Football | July 2

DeKALB, Ill. – Seven members of the Northern Illinois University football team were named to the Preseason All-Mountain West Conference Team by Athlon Sports.

Two Huskies were named to the Second Team Offense in junior running back Telly Johnson Jr. (Augusta, Ga. / Hephzibah) and redshirt junior offensive lineman Landon Hron (Hartford, Wis. / Hartford). Redshirt sophomore cornerback and return specialist Dev'ion Reynolds (Zion, Ill. / Carmel Catholic) earned Second Team honors as a kicker returner.

Redshirt senior wide receiver DeAree Rogers (Lexington, S.C. / Lenoir-Rhyne) was named to Athlon's Third Team Offense while redshirt sophomore offensive lineman Ross Liegel (Rock Springs, Wis. / Baraboo), redshirt junior defensive end Jay'shon Thomas (Cataula, Ga. / Harris County) and sophomore punter Jake Ference (St. Louis, Mo. / Lafayette) received Fourth Team recognition.

Last season, Johnson rushed for 712 yards on 124 attempts while adding four touchdowns. Johnson averaged 5.74 yards per carry, thanks in part to an offensive line that featured both Hron and Liegel, ranking top 30 in the FBS. Rogers led all NIU players with 506 receiving yards on 46 catches, finishing his first season with NIU ranking top 10 in the conference in receptions.

Thomas played in all 12 games last season, including starting the final three, and is the team's returning tackles leader. His first career two-sack game came against Ball State on Oct. 25 and Thomas finished with a season-high five tackles against Western Michigan on Nov. 18.

Reynolds made an impact as a redshirt freshman last season, starting four games at corner and playing in all 12 in the secondary and special teams. As a kick returner, Reynolds averaged 25.3 yards per return to rank 16th in the FBS and recorded one touchdown.

Ference stepped in as the starting punter midway through the season for the Huskies. As a true freshman, Ference recorded 30 punts for an average of 43.7 yards per ranking fourth highest in the conference. He added eight punts pinned inside the 20.

NIU opens the 2026 season on the road at Iowa on Saturday, Sept. 5 at 3:15 p.m. CT on the Big Ten Network. The Huskies home opener is set for Saturday, Sept. 12 against in-state foe Illinois State, scheduled for 6 p.m. CT on MW+.

Season tickets are on sale now for the Huskies first season in the Mountain West, beginning at just $102 and are available online at NIUHuskies.com/tickets, by calling the NIU Ticket Office at 815-753-PACK (7225) weekdays between 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. or by emailing, huskiestickets@niu.edu. Single game tickets will be made available late summer.

MW+ is now live and Huskie fans can sign up to catch live games, replays, extra content and more. Subscriptions to MW+ by Huskie fans will also directly support NIU Athletics as a majority of each subscription purchased through a member school's dedicated page will support that institution.

Sign up today here or at watch.themw.com/northern-illinois/ .