The Journey There

Many students decided the best way to journey to the MAC Championship was to take buses NIU offered.

“I took the bus because it was the cheapest way up,” junior special education major Jacqueline Glynn said. “You get a T-shirt, bus ride, free food and a game – you can’t beat it.”

The buses also served as a way to get Huskie fans excited and prepared for the historic game.

“There was a lot of team spirit on the bus and we were pumped the whole way up here,” freshman undecided major Tyvia Anderson said. “The ride was really fun.”

While many fans took the bus, some students and alumni decided to brave road conditions for a five-hour drive from the Chicago land area to Detroit.

“It was a crazy drive,” Beloit resident Luke Brauweiler said. “I drove a Ford Ranger that usually holds two people and fit four people in it with a couple of crazy girls in the back.”

The Fans – NIU Students

The seats of Ford Field began to fill about an hour and a half before the game. Slowly fans came down into the lower bowl to try and fill the massive NFL stadium.

The look of excitement filled the faces of both sides as fans waited for the game to begin.

Senior electrical engineering technology major Victor Carroll stood out in the crowd as half of his face was painted red and the other half black.

“This is a once in a lifetime opportunity,” Carroll said. “This is a really special game, especially being a senior. This is definitely how I wanted to go out.”

Sophomore accountancy major Robin Schrader missed the Nov. 23 Western Michigan game, but after the Huskies sealed the MAC West, she knew she would make the trip to Detroit.

“I love Huskie football, and they’ve never been to the championship game,” Schrader said. “Once I found out that tickets were $5, I knew I would be coming to the game.”

As more NIU students filled the seats, a lone Akron fan joined the crowd. The loyal Huskies’ fan base harassed him by ripping his thunder sticks in half and yelling comments such as “Go back to your side.”

Despite the heckling, junior math education major Nicol Corcoran believed the fans were just having a good time.

“Everybody’s pretty cool; they are just trying to support the team as much as possible,” Corcoran said. “There are definitely leaders among the fans that are getting us going.”

The Fans – “Superfan”

One of these leaders included superfan Matt Staffa. Staffa, a sophomore photography major, was clothed in a personal game-day outfit.

The “hip look” included a red wig, a black head band, a red coat and pants, black NIU shirt, red soccer socks and a red painted face.

“I love supporting my school, I live for it,” Staffa said. “It’s the only reason I go to school, to support the team. They need us, they need us to win the game.”

Supporting his team is nothing new to Staffa; it’s something he’s been doing since high school.

“Back in high school I loved cheering because I could dress up and be myself and go crazy and no one could make fun of you or anything,” Staffa said. “I get excited, I get a lot of energy and I can relieve stress from school by cheering.”

The Fans – Alumni

While NIU students made their presence felt in the stands, so did NIU alumni.

Bill Awe was one such alumnus who was present. Awe is not only an NIU graduate from 1967, but was also the NIU Alumni president in 1975.

Awe stressed the significance of this game for NIU and its past students.

“I think it’s important for the school and for the conference to have a playoff like this,” Awe said. “[Ford Field] is close enough were we have a lot of alumni within five hours, so its fairly excessable.”

Wheaton-native Doug Feldman made the five-hour drive with three of his buddies to come see the game.

Feldman, a 1984 graduate, compared the 1983 season in which the Huskies won the MAC, and this year’s season in which the Huskies won the MAC West for the first time.

“Both seasons are equally exciting, knowing how bad we were in the mid-’90s to where we are now,” Feldman said. “It’s just exciting to follow and see the growth of the team since that time.”

The Fans – Where did you come from?

While NIU students and alumni made the trip, so did students from other schools.

Chris Mohan, a Michigan State student and sophomore criminal justice, made the hour trip from East Lansing to see the Huskies.

“Well, I’ve got a lot of friends who go to NIU, so I’m a secondary Huskie at heart,” Mohan said. “NIU is probably my second favorite college team, so I’m happy to be here.”

Brauweiler made the trek from Beloit because he plays for Division III school and played against members of the Huskies in high school, including Larry English.

“I know some of the players on the team because I played against them,” Brauweiler said. “I came up because I want to see them do good, especially Larry.”

The Journey Back

With 10 seconds left in the game, many Huskies fans hugged each other and cried.

These weren’t hugs of celebration or tears of joy, but embraces of disbelief and sobs of disappointment.

Fans hoped for a miracle play, but such a marvel was not in the Huskies’ playbook.

When the clock hit zero, Akron fans erupted in a celebration as the Huskies fans hung their heads and filed out of the stadium.

Sullen fans no longer wanted to answer questions as they drifted out of the stadium.

As a Ford Ranger full of Huskie fans sped back to DeKalb following the defeat, it seemed that fate had one cruel joke left.

Mistakenly, the truck of fans missed the westward exit off of I-75 south out of Detroit.

As the truck-full counted the mile markers down, they crossed the border of Michigan underneath a sign that read, “Ohio Welcomes You!”