Football | October 9

DeKALB, Ill. – The Northern Illinois University football team travels to Eastern Michigan Saturday, Oct.11 for a 12 p.m. kickoff against the Eagles. The game is the start of a road stretch for the Huskies, with four of the next five games coming on the road. Saturday's game can be found on ESPN+ and the radio broadcast starts at 11:30 a.m. on 94-9 WDKB with Andy Garcia, Mark Lindo and Terry Bonadonna.
 
NIU (1-4, 0-1 MAC) dropped its first Mid-American Conference game last weekend at home against Miami, 25-14, as the RedHawks pulled away in the second half. The Huskies held Miami to 170 passing yards, the fourth time NIU has held an opponent under 200 passing yards this season which is the most among MAC teams. NIU's 170.8 passing yards allowed per game ranks 23rd in the FBS.
 
Freshman quarterback Brady Davidson (Columbia, Mo./Rock Bridge) made his first career start, passing for 106 yards and his first career touchdown. Running Back Lazaro Rogers (Fort Myers, Fla./East Lee County) recorded a 76-yard rushing touchdown on the Huskies' first offensive snap and finished the game leading all players with 98 rushing yards. Rogers' touchdown was the first time NIU scored on its first offensive play since 2017.
 
Redshirt-Senior linebacker Quinn Urwiler (Mooseheart, Ill./North Dakota) extended his streak of at least 10 tackles in a game to five, making 14 stops (nine solo) with 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack. Junior safety Jasper Beeler (Farmington, Mich./Saginaw Valley State) finished the game with a career-high seven solo tackles.
 
Eastern Michigan (1-5, 0-2 MAC) comes into the game after losing a nailbiter to Buffalo last week, falling 31-30 in overtime. The Eagles answered Buffalo's overtime touchdown on their possession but failed a two-point conversion that would have secured the victory.
Eastern Michigan has shown the ability to move the ball offensively, ranking third in the MAC in total offense with 377.5 yards per game and fourth in scoring offense with 25.0 points per game. Quarterback Noah Kim is the conference's leading passer with 1,336 yards, completing 63.1 percent of his passes. Running Back Dontae McMillan leads the MAC in rushing yards (533) and yards per carry (6.5).
 
The Eagles are one of nine FBS times to score on 100 percent of their red zone opportunities (12 touchdowns, eight field goals). NIU has won the last three matchups, with two being one-score games, and 14 of the last 16 dating back to 2008.
 
NIU will travel to Ohio for its next game on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 2:30 p.m.
 
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