Bowling Green traveled to DeKalb Friday night for what Falcon coach Gregg Brandon called a “good old-fashioned country butt-kicking.”

After the Falcons took a quick 7-0 lead, NIU scored 17 unanswered points, holding Bowling Green without another point until late in the third quarter, topping the conference rival 34 -17.

“We wanted to play physical,” NIU coach Joe Novak said. “That’s the way I was raised. We’ve got a tough, physical football team, and we just came out and played a physical game.”

NIU running back Garrett Wolfe stepped in for A.J. Harris in the second half, rushing for three touchdowns and 202 yards.

Harris left the game late in the second quarter with a sprained left ankle.

“He’ll be okay,” Novak said after the game. “Especially after watching Garrett.”

Huskie quarterback Phil Horvath threw 16-of-23 passes for 191 yards. Horvath had no interceptions after throwing four the previous week in a loss to Iowa State.

“I tried to take care of the ball after Iowa State,” Horvath said. “Every snap I take, I get more relaxed. In those first three games, I went through everything I could possibly go through, and that’s made me better.”

Wolfe gave credit to the offensive line for his performance, but the defensive line came up with big plays for NIU as well.

After Bowling Green’s 7-0 lead, the Falcons looked to score again, until freshman defensive tackle Adam Schroeder sacked quarterback Omar Jacobs for a loss of 6 yards.

The sack set up a field goal block by junior defensive end Quince Holman. He bolted through the Bowling Green line to block Nate Fry’s 41-yard attempt.

“I was surprised,” Holman said. “As soon as they snapped the ball, it was right off my helmet.”

That play shifted momentum, as Horvath completed two passes and Harris finished off the drive with a 2-yard touchdown run.

For Bowling Green, the frustration was evident.

“We were dominated in every phase of this football game,” Brandon said. “We have a veteran team, and that element didn’t show up tonight. Our better players didn’t perform. We had too many missed tackles and too many mistakes.”

After Bowling Green handed NIU its first of two losses last season, the Huskies were glad to win what Novak called the team’s biggest game of the season to start MAC play.

“This is enormous,” Wolfe said. “We’re 1-0 in the MAC. Those other games don’t really factor into getting a ring, and that’s what really matters.”