As Joe Novak began his postgame press conference following Saturday’s victory, the 10th-year coach put his trademark restraint on display and led off with “A win is a win.”

But let’s be honest here. This wasn’t just another win. This was a 42-3 shellacking of Tennessee Tech, a team that was averaging more than 470 yards per game and allowing under 60 yards passing per game. This was the first win of the season in the home opener after two frustrating losses to Big Ten teams. And in front of 26,123 fans at Huskie Stadium, the NIU football team made the Golden Eagles its whipping boys.

As the offensive stars filed in for questions a few minutes after Novak, no one took credit for the victory and instead cited their “team-first” mentality. But behind the humble words were sly smiles of self-satisfaction that were more than deserved.

Quarterback Phil Horvath did his best not to smile, which was a truly heroic effort considering he just played the best game of his college career. After all, he only threw for 209 yards and four touchdowns – all in the first half.

But you won’t hear any bragging from Horvath. He gave all the credit to his receivers for catching the ball and running their routes. Never mind Horvath’s deft touch that hit his wideouts in stride for huge gains. Don’t pay attention to the fact that after two passes and 36 seconds, NIU already had a 7-0 lead.

For a team whose bread and butter is grinding opposing defenses into dust with its running game, the quick-strike passing game was a revelation. Sorry Phil, it’s a hard thing to ignore.

Sam Hurd and Shatone Powers were smirking, and who could blame them. The senior wideout tandem each had two touchdowns and consistently burned their cornerbacks.

The TTU secondary should be embarrassed at its attempts to contain Hurd and Powers, who routinely found themselves with five to 10 yards of breathing room in the middle of the field. The NIU duo picked up more yards after the catch than a Tibetan herder in the Himalayas. Powers’ 55-yard touchdown halfway into the second quarter was a clinic in jumping tackles and reversing field.

Redemption was probably sweetest for Hurd, who slipped on last week’s two-point conversion that would have won the game at Northwestern. But this week, the San Antonio native showed what could have been with a picture perfect four-yard touchdown on a slant route that found him untouched and undefended.

A.J. Harris was smiling on the left side of the table like he stole cookies from the jar before dinner without getting caught by momma. In fitting fashion, the senior running back said his wide receivers and offensive line did all the work for him.

But it doesn’t hurt to have 4.3-speed either. How else to explain Harris’ 15.4-yards per rush average and general disregard for opposing tacklers who saw a whole lot of the back of his jersey and not much else?

To say the NIU run game was dominating was the understatement of the year. Continuing the trend from the past two games, and arguably the last half decade, four Huskies tailbacks scooted through holes so sizable a Buick could drive through them. The Huskies’ offensive line turned the Golden Eagles into a Pop Warner team with pulling tackle blocks that led the way for 336 rushing yards.

Defensive end Larry English was stoic in his grey suit as he stood in the back corner behind Hurd. Maybe it was because he was tired from his constant penetration of the TTU offensive line and just needed a breather to recover.

It seemed every time TTU quarterback Stephen Britton dropped back in the pocket, he had either English or defensive tackle Quince Holman in his grill.

For a defense that did not register a single sack and only a handful of hurries in the first two games, NIU blew past the offensive line at will and totaled four sacks.

The constant harassment limited Britton to just 131 yards and a completion percentage of less than 40 percent for much of the game. The secondary didn’t need to do much, basically because there wasn’t much to do. The front seven was just that dominating.

Have you ever seen the show “Welcome Back Cotter?” The new working title should be “Welcome Back, Huskie Defense”.

Noticeably missing from the press conference was redshirt freshman Britt Davis. The slippery backup and wide receiver gave Horvath a run for the starting job in the preseason and got the majority of the second-half snaps after the game had turned into a route.

In his home debut, the freshman lived up to his hype. While he was frequently relegated to being the middle man between the center and the running back, Davis managed to showcase his athleticism.

Arguably the most exciting play of the game was turned in by Davis with five minutes remaining in the third quarter. The Broadview native ran an option to the left and picked up the first down. But instead of settling for a slide, he immediately reversed field and left the defense confounded by his blazing speed. Even his linemen on the right side of the field were confounded when Davis came back their way to finish a 21-yard pickup that would make Michael Vick insane with jealousy.

Sure, it will be said: Tennessee Tech is a lowly Division I-AA team and couldn’t hang with the big boys. But what would be missed is the most complete Huskie demolition in recent memory.

For the rest of the season, Novak and his boys will keep stressing the team aspect in every postgame press conference. If they keep turning in performances like Saturday, they could not be more right.