Quick Lane Bowl Central
Last Practice & Gleaners Food Bank Photo Galleries
 
The NIU Football team spent its final day in Detroit before moving into "pregame mode" honoring tradition, receiving, and most importantly, giving back, on a busy, fun and fulfilling day at the Quick Lane Bowl.
 


Packing Potatoes and Apples at Gleaners
While the bowl gifts, museum dinner and fowling events all drew rave reviews, perhaps no single experience of the bowl trip had as much of an impact on the players and coaches as the 90 minutes spent at Gleaners Food Distribution of Southeastern Michigan.  At a brief orientation by staff member Denise Leduc, the players and coaching staff learned that in 2017, Gleaners distributed 42 million pounds of food to people in need. On average, Gleaners distributes 89,000 meals each day including providing nourishing food and nutrition education to 171,000 children a year. On this day, the Huskies would help by packing bags of potatoes and apples to be sent to some of the 499 distribution centers (serving soup kitchens, food pantries, shelters and mobile school kitchens).  The NIU players dove into their task of packing bags of potatoes – with 200 bags to a box – with an energy, spirit and enthusiasm, not to mention a bit of competition – rarely seen by Leduc and the people at Gleaners.
 
"We were just so happy for all the teams to come from the Quick Lane Bowl, it makes a huge difference," Leduc said. "It's a time of year when people prefer to be home with their families, so we really, really appreciate the boys taking time to come out here and pack all the potatoes and apples so that families who are in need are going to have food on the table during the holiday season. And oh my gosh, the way Northern Illinois University came in with the enthusiasm, we really appreciated it. They brought just tons of spirit, tons of energy. We just loved, loved, loved the energy."
 
Even though the players were in a refrigerated warehouse, most were working so hard and so quickly to pack as many potatoes as possible, that they were soon shedding their jackets.
 
While the needy families were the overall winners,  the Huskies also picked up a "bowl week win" as NIU players and the entire coaching staff packed 23,830 pounds of potatoes and 5,960 pounds of apples in a little over an hour, while Duke's total came in at 14,150 pounds of potatoes and no apples. 
 
Most of all it was the attitude that the Huskies brought to the task, as illustrated by wide receiver D.J. Brown.
 
"It's a fun time, it's always fun when you can get around your teammates and other people, and help people that need the help," Brown said. "We're fortunate, we're blessed to be on the football team and play during Christmas and a lot of us are fortunate to have food on Christmas, so it's a good feeling to get out and help people that are less fortunate."
 
"It's nice, I'm happy to be able to give back to people that are less fortunate.  Happy to be here," added defensive back Trequan Smith.
 
For more videos and photos from the Huskies' community service event, follow niu huskies on Instagram, and NIU Huskies on Facebook.
 
 
Seniors' Last Practice Tradition
The Huskies' returned to Ford Field where they went through a one-hour workout in shorts and helmets as they fine-tuned preparations for Tuesday night's match-up versus Duke.  After the final huddle and before the players sprinted up the tunnel to discover the rest of their bowl gifts, each senior was lifted up by the players in his position group and carried off the field. As the pictures show, the techniques varied from the tight ends and fullbacks who barely managed to carry Shane Wimann off the field, to Hayden Sak who fireman-carried Christian Hagan, to the defensive backs who got piggy-back rides.
 
For more videos and photos from the Huskies' community service event AND the seniors' last practice, follow niu huskies on Instagram.
 
 

 
Bowl Gift Time!
Santa Claus came early for the Huskies as they found their bowl gifts waiting for them at their lockers after practice on Christmas Eve. On Saturday, the players each received personalized Fatheads as the first part of their bowl gifts.  On Sunday, they found bags containing a Quick Lane Bowl sweatshirt, a bowl football, headphones, a backpack, swim trunks, a bowl hat and a NIU sweatshirt.

 

Christmas came early for the @NIU_Football Huskies! ?????????? #QuickLaneBowl pic.twitter.com/sF3Fc11reN

— Quick Lane Bowl (@quicklanebowl) December 24, 2017

Merry Christmas!
On Monday morning, players and staff have a chance to go ice skating before coming together as a Huskie Family to celebrate Christmas Brunch. The team will have time to celebrate or meet family in the afternoon at the hotel before beginning their usual pregame routine at 5 p.m.  
 
 
-- NIU --