The biggest event of Saturday’s annual NIU intra-squad spring football game might not be the game itself.

At 10 a.m. southwest of Huskie Stadium, administrators will announce plans for the Academic and Athletic Performance Center to the public.

The announcement will include information on how much money is needed to break ground on the new facility, which will be in the north end zone of Brigham Field.

Following the announcement and press conference at 11 a.m., fans will get a glimpse of the next football season when the Huskies kick off at 12:05 p.m.

“It gives us a chance to evaluate what we’ve done this spring,” NIU football coach Joe Novak said. “I hope to see some real soundness on both sides of the ball.”

NIU’s top two running backs, Garrett Wolfe and A.J. Harris, will be forced to watch from the sidelines with what Novak called, “minor shoulder sprains.”

The result: expect more passing from NIU’s four candidates to replace graduated senior quarterback Josh Haldi.

“We’re going to throw it more than normal,” Novak said “We’re not going to go away from running the football; you’ll see more passing.”

For quarterback Phil Horvath, the game is one more chance for improvement.

“I’m looking forward to just getting out there in front of people,” the 6-foot-2 junior said. “I think this year a lot more people are talking about it.”

The spring game was traditionally held on Thursday nights, but was changed to Saturday for the first time this year. It will also be broadcast live on WLBK 1360-AM.

“We thought it was better for our fans,” Associate Athletic Director Robert Collins said. “Our spring game has become more important now that the program has reached another level.”

Of the 12 injured players who will sit out, four are returning defensive linemen.

Due to the battered nature of the lineup, Novak anticipated an offense-versus-defense matchup, as opposed to the typical two full squad, red-black matchup.

“Right now, we’re pretty banged up, so we’re not sure how we’ll go,” Novak said.