What more can be said about the dream season the NIU football team completed Saturday with a 41-17 win over Ohio and a trip to the California Bowl Dec. 17, in Fresno, Calif.?

Domination was the name of the game for the Huskies. They ran the football almost at will on the Bobcats, piling up 319 yards rushing (including 222 in the first half). Tailback Darryl Richardson was the main culprit, piling up 187 yards rushing on 24 attempts and two touchdowns, including 155 in the first half.

“When you come out and win a championship, its great,” said Huskie coach Bill Mallory. “It has been a long, hard road, and I told the players this is what it can be like. I want to take my hat off to the seniors and commend my coaches. It takes a lot of people involved.”

Ohio took an early 3-0 lead on a Ron Harter 29-yard field goal following a Richardson fumble. It didn’t take the sophomore tailback long to make amends for his error.

On the third play of he ensuing drive, he took an option pitch-out and ran 30 yards down the sideline. Three plays later, he followed his blocks through a hole on the left side and went untouched 28 yards into the end zone. Vince Scott’s extra point made it 7-3.

“After the fumble, the fellas tried to pick me back up,” Richardson said. “Then on the touchdown the guard did a great job of kicking out on the tackle. At first I went the wrong way and bumped into my offensive tackle. Then I kicked it back outside and the hole was there.”

Following a short Ohio punt, the Huskies went back to work. Again, it was Richardson leading the charge with a 24-yard run through the right side of the line. Then quarterback Tim Tyrrell took over, bulling his way in from the seven. Scott’s kick made it 14-3.

“Last year, we learned to run the option pretty well,” Tyrrell said. “We just didn’t use it much this season. Today I was horrible throwing the ball. Since the option was working, we stuck with it and my inability to throw made me want to run harder.”

The Huskies moved the ball on their next possession into Ohio territory, where Scott drilled a 38-yard field goal into a stiff wind.

From there the Huskies went to sleep for a few minutes and let the Bobcats back into the game. Quarterback Donny Harrison led the charge from the Ohio 19 into the Huskie end zone, with Kevin Boler scoring the touchdown.

A Tyrrell fumble put the Bobcats back in business, and they looked to be making a charge. Then the biggest play of the day came as Harrison overthrew flanker Eddie Washington and cornerback Jeff Sanders stepped up for an interception. Sanders followed his blockers 63 yards to the Ohio two.