lead.

Instead of putting up touchdowns in the first half, the Huskies had to settle for field goals.

But one of the attempts was blocked by Central Michigan, and kicker Mathew Sims missed a 50-yard field goal with 27 seconds left in the second quarter.

“I have no idea what the sluggish start was attributed to,” said NIU quarterback Chandler Harnish in a press release. “We had a great week of practice, the best three consecutive days we’ve had all year.”

The sluggish start to the beginning of the game was also a surprise to Huskies head coach Dave Doeren.

“I don’t know what to attribute to [not scoring in the first quarter],” Doeren said. “Honestly, in the locker room, I thought we were ready to come out gang busters on those guys.”

The Chippewas’ passing game was in full swing throughout the afternoon.

Central Michigan quarterback Ryan Radcliff passed for 387 yards and four touchdowns. He settled in smoothly to begin the game, with a 79-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Courtney Williams.

The Central Michigan offense continued to steam roll the Huskies defense in the second half.

CMU Running back Paris Cotton had three touchdowns in the second half, coming on two screen passes that went for 43 and 46 yards, and a 36 yard run. Cotton finished the game with 225 total yards.

The NIU offense was productive in the second half, putting up 29 points; 25 of which came in the fourth quarter. But the defense couldn’t stop the red-hot Chippewas offense.

Harnish passed for 370 yards and two touchdowns while also racking up 92 yards on the ground. He also threw two interceptions, one on the third play of the game that led to a field goal for Central Michigan.

In the game’s final 47 seconds, the Huskies were able to put up 17 points with the help of recovering two straight onside kicks.

But with limited time and no timeouts, NIU wasn’t able to complete the full comeback.

“We’ve just got to get going,” Hanrish said. “We’ve got to get that swagger back.”