Saturday’s football game with Eastern Michigan provides an interesting storyline for even the most casual football fan.

Last season, NIU took a 5-4 record into Ypsilanti to face lowly Eastern Michigan. The result was one of the most embarrassing losses for the Huskies in a very long time.

NIU gave up 27 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to give the Eagles their third and final win of the season. Eastern Michigan rolled up a season high 503 total yards on offense and witnessed a personal best 372 passing yards and two touchdowns from quarterback Walter Church.

“The momentum swung and we didn’t respond well,” head coach Joe Novak said of last year’s disaster.

Fortunately for the Huskies, last season’s match-up meant nothing statistically to either team. Both teams were already out of the Mid-American Conference title hunt by the time the game was played.

This season’s script seems to be little different than last year’s.

Gone is Eastern Michigan quarterback Walter Church.

Gone is Eastern Michigan’s fun ‘n’ gun passing style.

Gone is the cliche that the Eastern Michigan-NIU game means nothing.

When Eastern Michigan heads south Friday from some city I can’t even pronounce, the game will mean a little more than it has in the past.

NIU has a reason to play well this deep into the season for the first time in a long while. And let me tell you, a team with a purpose is something Eastern Michigan is not ready for. A perfect season the rest of the way out teamed with a Toledo loss means postseason action for NIU.

Yeah, yeah. I hear you telling me that the Huskies tried to give it away last week.

Yes, they tried.

No, they didn’t succeed.

The Huskies showed an incredible amount of heart last week at Central Michigan. Fuse that heart with a year’s worth of built-up motivation from last season’s embarrassment and you have a mean combination.

Check this out.

The Huskies have won 10 of their last 12 games at home. The Eagles have yet to win on the road this season and lost all five road games last year.

Eastern Michigan’s more balanced offensive attack favors the Huskies, who have had much more success defending the run than the pass.

NIU has played in four meaningful games so far this season compared to one for the Eagles.

Yes, the Huskies are 1-3 in those games but nothing can take the place of experience. The Huskies fought four quarters with the Fighting Illini and came within seven points of Toledo in the third quarter.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a man of predictions.

But I will say this story looks good on paper.