DeKALB | After taking a break from football for a year, former NIU wide receiver Shatone Powers has returned.

Powers landed a spot on the 45-man preseason roster of the Bloomington Extreme in the United Indoor Football league.

In his three-year career at NIU, Powers compiled 1,059 receiving yards and 12 touchdowns.

Hurd will start his professional career Friday, March 30 at noon against The Rock River Raptors.

It’s not over till it’s over

While NIU’s football season may have officially ended after the Poinsettia Bowl, it didn’t stop four seniors from getting one last chance to get on the field.

Quarterback Phil Horvath, tight end Jake Nordin, left tackle Doug Free and running back Garrett Wolfe were all invited to participate in post-season play.

Wolfe participated in the Senior Bowl Saturday Jan. 27 in Mobile, Ala. He didn’t compete in the game due to a hamstring injury.

Still, his practice time was good enough for Pete Fiutak of collegefootballnews.com to suggest Wolfe will be a third round pick in the NFL Draft.

While Wolfe was sidelined, Horvath’s post-season game, The All-American Classic, was cancelled.

Nordin had better luck in the inaugural IntaJuice All-Star Classic. The tight end received one pass for 12 yards.

Free also had a good showing at the East-West Shrine Game. The left tackle displayed multiple skills and helped his draft potential.