It may not be as big as having to replace former running back Garrett Wolfe, but there is one void this season NIU will have to fill.

The loss of kicker Chris Nendick has left a big shoe to fill, and the person trying it on will be junior redshirt Mike Salerno.

Salerno came to NIU last year after a two-year stint at Winona State University. During his time in Minnesota, he was second on the team in scoring and made 11-of-19 field goals. He was also 50-for-52 on extra points.

Salerno came to NIU because he knew they had a senior kicker in Nendick and knew he could learn a thing or two from him.

“I knew Nendick pretty well,” Salerno said. “The main thing he helped me with was some of the fundamentals. I never had a kicking coach at Winona so there were some little things I didn’t know.”

While Salerno considers himself an accuracy kicker over a distance kicker, he has been working to become more rounded.

His longest field goal for the Warriors was 42 yards. Already this season, he says he is up to 55 yards.

While it will be tough to replace Nendick, who made 20-of-27 field goals his junior campaign, Salerno says replacing him is not his plan.

“It’s big shoes to fill and trying not to think of it that way,” Salerno said. “I don’t want to replace anyone; I want to do my own thing.”

While opening the season at Minnesota is a date circled on everyone’s calendar, for Salerno it means just a little bit more.

“Since I went to school in Minnesota, I’m really excited about playing there,” he said. “A lot of my friends are big Gopher fans so they will all be there. There will probably be some nerves, but I try not to look at it like that.”