Champaign — As strangers in the strange land of big-time college football, NIU looked more like contenders and less like upset specialists. Then again, in a game where missed opportunities outnumbered big plays by a substantial margin, the winner sighs...

Champaign — NIU's Thomas Hammock continued his streak of 100-yard rushing games, rushing for 111 yards against Illinois on Saturday. The junior tailback is coming off a career-high 177-yard rushing performance in NIU's 20-17 win over South Florida last...

This is a big weekend for NIU athletics. Of course, the football team takes on Illinois, but does anyone realize that the volleyball team is playing at U of I, also? The volleyball team will travel to Champaign this weekend to compete in the Ilini Classic....

NIU quarterback Chris Finlen has been looking forward to Saturday's game against Illinois since he saw it was on the schedule. "Well, not just me, but the whole team has been looking forward to this game," the senior said. "Don't get me wrong, we didn't...

Jeff George was Illinois' first No. 1 pick in the NFL draft. But he didn't win the Heisman. Dick Butkus might be football's best-ever linebacker. But he finished third in Heisman voting in 1964. Neither had a promotional billboard in New York, like Oregon's...

The oldest living member of NIU's 26-man All-Century Football Team, Curtis "Tego" Larsen, has died. Known as both "Tego" and "Coach," Larsen was born on July 24, 1913 and raised in DeKalb, where he graduated from DeKalb High School. Lettering in football...

NIU football coach Joe Novak has been looking forward to this day since Nov. 19, 2000. In one day, the NIU football team will finally take the field against South Florida at Huskie Stadium. No more hitting pads against their teammates. No more what-ifs....

The NIU football team is tired of looking at each other — coach Joe Novak cannot wait to get the season started. Novak, who has been coaching at NIU since 1996, sat down with the Northern Star to talk about the upcoming season. Northern Star: As the...

With its first winning season since 1990 after a 6-5 record last year, NIU's football team looks to continue the same success as the season kicks off Thursday at 6:36 p.m. against the University of South Florida at Huskie Stadium. "The first game is always...

NIU football coach Joe Novak knows when deciding on a college, student-athletes look for different things, leading toward one main goal: receiving a good education. However, athletes usually look for much more. They look not only for technology in the...

Howard W. Fletcher, NIU's Hall of Fame football coach and director of the Huskies' unbeaten 1963 College Division National Championship, died Tuesday night in a hospice facility near his Fort Meyers, Fla., retirement home at the age of 88. Dying of natural...

Two more NIU football players were snatched up the day after the NFL Draft on Monday. McAllister Collins and Jermaine Hampton signed undrafted rookie contracts with the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Indianapolis Colts, respectively. Hampton joins former...