When Dan Sheldon’s broken collar bone prevented him from finishing NIU’s Dec. 30 Silicon Valley Football Classic victory in San Jose, Calif., he shifted to a new goal.

The senior wide receiver and kick returner set his sights on his Feb. 25 date at the NFL combine, held at the Indiana Convention Center in Indianapolis.

Sheldon and senior quarterback Josh Haldi are the only Huskies invited to the annual scouting combine, which allows NFL coaches and general managers a sneak peek at college talent before the NFL draft.

Sheldon was cleared by doctors to begin training Jan. 28 and has since pushed to get back into peak condition for the combine.

“This last week was kind of tough,” the 5-foot-11 Elgin native said. “I was real sore at first, but after the first week, I felt better. I’ve just been taking a lot of pain killers.”

Sheldon is working out in Madison, Wis., with University of Wisconsin’s strength conditioning coach John Dettman.

“He’s doing great,” Dettman said. “The kid can flat-out run, period. So far, so good, but he’s only been around a few weeks.”

Dettman oversees the strength conditioning of Wisconsin pro hopefuls, as well as several players from other universities. NIU tight end Brad Cieslak also works with Dettman.

Both hooked up with Dettman through Sheldon’s agent, Ron Slavin.

On top of strenuous daily workouts, Sheldon also makes the 112-mile drive from Madison to NIU on Tuesdays and Thursdays for classes.

Sheldon’s injury kept him from playing in post-season all star games at the Villages Gridiron Classic and the Hula Bowl.

“It was really frustrating to miss out on those games,” Sheldon said. “But things go wrong and injuries happen in those senior games too, so if I go to the combine and do well, I’ll take it for what it’s worth.”

Huskie QB preps for big day

Haldi is preparing for the combine event by training at Pro Sport in Rolling Meadows at the advice of his agent, Cliff Brady.

Brady represents former Huskies in the NFL such as Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle Ryan Diem, New York Jets receiver Justin McCareins, San Francisco 49ers receiver P.J. Fleck and NIU’s quarterback prior to Haldi, Chris Finlen.

“We still have two more weeks to iron things out,” Haldi said. “Obviously, I want to go in and do well. I feel good going in, but the true test will come when I’m down there.”

Haldi’s training consists of multiple workouts that typically last all day. NIU senior cornerback Rob Lee is also working with Haldi at the same facility.

Both Sheldon and Haldi plan on participating in the NIU Pro Day on, hoping their presence will attract more scouts to NIU’s players who were not invited to the national combine.

“Really our Pro Day is for our juniors,” NIU coach Joe Novak said. “It’s for scouts to time our seniors-to-be.”

Former NIU running back Michael Turner was the only Huskie to perform in the NFL combine last year, and now is a backup for the San Diego Chargers.