Football | September 2

NIU FOOTBALL 2022

Postgame Notes – Sept. 1, 2022

Eastern Illinois at NIU – Huskie Stadium – DeKalb, Illinois

NIU 34, Eastern Illinois 27

 
All three of the Huskies top running backs recorded touchdowns in the game – Harrison Waylee with a two-yard run in the first quarter; Mason Blakemore with a 19-yard run in the second quarter and Antario Brown for 35 yards just 21 seconds later.

NIU did not get touchdowns from three different running backs in any game last year.

Sophomore cornerback Eric Rogers picked off a pair of passes in the game, the first NIU player to record two INTs in a game since Jalen McKie versus Akron on November 1, 2018. A year ago, the Huskies intercepted just three passes on the season.

In his 34th career game, NIU senior tight end Liam Soraghan scored his first career touchdown on a 13-yard reception in the third quarter.  The catch was the fifth of Soraghan's career.

Linebacker Daveren Rayner made a career high 14 tackles to lead the Huskies, while eighth-year senior Kyle Pugh returned to action for the first time since 2020 with eight tackles.

NIU is now 29-23 in home openers in Huskie Stadium and won its first home opener since 2019.

The Huskies are 21-33 (plus today) in season openers as a FBS program (since 1969) and are 3-1 under Thomas Hammock.

NIU improved its record in the in-state match-up versus Eastern Illinois to 28-10-1. NIU last loss to the Panthers was in 1998, although the win streak is just three games.