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Northern Star

Northern Illinois University’s student media since 1899

 

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The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Drew Hare throws the ball during Saturday’s 48-34 victory over the Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. Hare went 18-of-28 for 285 yards and three touchdowns through the air and carried the ball 14 times for 74 yards and one touchdown.

Football suppresses Rebels’ comeback attempt

By Frank Gogola | September 14, 2014

Football scored the game’s final two touchdowns en route to its third win in as many games this season.The Huskies (2-0) beat the Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels (1-2), 48-34, Saturday at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas. The win upped the Huskies’ all-time...

Late heroics cement win for football

By Frank Gogola | September 14, 2014

Following a third quarter and early fourth quarter to forget, football (3-0) bookended a timely interception with two fourth-quarter scoring drives to escape Las Vegas with a 48-34 win over the Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels (1-2).The Rebels knotted the game,...

Rapid Reaction: NIU 48, Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels 34

By Frank Gogola | September 13, 2014

What happened: The Huskies (3-0) defeated the Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels (1-2), 48-34, Saturday at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas.How it happened: The Huskies scored the game’s final 14 points to secure a two-touchdown victory over the Rebels.Drew Hare...

NIU players Boomer Mays (45) and Corey Thomas (69) are congratulated after NIU's victory over Northwestern University on Saturday.

Taking Down the Big Ten: NIU knocks out Northwestern, 23-14

By Ryan Barnard | September 7, 2014

Football (2-0) discovered its offense in the second half against the Northwestern Wildcats (0-2) during Saturday’s 23-15 win at Ryan Field in Evanston; however, questions remain about who will be NIU’s leader under center for the remainder of the...

Sophomore tailback Joel Bouagnon (28) blocks a Presbyterian defender Thursday at Huskie Stadium. Bouagnon made his first career start at running back in the Huskies’ 55-3 victory over the Blue Hose, taking 16 handoffs for 97 yards and four touchdowns, including his first career rushing touchdown.

‘Perfectionist’ attitude drives Bouagnon

By Frank Gogola | September 3, 2014

Joel Bouagnon is the name to know, even if you can’t pronounce it.Bouagnon exploded onto the scene in his first career start Thursday against Presbyterian. The sophomore tailback rushed for 97 yards and four touchdowns on 16 carries.Prior to fall camp,...

Running game powers football

By Frank Gogola | September 1, 2014

Football’s ground game made mincemeat of Presbyterian’s defense, gashing the Blue Hose left and right Thursday at Huskie Stadium.The Huskies racked up 635 total yards of offense, including 424 rushing yards on 77 carries. The 635 yards is the most...

Junior running back Cameron Stingily (42) stiff arms the Toledo defense during Wednesday night’s game.  NIU won, 35-17, taking the MAC West title. It will head to the MAC Championship game for the fourth season in a row.

Breaking Down the Huskies

By Frank Gogola | August 26, 2014

Quarterback: Without a doubt, the difference maker for the Huskies is senior Jordan Lynch. As he goes, the Huskies offense goes.

Lynch produced one of the most historic seasons in college football history last season, becoming the only quarterback to run for more than 1,500 yards as well as throw the ball for more than 3,000 yards. Going into this season, Lynch looks to continue that success starting with Iowa. In the season opener against Iowa last year, it was Lynch’s first collegiate start and was seemingly one-dimensional, relying heavily on the running game. Lynch is a different quarterback than he was then so expect him to exploit the Iowa defense throw the air as well as on the ground for big plays.

Running back: Senior Akeem Daniels has had trouble staying on the field due to nagging injuries. Cue junior Cameron Stingily as he is expected to get the start and carry the workload for the Huskies. Stingily came into NIU as a middle linebacker but last season he was converted to running back. Stingily does not have a lot of experience under as belt as last season he made one carry for 5 yards. But he will be a strong addition to the run game as a power back, something the Huskies have lacked the last few of seasons. You can expect Stingily to pound the ball right up the middle and fight for every extra yard.

Wide receiver: Junior TommyLee Lewis comes in this season as the most experienced wide receiver on the team. He will need to step up to fill the void left by former receivers Martel Moore and Perez Ashford. With Lewis generally playing in the slot, he creates mismatches for defenses with his speed and is able to create a number of big play opportunities. He can make big plays by stretching the defense or catching short passes and running for big gains after the catch. Last season, Lewis made 48 receptions for 539 yards and five touchdowns.

Offensive line: Protecting the quarterback’s blind side may be the most important job for the offensive line. That’s why junior left tackle Tyler Loos will be such a factor against Iowa as well as the rest of the season. Last season, Loos and the offensive line did a great job of protecting Lynch’s blind side and they only gave up eight sacks all season. Loos and the line not only kept Lynch off the ground but they opened up numerous, gaping holes for Lynch and others to run through for big gains. If Loos and the rest of the line are able to contain Iowa’s bigger defensive line, the Huskies’ offense should thrive in Iowa City.

Defensive line: Last season in the Huskies’ matchup against the Hawkeyes, the Huskies recorded six sacks. Senior Joe Windsor led the Huskies that game with his two big sacks for a loss of 19 yards in limited action. In a backup role all season, Windsor made a case that he could even be a starting defensive end as he was third on the team with seven sacks. With Windsor’s speed around the edge he is a constant threat, and he should put a lot of pressure on Iowa’s new starting quarterback, Jake Rudock. Now that Windsor will start, expect to hear his name called a lot.

Linebacker: Junior Jamaal Bass is someone who just has a nose for the football. You can expect him to be around the ball at all times making big tackles left and right. Last season, Bass was third on the team with 83 tackles, 45 of them solo. He was behind senior defensive back Jimmie Ward and former linebacker Tyrone Clark. With the departure of Clark and his 86 tackles from last season, Bass becomes the leader of the line backing core. Bass doesn’t come in as the biggest guy on the field, standing at 5’10”, 225 pounds, but he makes up for it with his speed and ability to cover the field.

Defensive Back: The leader of the defensive backs and defense falls on senior Jimmie Ward.

Last season, Ward did it all for the Huskies. He led the team in tackles by recording 104 and 65 of them solo. His mentality for each game is to record at least 10 tackles a game and he prides himself on making big stops. He was also a ball hawk in coverage for the Huskies, leading the team with three interceptions and was second with 11 pass breakups. You can expect Ward to continue flying around the field this season recording tackle after tackle.

Special teams: Coach Rod Carey has said the keys to victory against Iowa are to have good ball control and a strong kicking game.

Although not really needed for anything more than extra points last season, senior kicker Mathew Sims has been more than reliable. Last season he went 15-19 on field goals. He’s also proven his clutch factor as he made one of the biggest kicks in NIU history, a 40-yard field goal against Kent State in the MAC Championship to tie the game and send it into double overtime. Sims has also proven he can be good from beyond 50 or more yards as he hit a 54 yard field goal against Western Michigan last season.

Football Fall Camp Notebook: Bass may miss season opener, three-way quarterback race still tight and more

By Frank Gogola | August 21, 2014

With football’s season opener just more than one week away, the Huskies may very well be down a leader on defense early on as they continue their search for the offense’s new leader.Jamaal Bass may not play in season openerJamaal Bass, redshirt senior...

Football Fall Camp Notebook: ‘Frustrating’ QB battle rages on, Stingily’s ‘weird’ injury and more

By Frank Gogola | August 11, 2014

With football’s fall camp in full swing, things are beginning to heat up on the practice field.While no quarterback has emerged in the race to replace Jordan Lynch, a number of players, including Tyler Loos, Rasheen Lemon and Jamaal Bass, are making...

Five Huskies named to watch lists

By Frank Gogola | July 20, 2014

Five football upperclassmen made preseason watch lists over the past two weeks.A total of 15 watch lists are revealed during 10 days in July. The watch lists are whittled down throughout the season, and the winner of each award is announced in early December.Tommylee...

Redshirt junior tailback Cameron Stingily stampedes to Sports’ No. 3 ranking after rushing for 1,119 yards and nine TDs.

No. 3 Athlete of the Year: Cameron Stingily

By Brian Earle | April 30, 2014

Middle linebacker-turned-running back Cameron Stingily put together an impressive campaign in his first season as the starting tailback, earning him Sports’ No. 3 Athlete of the year.“It means a lot because, literally, last year I wasn’t even recognized...

Talent on ground for football

By Steve Shonder | April 15, 2014

While football is searching for Jordan Lynch’s replacement at quarterback, it is also trying to figure out how to replace his production on the ground.The Huskies are bringing back eight running backs from last season’s team, which was fourth in the...