DeKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois University senior linebacker Kyle Pugh (Chicago Heights, Ill./Bloom Township HS) earned first team recognition on Phil Steele's Preseason All Mid-American Conference Team, leading a group of 10 Huskies named to one of the magazine's four preseason All-MAC squads released Monday. Four NIU offensive players, three defenders and three special teams players were named on one of Steele's four preseason squads.
 
In addition to Pugh, sophomore offensive lineman Marques Cox (Peoria, Ill./Peoria HS), sophomore kicker John Richardson (Orland Park, Ill./Brother Rice HS) and senior punter Matt Ference (St. Louis, Mo./Lafayette HS) were named to Phil Steele's second team, senior tight end Daniel Crawford (Macomb, Mich./Dakota HS) was a third team selection, and senior quarterback Ross Bowers (Bothell, Wash./Bothell HS/Cal), senior wide receiver Tyrice Richie (Chicago, Ill./Homewood-Flossmoor HS/Dodge City CC), senior defensive tackle Weston Kramer (Naperville, Ill./Marmion Academy), junior linebacker Jordan Cole (Ferguson, Mo./McCluer South-Berkeley) and junior long snapper Erik Abrell (Aurora, Ill./Aurora Christian HS) earned spots on the fourth team.
 
Pugh, who garnered second team All-MAC recognition following the 2018 season, returns for his sixth year after an injury cut short his 2019 campaign after just two games. He enters the year with 150 career tackles, nine for loss, in 29 career games.
 
Cox started 10 games at left tackle as a redshirt freshman in 2019 and played in all 12, helping pave the way for an offense that averaged 358.7 yards of total offense per game. Richardson made 14-of-18 field goals and all 30 of his point after tries to lead NIU in scoring. He averaged nearly 60 yards per kickoff and made game-winning field goals at Ohio and Toledo.
 
Ference averaged 43 yards per punt last season, propelling the Huskie senior to the top of NIU's career list for average yards per punt (41.4). He enters 2020 second on NIU's all-time list for punts (234) and third on the list for punting yards (9,686).
 
NIU's second-leading receiver a year ago with 37 catches for 443 yards, Crawford averaged 12 yards per catch with two touchdowns and, like Pugh and Bowers, is a sixth-year senior. In eight starts a year ago, Bowers – a transfer from Cal - threw for 2,130 yards and seven touchdowns with a 57.8 percent completion rate. Richie caught 32 passes for 415 yards with four touchdowns in his initial season as a Huskie in 2019; Abrell has adeptly handled snapping duties for both punts and field goals for 23 consecutive games dating back to 2018.
 
One of the Huskies' most experienced defenders with 39 games played during his NIU career, Kramer has made 80 tackles with 9.5 tackles for loss, including 23 as a junior in 2019. Cole played in 10 games and started eight as a sophomore with 37 tackles and 5.5 for loss.
 
Ference, Pugh, Richardson, Crawford, Kramer and Cox garnered their second preseason recognitions of 2020 as they were all named to Athlon's preseason All-MAC team with Ference making Athlon's first team. See the release here.
 
Season tickets for all six Huskie Stadium home games can be purchased today online at NIUHuskies.com/tickets or by calling 815-753-PACK (7225). With the state of Illinois seating capacity limitations expected to be in effect at Huskie Stadium for 2020, having season tickets will be more important than ever.
 
Season tickets remain on sale and are one of the best entertainment values in the region. The six-game package is available beginning at $85 for general admission tickets on the East Side of Huskie Stadium or $135 for reserved seats in sections A, B, F and G on the West Side. Reserved seats in sections C, D and E are priced at $150 each. Family Packs – consisting of a minimum of four season tickets – are either $320 (sections A or G) or $400 (sections B or F) for all six games and can be expanded for larger groups.
 
Details on 2020 seating plans and game day operational changes with an emphasis on health and safety, will be announced soon on NIUHuskies.com. Season ticket members also will receive an email detailing those changes. If the schedule undergoes more changes due to state, university or conference mandates, options are in place for season ticket members, including the ability to roll their season ticket payment to 2021, make a donation to the Huskie Athletic Fund, or request a full refund in writing.  
 
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