All of Coach Novak’s success and a majority of his tenure at NIU came after I graduated.

During the two years I did cover him, he couldn’t have been more accommodating. Coach always had a kind word, time to talk and an infectious smile.

My two fondest memories were post graduation, as a fan, not a reporter:

Sitting in Huskie Stadium in 2003 when the Huskies upset Maryland.

And being in the rain in San Jose with former editor in chief Kevin Wendt and my brother, watching the Huskies win the Silicon Valley Classic.

– Jason Schaumburg

sports editor, 1996

I vividly remember the first season the Huskies hired Joe Novak.

A descendant of the Cradle of Coaches, I knew he had the coaching pedigree to take the Huskies to the next level. There was some criticism of his hiring at first, but I remember writing a column in the Northern Star arguing that NIU got it right with Novak.

I predicted it would take some time, but he would bring a winner to DeKalb. As we know now, Novak brought respect, a bowl victory and pride back to Huskie football.

When he was brought in, the Huskies were struggling to even win ball games, only to eventually contend for MAC titles.

As a person, Joe Novak always treated Northern Star writers on equal footing with the rest of the sports media.

I also got the chance to cover the Huskies as a part-time correspondent for the Northwest Herald.

The coach gave us access to himself and players and always treated young journalists with class.

Novak recruited players that became nationally known standouts ­- Garrett Wolfe and “Burner” Turner – to name a few.

I’ve been following Novak’s teams since I graduated, always proud to say I went to NIU, and I wish him nothing but the best in his retirement.

He’ll be difficult to replace.

– Grant Boxleitner

football beat reporter, 1996

Three things:

1. It was always wild to see just how much coach Novak just knew, KNEW, that Northern would be competitive. This was during the infamous 23-game losing streak (I was lucky enough to cover the team for most of it).

I’d be the only reporter visiting a practice, and Novak would be telling me about how he was going to invite the seniors to come watch the team when it went to a bowl.

Who are you kidding? Well, sure enough, he was right.

2. After college, I moved to the San Jose Mercury News. And where was NIU’s first bowl game? Yep, Silicon Valley Bowl.

I cut the Christmas vacation short and went to the mudfest, er, game, with former Star sports editors Jason Schaumburg and Brian Schaumburg.

It’s wild enough to see NIU on ESPN. Even wilder with no lights in a rainstorm playing for a bowl.

3. It’s not all positive, mind you: I’ll hold Smokin’ Joe personally responsible for the cost and distance one must deal with while tailgating.

From ‘96-‘00, parking in the lawn lot next to the student entrance was easy — so easy, there was room for a flag football game.

– Kevin Wendt

football beat reporter, sports editor 1997

Every week during football season, I plopped into a chair opposite coach Novak’s desk in his office to chat about the upcoming game.

While I covered the team in the late 1990s, there rarely was anything uplifting to discuss. The team was immersed in a losing streak.

When I spoke with coach the week after the team had lost its 23rd consecutive game, I whined about how I never had anything good to write about. He and I had built up a level of trust in our relationship and spoke bluntly often.

Later that week, the Huskies went out in a downpour and beat Central Michigan, 16-6. I was on the sidelines as the final minutes ticked off the clock and watched students rush onto the field, celebrate with players and climb the goalposts and then tear them down. (Best sports moment ever, by the way).

Despite the chaos, coach found me on the field, grabbed me in a bear hug and said, “Now, you have something to write about.”

It certainly wasn’t the most professional moment of my career. But I didn’t care.

I was so happy for that man, who stayed strong despite the struggles.

A man who always was honest, fair and straightforward. A man who cared about his players, the school and even some members of the media. A man who would eventually build the program into something all of the alums could be proud of.

A man I’m honored to have worked with.

–Stacy Clardie

football beat reporter, 1997-’98

sports editor, 1998-’99

I first came to NIU in 2000, right when things were starting to change for the better for the football squad.

Coach Novak and his teams were the best memories that I had of NIU sports in my time at the school. His teams made it ‘cool’ to cheer for NIU.

There were several years where NIU was pretty clearly the best Division I-A football team in the state and being from a mid-major conference, that was a pretty awesome feeling. He took a fan base that was apathetic to its sports teams and made it come alive.

All my reporters loved every time they’d have to go to his office to interview him. They’d come back with grandfather-like stories he’d tell them.

Another great point about him from a media standpoint was even at the peak of the football team’s national hype, when Sports Illustrated and USA Today were all over him for interviews, he would still always make time for me and everyone else at the school paper who were pestering him.

He’s done an awful lot for NIU.

– Frank Rusnak

football beat reporter, 2001

sports editor, 2002-’05

I always had a great deal of respect for Coach Novak, not only as a football coach but more importantly as a man.

He had character, integrity, and he always treated me like a veteran sportswriter, not just another kid from the student newspaper. And he never sidestepped controversial topics that could shine a negative light on his team.

He answered all my questions truthfully and candidly, and even though he was a tremendously busy man, he always acted as if he had all the time in the world to talk to me.

He never hurried me or got frustrated with my questions. He never raised his voice at press conferences or belittled reporters. He was a sportswriter’s dream.

– Marc Marin

football beat reporter, 2002-’04

It was a cold evening in the fall of 2003 and the lights illuminated a Huskie

Stadium that was typically empty around that time. That week, however, was different.

In 2003, DeKalb became a media magnet – NIU was the new BCS-buster, after catapulting itself to a No. 12 position in the AP rankings. NIU finished 10-2 that year, and after posting victories over Maryland, Alabama and Iowa State to start that season, the Huskies proved they were a force to be reckoned with.

Other coaches might have seen it as an opportunity to gain some fame or maybe leverage for a juicy coaching position at a larger, higher-paying school.

Not Joe Novak. I was an 18-year-old freshman sports reporter for the Northern Star hoping that nobody mistook me for the DeKalb High School football team’s water boy.

I was the smallest of small time, but Novak still took his time to give me an interview, even though he’d probably done 30 that day and could’ve easily gotten out of it.

What I will remember most about Joe is not how he took one of the worst college football teams in the country and made it one of the best, but how he stayed grounded, sincere and good-natured the whole time.

Novak commanded respect not by asking for it, but by showing it to everyone he encountered.

But hey, this isn’t an obituary. I hope he’ll enjoy watching the program that he solidified and restored from the stands instead of the sidelines.

– Steve Brown

football beat reporter, 2003-’04

sports editor, 2005-’06

Joe Novak was more than just a coach with a bunch of funny poses on the sidelines. He was a great football coach, who took NIU from the cellar of college football to its status as a top-notch mid-major school.

It was obvious that he cared a lot, not only about the program, but also about his players and ­- maybe to a slightly lesser extent – the media.

I’ll always remember the first time Novak answered a question of mine at a postgame press conference by actually calling me Jarrod.

But that was the type of coach and guy he was. He always tried to make time for a lowly college reporter, even when he had the Sun-Times and Tribune on his trail.

Novak’s leadership and experience will be tough for Athletic Director Jim Phillips and NIU to replace.

– Jarrod Rice

football beat reporter, 2005

sports editor, 2006

Coach Novak has never shied away from showing emotion.

Looking back at four years of covering NIU football really makes you realize how often you came in contact with Novak’s emotions. He had a surprising sense of humor, and a smile he loved to show off after wins.

Yet he wasn’t afraid to show you when he was down. Or mad. You don’t get a nickname like “Smokin’ Joe” by being quiet. But he never got mad at you without good reason.

I’ll never forget the time he screamed me off the practice field because I forgot to read the signs that said “Practice closed.” Obviously, I’ve made sure to always look for signs ever since.

And that’s the kind of effect Novak has on people who meet him. He makes a lasting impression. And every one of those impressions is a positive one.

The NIU community should always feel lucky to have had a coach as high a caliber a person as Novak was. Not just because of what he did for the men wearing pads, but also what he did for those around him.

He touched every student at NIU, and made myself and everyone else proud to be a Huskie.

– Sean Ostruzska

football beat writer, 2005

sports editor, 2006-’07

Coach Novak was as honest and straightforward as they come.

A lot of people have described him as “old school,” which I think in this case should be considered a compliment. In the immediate gratification landscape that dominates college sports – and has for the past decade – Joe was an anomaly.

He had a plan to build a program, not provide a quick fix, and he stuck to it despite some glaring shortcomings in his first few years. And the NIU administration gets some credit for sticking with Joe and allowing his plan to come to fruition.

Seven consecutive winning seasons (2000-’06), including the magical 2003 season and a couple of bowl appearances, was something I never thought I would see.

Huskie fans should remember the body of his work and the foundation he built and not simply focus on a 2-10 final season.

– David Albright

WKDI (student radio), 1987

current senior deputy editor of college sports at ESPN.com