The fourth quarter.

Life would be easier for everyone at NIU if it just didn’t exist.

Game 1: The Huskies are only down 17-14 to Illinois going into the fourth quarter, but the Illini score 13 points to put away any hopes of an upset.

Game 2: NIU leads 26-3 at the end of the third quarter in what looks to be a blowout. However, the Redbirds scored 16 unanswered points before they run out of time in their final scoring drive.

Game 3: The offense scores no points and LeShon Johnson manages to fall one yard short of a third 100-yard game of the season.

Game 4: NIU scores 14 straight points to go up 17-3 with over 12 minutes remaining in the fourth quarter but gives up 15 points to the Badgers and loses 18-17.

It’s definitely a jinx. There’s no other explanation for it. One thing is for sure. The fans won’t leave this Saturday’s ball game against Middle Tennessee State before the fourth quarter—no matter what the score is.

Wisconsin’s 258 yards rushing is the highest for a Wisconsin team under head coach Barry Alvarez, while the Badgers’ 421 yards of total offense is the second highest.

And as if losing isn’t painful enough, the Chicago Sun-Times reported Monday that when NIU head coach Charlie Sadler looked at the tapes of Saturday’s Wisconsin victory, U of W quarterback Darrell Bevell did not even cross the goal line on the Badgers’ game-winning two-point conversion.

Thus, many questions have been raised. For instance, what were the officials Jim Kemerling, Jim Bushofsky and Stephen Pamon looking at when Bevell supposedly crossed the goal line?

“It looked like his knee was down,” said Sadler in the Sun-Times, “and neither his body nor the ball was across.”

Despite the proof caught by the camera’s eye, Sadler and the Huskies will not file a protest. Even if they did, it probably wouldn’t do them any good. If the NCAA even bothered to look at it, protests are hardly overturned. The hypothesis is that if the official calls it, then it is final—plain and simple.

Aside from their second loss of the season, they did manage to show some impressive statistics. Johnson scraped up his second 100-yard game of the season with 107 yards on 21 carries, while raising his average for the year. Senior quarterback Rob Rugai continued his pass efficiency mean streak with a 13-for-20 performance (65 percent). And, finally, NIU has yet to let its opponents score in the third quarter.

However, all would have been gladly traded in for a Huskie victory.