Coming into Saturday’s contest with Bowling Green, the NIU football team was facing a must-win situation.

Beat the Falcons, and NIU was set for a first place showdown with No. 20 Ball State in Muncie, IN on Nov. 5. A win against the Cardinals would put the Huskies at the top of the MAC West, putting them in good position for a shot at the MAC Championship and a bowl game. Lose to the Falcons, and the Huskies would probably have to wait until 2009 for their shot at a MAC Championship, and a bowl game as well.

But the Huskies had to get past Bowling Green first.

Thanks to Chandler Harnish’s legs and a key punt block by Landon Cox late in the fourth quarter, the Huskies (5-3, 4-1 MAC) set up the key game against Ball State with a 16-13 win over Bowling Green.

With the game tied at 13-13 with about five minutes left in the game, Bowling Green (3-5, 1-3 MAC) faced a fourth and 12 at their own 31 yard line. Falcon punter Nick Lovinelli’s punt was blocked by Cox, setting up the Huskie offense at the Falcon 37.

The Huskie offense moved the ball to the Falcon 13, setting up Mike Salerno’s game-winning 30-yard field goal, and a shot at first place in the MAC West a week from Wednesday.

“Every win’s a big win,” said defensive tackle Craig Rusch. “It felt great, we knew what was on line.”

Harnish didn’t have his best game through the air, going 5-for-12 with two interceptions on a windy afternoon at Huskie Stadium. However, Harnish was NIU’s leading rusher with 119 yards on the ground.

“Let’s just say I’m sore,” Harnish said. “It felt good to run the ball. The line did a great job blocking.”

The Huskies got the scoring started with a 52-yard field goal by Mike Salerno early in the first quarter. Salerno’s kick tied an NIU record, set by Steve Azar in 2003 and Chris Nendick in 2005.

After two Bowling Green field goals, Harnish ran for 39 yards on NIU’s 80-yard drive in the third quarter, setting up Chad Spann’s touchdown run to give NIU a 10-6 lead.

“We went in the second half and said ‘we need to find a way to win’,” said NIU head coach Jerry Kill. “I know he can run the ball, and from watching film I felt like we had to run the ball to win.”

The Falcons answered with a 71-yard touchdown drive, ending with an 18-yard touchdown pass from Tyler Sheehan to Marques Parks, giving Bowling Green a 13-10 lead.

Salerno answered with a 25-yard field goal to tie the game at 13-13 with 8:05 left in the game.

With the game tied at 13, the Falcons faced a punting situation at their own 31. NIU wasn’t in a punt block formation, but Cox was able to get pressure on Lovinelli.

“I’m just pressure off the end,” Cox said. “I just wanted make a play and make a difference for our team.”

The play set up Salerno’s game-winning kick, and after Kiaree Daniels recovered a Bowling Green fumble on the ensuing kickoff, it was time for NIU to set up in the victory formation and take two kneel downs, knowing they will be playing for first place in the competitive MAC West in just over a week.