DEKALB, Ill. – Tuesday was Media Day on campus as Northern Illinois University football head coach Thomas Hammock and members of the Huskie football team met with the local media following the practice. 

Hammock talked through the process of the offseason for his Huskies, shifting straight after the Cure Bowl toward this season. He emphasized that details and discipline were two areas of focus as NIU continues to build its program and then explained how this season will be all about the climb.  

"In our program we talk about the climb," said Hammock. "We want to get to a point where we can get to an elevation where we are comfortable, and our opponents are uncomfortable. That's what we are striving for. From June to August, we are testing ourselves and preparing ourselves to get ready for the season. We want to get to a point where we are in rarified air, during the season we want to play in rarified air that can be uncomfortable for opponents. That's how we want to play, we want to be comfortable and our opponents uncomfortable."

Hammock also noted the balance between offense and defense thus far during camp, explaining how every practice is scored by the coaching staff and, as of today, the two groups were separated by just one point. 

"When you talk about being a complete football team that's what you want," said Hammock. "You want it to be back-and-forth and for us to have a one-point separation tells you the level of competitiveness with our football team."

Along with Hammock and members of the Huskie football team, Vice President/Director of Athletics Sean T. Frazier, along with cross country head coach Jamie Moreno, men's soccer head coach Ryan Swan, women's soccer head coach Michael O'Neill and volleyball head coach Ray Gooden also met with the media. Each of those videos is also available via the official NIU Athletics YouTube Channel. 

The Huskies will be back on the practice field on Wednesday morning at 10:15 a.m. See the complete camp schedule, including position previews, and links to daily coverage on the 2022 Camp Central page on NIUHuskies.com.
 
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