For the 19 seniors on the NIU football team, this could be the last game.

With a bowl game still in doubt, the seniors could be suiting up for the last time at 1:05 p.m. Saturday at Huskie Stadium.

NIU (9-2 overall, 5-2 MAC) will look for a school-record 10th win of the season when it takes on an Eastern Michigan (3-8, 2-5) team that has won two straight.

It will be the first class of seniors to have four straight winning seasons since moving to Division I football.

“It’s never happened before,” NIU coach Joe Novak said. “I’m not making any excuses, and it’s too bad we got beat up here with injuries this season, but they’ve accomplished a lot. Beating three BCS schools – two ranked BCS schools – is a great accomplishment for the seniors.”

After losing two conference games, the Huskies will have to hope for an at-large berth to a bowl game not affiliated with the conference.

Regardless of whether NIU makes a bowl, senior wide receiver P.J. Fleck knows the significance of the season.

“It’s indescribable,” Fleck said. “At 10-2, I think we deserve it. We blew our chance, and we understand that. We’ve had a great season. It’s been great for coach Novak and his staff.”

Fleck has 73 catches on the season. Only two other players in NIU history have had more.

In 1978, NIU’s Dave Petzke was the NCAA reception champion with 91 catches, and Hugh Rohrschneider caught 76 and 75 passes his junior and senior year, respectively.

EMU comes into DeKalb a winner of two games in a row after firing coach Jeff Woodruff. The back-to-back conference wins under new coach Al Lavan is the first time the school has accomplished the feat since 2000.

EMU running back Anthony Sherrell is fifth in the nation with 1,361 yards.

NIU senior running back Michael Turner is first in the nation with 1,482 rushing yards.

“It really hasn’t hit me yet,” said Turner about possibly playing his final game at NIU. “I’m sure it will once the game starts. We are just trying to go out there and get a win and approaching it the same way.”