Playing only 36 miles away from the site of Friday’s MAC Championship game, the NIU football team showed why it deserves to play its final MAC game in Detroit instead of Ypsilanti, Mich.

For the second straight week, NIU went on the road to come away with a blowout victory. Eastern Michigan (2-10 overall, 2-6 MAC) came up on the short end, as the Huskies took it to the Eagles on Friday for their ninth consecutive victory. With the win, NIU went to 8-0 in Mid-American Conference play, completing the programs’ first undefeated regular season in conference play.

The Huskies (10-2, 8-0) didn’t need to rely on quarterback Chandler Harnish’s arm Friday, as the team gave thanks to its running backs for racking up 544 rushing yards. Of the team’s eight rushing touchdowns, five came from at least 60 yards out.

Setting the tone early, Chad Spann took a handoff 71 yards for the first NIU score. Kicker Michael Cklamovski would miss the extra point along with another PAT attempt later in the game.

On the ensuing Eagles drive, NIU defensive end Jake Coffman set the Huskies up with a short field after forcing an Alex Gillett fumble on the EMU 22-yard line. Two plays later, NIU running back Ricky Crider took the ball 22 yards to give NIU a 13-0 lead.

After deliberating whether or not to play his redshirt senior season this summer, Coffman spoke about how glad he is to still be a part of the Huskies.

“It’s definitely been a special year with a lot of guys stepping up and a lot of young guys stepping up,” Coffman said. “We are playing really well right now. I am kind of speechless. I’m just so happy I came back.”

Late in the first quarter, Spann scored his second touchdown on the day and 20th of the season to break the NIU record for rushing touchdowns in a single season. Stacey Robinson (1989 and 1990), Michael Turner (2002) and Spann (2009) shared the previous record of 19.

With the games’ result no longer in question, NIU emptied its bench in the second half. Backup quarterbacks Jordan Lynch and DeMarcus Grady combined for four rushing touchdowns. Scored in succession, Lynch ran for touchdowns of 81 and 61 yards. Grady then chipped in with 61 and 30-yard scores.

While time of possession can usually tell a game’s story, the Huskies used a quick strike offense to rack up 71 points in only 18 minutes. The Eagles, however, controlled the ball for over 38 minutes and only came up with a Sean Graham field goal in the second quarter.

When the 2010 schedule came out, NIU head coach Jerry Kill made it clear that his team would have to play well on the road to earn a spot in the MAC Championship. After the Huskies’ second blowout win away from DeKalb, Kill continued to praise his team for their performance on the road.

“The big thing is I am proud of the team – they have gone to Ball State and Eastern Michigan in some tough atmospheres and they just like playing football,” Kill said. “It doesn’t seem to matter what else is going on with weather or crowd. We’ve got 10 wins, and we did it with only five home games and no one else in the country can say that.”