The Huskies are going prime time.

Get your VCR’s ready to tape. The popular television show “Coach” will be using actual game footage from an NIU football game played in 1988 against Minnesota State.

The plot line of the show will have coach Hayden Fox and his Minnesota State Screaming Falcons playing an important game against the University of Alabama. However, what you, and the rest of the nation, will really be watching is the University of Minnesota playing Northern Illinois University.

“They contacted us and asked if we had objection to us using (the footage),” NIU Legal Counsel George Shur said. “We said certainly not, and they agreed to make a donation to our athletic, academic and scholorship fund in return for using it.”

The old Huskie road jersies, white shirts with red numerals, is what led to the shows’ selection of Alabama as the mythical opponent. However, it was an unbelievable punt return by Minnesota that lead to the selection of the footage.

“It was a about an 80 or 90-yard punt return—spectacular run,” Shur said. “I’m sure they’ll show that from a full-field perspective … It’ll be the Minnesota player running and a lot of people in white uniforms chasing hopelessly after the guy.

“I’m assuming we’re not going to have very many closeups because we have NI on our helmets and NI does not look like an A.” he noted.

Don’t think that NIU will only look good because they looked bad, though. The return broke open a close game and the Huskies were coming off a big win the week before.

“We’d just come off a real good win against Wisconsin,” NIU Athletic Director Gerald O’Dell said. “They had the great running back, Daryll Thompson. He really took charge in the last quarter. The (punt return) really hurt us.

“I just wish we were going to be the winning team.”

The show airs Tuesday, Oct. 5 at 8:30 on channel 7.