DeKALB, Ill. – With the Northern Illinois University Huskies scheduled to open the season with a 6:30 p.m. (CT) game at Georgia Tech in 18 days, the timing of Tuesday night's NIU football practice at Huskie Stadium was certainly no coincidence. The Huskies took the field at – yes – 6:30 p.m. in full pads for a two-hour workout that included multiple scrimmage periods. 
 
According to NIU head coach Thomas Hammock, the reason for the Huskies' second evening practice of the preseason was actually two-fold.
 
"[The night practice] serves two purposes, for recovery of the players' bodies, and then to get ready for Georgia Tech," Hammock said.  "We're practicing so many days in a row that giving them 36 hours to recover as opposed to 24 can maximize recovery. We built our schedule on making sure the players are hydrated, making sure they are healthy, that they have extra time for treatment. We mapped out the schedule strategically to try to do that, and when we practiced last Friday, the players really responded."
 
The NIU offense once again operated effectively behind quarterbacks Rocky Lombardi (Clive, Iowa/Valley HS) and Ethan Hampton (Elburn, Ill./Aurora Christian HS) during Tuesday's scrimmage sessions, with freshman running back Antario Brown (Savannah, Ga./Beach HS) taking a starring role.  With Harrison Waylee (Johnston, Iowa/Urbandale HS) wearing the coveted yellow "Juice jersey" after his performance in Monday's practice, and following Mason Blakemore's (O'Fallon, Mo./Centralia [Ill.] HS) breakout performance for the Black team in Saturday's Cardinal and Black scrimmage, it was Brown's turn to stand out, but not for the first time this preseason, said Hammock.
 
"He's naturally that good," Hammock said of one of the highest rated recruits ever to sign with NIU. "But he's got some guys in front of him that are not relinquishing carries. It's going to be exciting that we can rotate guys, keep them fresh and they can go make plays and they'll be hungry and competitive to go out there and perform. They're certainly making our job difficult as coaches, and this is by far the deepest group of backs that I've been around."
 
Just as the offense appeared to be clicking on all cylinders, the defense came up with a turnover as Jordan Hansen (Arlington Heights, Ill./John Hersey HS) provided the highlight with a fumble recovery. The defense also played well during the "one possession" scrimmage periods at the end of practice when Hammock added an extra element of noise, turning up the volume on the music. The challenge of "one possession" is to emphasize the need to score at the end of a game to win.
 
"In order for us to win, we're going to be in one possession football games," Hammock said. "So the emphasis is on, can you make the play at the end of the game when it comes down to one possession? Then, we have some games on the road early in the season that are going to be extremely loud, so we put the music out there to test the communication and make sure we can operate in that environment, For the first time [turning up the noise] this preseason, it was good. We definitely have to do it again to make sure that we can be ready to operate efficiently and effectively."
 
After a day off Wednesday, NIU returns to the practice field Thursday morning. Practices are open to the public and fans in attendance are asked to remain in the West Stands and not to post any photos or videos of practice. For a complete preseason camp schedule, go to 2021 Camp Central on NIUHuskies.com.
 
NIU opens the season at Georgia Tech on September 4 before welcoming fans back to the stands at full capacity in Huskie Stadium beginning with the home opener versus Wyoming on September 11. Kickoff for the game is at 12:30 p.m. (CT) and the game will honor First Responders and Health Care Heroes, while also serving as a Welcome Back Fans celebration.
 
Single game and season tickets, as well as mini-plans and Family Packs, are on sale for the six 2021 NIU Football home games with season ticket prices as low as $85. Purchase a minimum of four tickets for all six games via the Family Pack for just $90 per ticket (in sections B and F) or $66 per ticket (in sections A and G). Three-game or four-game mini-plans are also available with Mission's 3-Game Mini-Plan priced at $79 (including processing), while Victor E.'s 4-Game Mini-Plan is $107. Single game ticket prices vary depending on location and game (Saturday or MACtion). In 2021, the cost of parking in the NIU Convocation Center is included in the price of tickets, making Huskie Football tickets an even greater value than ever before.
 
To see all the ticket options and prices, and for more information on premium seating, see the Football Ticket Page at NIUHuskies.com. To purchase tickets, call 815-753-PACK (7225) or go to NIUHuskies.com/MyHuskies.
 
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