Northern Illinois Football

After nearly a month of reading why they didn't belong in a BCS bowl game, the Northern Illinois Huskies finally ran out on the big stage under the national spotlight.  Were they nervous?  Probably.  Were they doubting themselves?  Maybe.  Did they embarrass themselves?  No.

The fear for most NIU fans, as well as Orange Bowl representatives and ESPN brass, was that FSU was going to run over NIU in a Purdue vs. Oklahoma State type of blowout.  The folks that suggested Northern Illinois didn't belong in this game assumed Florida State would overpower the Huskies in every dimension of the game, marching down the field with little to no resistance.  

This did not happen.  

In fact, Northern Illinois represented itself fairly well defensively.  It was their vaunted offense that let the Huskies down.  But when all was said and done, what is important is NIU was driving deep into the third quarter with an opportunity to tie the football game.

If this exact game was played with the Oklahoma Sooners rather than the Huskies, or with any other national powerhouse for that matter, no one would have blinked an eye and said the Sooners didn't belong on the same stage as FSU.

But NIU is not a perennial powerhouse, they are the Huskies, and the nation was looking for reasons to think they didn't belong in this game.

So what about Kansas State and Florida?  The Huskies were more competitive in their BCS bowl game than either of these teams. I don't hear anyone clamoring that K-State or Florida didn't belong.

As we move forward in college football, the small conferences will continue to get their opportunities to play in the major bowls.  This is tremendous for college football.  The Huskies proved that a small conference school can compete with a major conference school.  They also proved that they can bring a following to a bowl game, as Huskie fans showed up in full force to support their team.  

The major conferences hold every advantage over their smaller brethren.  They get the major dollars from television contracts and bowl berths that allow them to bolster their programs and gain the best recruits.  This is amateur athletics—shouldn't all college teams have the opportunity to gain the exposure NIU received this season?  Why should the rich continue to get richer?  Is it so unthinkable to wish that some of these mid-major conference teams continue to get their moment in the sun?  

The elitists in the media don't want to crack open the door to let the little guy in.  Though they didn't win their game, NIU proved that a mid-major can compete with a major.  

Let's hope we see more of this in the near future.  

Despite their 31-10 loss to No. 12 Florida State (12-2) at this season's Orange Bowl, the No. 15 Northern Illinois Huskies (12-2) should be proud of their 2012-13 accomplishments.

You could say the team should never have been placed in a high-profile game like they were because of the non-AQ rule, but the Huskies still had 12 straight wins en route to their second straight Mid-American Conference Championship.

The season didn't start off well as they lost to Iowa (4-8) by a close score of 18-17 back on Sept. 1 at Chicago's Soldier Field. NIU fans might have had concerns with junior quarterback Jordan Lynch's first start (54 passing yards, 119 rushing yards).

But Lynch began to flourish when the team earned a 41-40 win over Army at West Point as he threw for 342 yards and four touchdowns.

The Huskies were led by their star quarterback, who totaled 3,138 yards and 25 touchdowns through the air. Lynch also set the single-season rushing record for quarterbacks as he finished the season with 1,815 yards and 19 touchdowns.

But the season didn't end on the high the team rode during the MAC schedule. It was a tough loss when the Seminoles started to pull away after Florida State's Xavier Rhodes forced NIU's Da'Ron Brown to fumble with just under 12 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

While the Huskies were hoping for a better performance, they should consider it a victory in different ways heading into their season opener this September.

The Huskies have two games against the Big Ten on the road at Iowa and at Purdue (6-7). The team also goes to play the one-win Idaho Vandals (1-11). Their nonconference scheduled is rounded out with a home game against Eastern Illinois, which could be considered a probable win.

Despite the Huskies losing to Iowa this season, you could say Northern Illinois' exposure on the big stage that was Sun Life Stadium gave the team some confidence entering this season.

Let's say NIU can win those two road games against the Hawkeyes and Boilermakers, who combined for 10 wins. The Huskies will also more than likely earn a win at Idaho and could enter the MAC schedule 4-0.

The Orange Bowl appearance could help NIU gain a few key commitments when February's National Signing Day rolls around. While the Huskies have built a top mid-major program the last decade, the coaching staff can show how another undefeated streak could take them into the BCS once again.

In addition, the key offensive stars for Northern Illinois return next year. Lynch will enter his senior season and very well could be on the early Heisman Trophy watch.

So it will be interesting, but we have a long offseason before the team makes the trip to Iowa City eight months from now.

Jordan Lynch received a harsh reality check Tuesday night, as Florida State's defense dominated the Northern Illinois quarterback in the 2013 Discover Orange Bowl.

Lynch, who led the nation with 4,733 total yards before Tuesday night, submitted his worst performance of the season at a very unfortunate time.

Less than a week after making some semi-controversial comments about Florida State's defense, Lynch completed just 15-of-41 passes for 176 yards, one touchdown and one interception. He also carried the ball 23 times for only 44 yards, almost 100 less than his season average (136.2 per game)

It was a highly disappointing performance for Lynch, who made headlines last Wednesday for comments he made to Steve Greenberg of Sporting News:

'They're fast, they're physical,' Lynch said. 'But they haven't seen anything like our offense...We plan on wearing them down. In the fourth quarter, we plan to have them on their knees—and then just keep pounding away.'

Ironically, it was Lynch on his knees at the end, as he was sacked on his final play of the game.

Lynch was harassed all night by Seminoles linebackers Christian Jones, Telvin Smith and Vince Williams. The trio battered Lynch throughout the game, cutting off his running lanes and hitting him at every opportunity.

Lynch is just a junior, so he will have a chance to redeem himself. Huskies fans will just be hoping that he lets his game do the talking next season.

The Florida State Seminoles are heavy favorites headed into the 2013 Orange Bowl. After all, the Northern Illinois Huskies come from a weaker conference and are playing with an interim head coach.

But this is the classic David vs. Goliath matchup, and the Huskies could certainly surprise some people as the heavy underdog. Florida State is currently favored by 13 points over Northern Illinois, but the Seminoles haven't played an offensive attack like Northern Illinois's so far this season.

And despite the Seminoles having the country's No. 7-ranked scoring defense, the Northern Illinois offense will frustrate Florida State on Tuesday night.

The Huskies are led by quarterback Jordan Lynch, who leads all Division I quarterbacks in rushing yards. Lynch leads the team with 1,771 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns on the ground, proving to be a legitimate game-breaker when in the open field.

But he brings more to the table than just running the football. On the season, Lynch has completed 62.9 percent of his passes, including 24 touchdowns and just five interceptions.

Lynch's favorite target is senior wide receiver Martel Moore, who has already eclipsed 1,000 receiving yards on the season. His 12 touchdowns also lead the team.

The Huskies' ball security this season has been tremendous. And against a stout Florida State defense, Lynch and company will certainly need to take care of the football.

One way the Huskies will try to control the game will be on the ground. On top of Lynch running the ball from the quarterback position, Northern Illinois uses a combination of Leighton Settle and Akeem Daniels at running back.

Neither player is the same home-run threat as Lynch, but both are capable of grinding out tough yards. Daniels could have a big day, as he averages 6.6 yards per carry and has found the end zone nine times this season on the ground.

Florida State is undoubtedly a very strong defense. And just as the Huskies' offense figures to frustrate the Seminoles, Florida State's defense will certainly give the Huskies problems at times.

But several Seminoles have one foot out the door and one eye on the NFL, whereas this hungry Northern Illinois team is focused solely on winning the 2013 Orange Bowl. Florida State head coach Jimbo Fisher will have his team ready to play, but they may not be ready for this unique Northern Illinois offense.

New Year's Day 2013 offers its typical full day of competitive college football, and the Orange Bowl figures to be the perfect finish to a great slate of bowl games.

When NIU faces Florida State in the Orange Bowl, Jordan Lynch is going to turn the game into a star-making showcase before a national audience.

The junior quarterback for Northern Illinois is not a household name by any means, yet he is one of the most electrifying players in all of college football.

In his first season starting under center for the Huskies, Lynch has spearheaded one of the most versatile offenses in the nation. Thanks to his offensive firepower, Northern Illinois is 14th in the NCAA with 485.8 yards per game and seventh with 40.8 points per game.

Lynch does not rank quite so highly on the passing leaderboards. He has completed 62.9 percent of his passes for 2,962 yards through the air, and he has thrown for 24 touchdowns against just five interceptions.

Those are good but not great numbers, even more impressive when you consider he was a running back until he got to high school.

Per the Rockford Register Star:

Lynch had to fight just to be a quarterback. Purdue, Colorado and Illinois wanted Lynch, but only NIU wanted him to pass.

"They wanted me just to be an athlete, a safety or running back or receiver. Whatever it was," Lynch said.

Lynch's athleticism is his greatest asset as a QB, and it has become the focal point of the NIU offense.

In all of the Football Bowl Subdivision, Lynch ranks fourth in rushing yards with 1,771. Take note: That's not fourth among quarterbacks; it's fourth overall. The next QB on that list is Braxton Miller of Ohio State, who is way down at 24th with 1,271 yards, exactly 500 fewer than Lynch.

This season, Lynch posted stellar stats and led the Huskies to a 12-1 record and an improbable berth in a BCS bowl, putting him in the Heisman Trophy conversation despite very little national exposure. He finished seventh in this year's voting, and he projects to be one of the front-runners for the award in 2013.

We'll look back on this Orange Bowl as the game in which Lynch emerged as a legitimate NFL QB prospect. He fits into the dual-threat quarterbacking trend that is sweeping the pros, and he is supremely confident in his ability to execute under center.

From the Sporting News:

"They're fast, they're physical," NIU quarterback Jordan Lynch told Sporting News before the team headed to Miami on Wednesday, "but they haven't seen anything like our offense."

Oh, but that red-alert to FSU's defense (ranked No. 5 in the country, mind you) was just the slightest taste of the juicy stuff.

"We play an uptempo pace," Lynch went on. "We play really fast, a lot of shifting, guys going back and forth each way. It causes a lot of confusion. As soon as we get that rhythm going, it's pretty hard to stop.

"We plan on wearing them down. In the fourth quarter, we plan to have them on their knees—and then just keep pounding away."

It's an audacious statement for a mid-major QB about to play in a BCS bowl, but it's true. FSU has never experienced what Lynch and the Huskies can do on offense—they're the only ones that can do it.

NIU's Orange Bowl hopes rest squarely on the shoulders of Jordan Lynch. He and his team have surprised everyone this season.

But this is going to be the game when America learns that Lynch and the Huskies are for real.

For the moment, let's put aside our opinions about Northern Illinois University and whether it truly deserves to be in the Orange Bowl.

Instead, let's focus on how NIU can upset a team that, not too long ago, seemed as though it could contend for the national championship.

Florida State may be 11-2, and it may be the best team in the ACC (take that for what it's worth). It may have one of the most explosive offenses in the NCAA, but this team is not unbeatable. Just ask NC State and, of course, Florida.

Here's what the MAC champs need to do to have a chance against the Seminoles in the Orange Bowl.

Run the Ball

The Huskies don't have a bad passing offense, but where they really shine is on the run. This is a team that averages 250.2 rushing yards per game, good for ninth in the NCAA. And this is an area in which it really has the potential to overpower Florida State's very, very good defense.

In FSU's 37-26 loss to Florida at the end of November, the Gators gained 244 yards on the ground. They only threw for 150 yards. Senior running back Mike Gillislee rushed for 140 of those yards and two scores. What all this adds up to is that NIU senior quarterback Jordan Lynch's work is cut out for him.

Lynch leads the Huskies with 1,771 rushing yards this season. That, coupled with the 2,962 passing yards this season, makes him a serious threat to the Seminoles. However, if he follows the game plan that the Gators used to topple FSU just over a month ago, his chances of leading his team to a huge upset victory are far better.

Score Early and Often

Everyone loves to talk about Florida State's defense—which was excellent this season, no question—but the Huskies weren't too shabby themselves. They ranked 18th in the NCAA, allowing just 19.0 points per game. There were a couple of times when things spiraled out of control—the Huskies allowed 30 or more points three times—but for the most part, this unit was solid.

Even during those times when the defense fell apart, NIU's offense was able to pick it up.

In its final 12 games of the season after suffering a Week 1 loss to Iowa, there was not a single game in which this offense scored fewer than 30 points. This unit scored early and overwhelmed opponents, often before halftime. Doing that against FSU and its stellar defense isn't going to be easy, but doing it is also one of the only ways in which this team can pull off a massive upset.

Tune Out the Haters

There are plenty of people who are going to claim, until the very end, that NIU has no business playing in this bowl. Sure, what it did this season was impressive—after losing its season opener to Iowa by a single point, it reeled off 12 consecutive wins—but a MAC team in a BCS bowl? Against the nation's sixth-best defense? Come on. 

No matter what the doubters say, the Huskies are here, in the Orange Bowl, and now all they can do is prove that they deserved this berth. There's no other option. Despite the fact that NIU's level of competition in 2012 may have been a little less intimidating than what Florida State had to face, this team was still pretty impressive. Five times, it held opponents to single-digit scoring. Seven times, it scored 40 or more points.

This team has character. You don't win the season finale in double-overtime with a BCS bowl on the line if you don't have character. It's just a matter of the Huskies tuning out the negativity and remembering what they did to get here—then doing it again.

On Thursday, for the first time since the somewhat controversial inclusion of the Northern Illinois Huskies, the Orange Bowl caught the eye of the nation. The game, which has been a bit of an "also ran" on the national stage, turned heads and raised eyebrows. While folks point to the bulletin board material as a call to arms for the Seminoles, they are forgetting that Florida State already had good reason to circle this game.

Steve Greenberg of the Sporting News dropped one of the first bombshells of the Orange Bowl season when he reported quotes from Jordan Lynch.

 

Jordan Lynch on FSU's defense: "They're fast. They're physical. But they haven't seen anything like our offense."

— Steve Greenberg (@SN_Greenberg) December 27, 2012

 

The quarterback went on to say even more about wearing down the 'Noles defense:

 

Jordan Lynch on FSU's defense: "We plan on wearing them down. In the fourth quarter, we plan to have them on their knees."

— Steve Greenberg (@SN_Greenberg) December 27, 2012

 

Good quotes, and certainly folks took notice. The same can be said for the later salvo lead by running back Giorgio Bowers, as Steve Gorten from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported:

 

Bowers: "Nobody’s been cutting him, nobody’s been going at him, and that’s what I’m going to do."

— Steve Gorten (@sgorten) December 27, 2012

 

Now, you can take this as a lot of folks have: The Huskies just gave Florida State the bulletin board. However, if you think the Seminoles needed this prodding to get focused on the game, then you have not been paying much attention.

You see, long before Lynch and Bowers opened their mouths and gassed up the college football world for a Smack Talk-O-Rama, the Seminoles needed a great showing in this game.

Between the restless natives starting to question Jimbo Fisher and guys looking to put good tape on film in their final collegiate appearance, Florida State had a reason to play its A-game going in.

Jimbo Fisher has truly revolutionized the Florida State program, bringing an archaic, dying on the vein former behemoth back into the 21st century. He got it a training table, updated its diet, got the strength and conditioning up to current standards, brought in a defense that was not rooted in a dead theory and plenty more.

That said, in three years at the helm, there has existed a sense of underachievement. Certainly, some of that was due to the inflated sense of what the program was; many people did not understand just how far they had to go to compete at a high level. On the other hand, with losses to NC State in two of three years, Wake Forest in year two and Virginia a year ago, something was most certainly amiss.

Throw in the pasting by the Gators this season, and folks were starting to question if Jimbo was truly "the guy" to get them back to where they want to be.

In other words, with Florida State back in its first BCS bowl in over a half decade, its head coach needs this win. He needs it badly. Independent of opponent, Jimbo Fisher has needed to win this major bowl game since the 2012 season kicked off in September.

Add to Fisher's need the slew of Seminoles looking at the NFL, and what you have is a game filled with players who need good showings. EJ Manuel had, to be kind, an up-and-down season that ended on a sour note; the senior went 32-54, to the tune of just 316 yards and a 1:4, touchdown-to-interception ratio in his final two contest.

Yet Manuel is not the only player that needs to show more good qualities on film, or better stated, that cannot afford to look disinterested or be bested by a perceived lesser opponent. Guys like Rodney Smith, a wide receiver who is hoping to drum up interest at the next level, needs a game where shows he can play every play and command the football.

On defense, the Seminoles are stocked to the brim with talented players who have a shot at the next level. Seniors like Nick Moody and Vince Williams need good showings to help stock, while the real key will be juniors who are debating the jump to the NFL. Bjeorn Werner, Christian Jones, Lamarcus Joyner and Xavier Rhodes, among others, could make that leap with a solid outing.

The Seminoles had a lot to play for before the Huskies ever opened their mouths. Now, thanks to Lynch and Bowers' bravado, the Seminoles have more than just their own fans and scouts' eyes upon them. Everyone is looking to see if they get embarrassed by the tough talking team from Dekalb.

The Northern Illinois Huskies have gotten the Rodney Dangerfield treatment from college football experts: no respect.

The team won 12 games in a row and a second straight Mid-American Conference Championship in a double overtime win over Kent State to find themselves facing #12 Florida State (11-2) in the Discover Orange Bowl.

It was an early Christmas gift for a team that only found themselves in the BCS picture one week prior to the MAC title game.

But maybe the lack of respect will start a fire under a team that is hoping to make all the small schools proud in a matchup that pits two of the nation's top quarterbacks against each other.

On the offensive side of the ball, the focus is going to be on junior quarterback Jordan Lynch who now has the attention of the national media.

Lynch leads the nation with a record setting 1,771 rushing yards for a quarterback with 19 touchdowns. When you add that he's thrown for 2,962 yards, 24 touchdowns and only five interceptions, he's been one of the most impressive players this season.

While Lynch will have to play like he has all season to give the Huskies the major upset win, they'll have to utilize more weapons against the Seminole defense.

Expect Florida State to focus their attention on the NIU quarterback that has been the offense for the MAC Champions.

NIU has two running backs that have high yards per carry averages that show they could also be a big part of the rushing attack that is ranked ninth in the nation with 250 yards per game.

Junior running back Leighton Settle rushed for 453 yards and five touchdowns before going down with an undisclosed injury.

But Akeem Daniels, another junior back, has 432 yards and nine touchdowns on the year coming from the bench.

With the variety of backs and Lynch rushing for NIU, the offensive line deserves a lot of credit for the team's success.

Maybe the Huskies can do reverse handoffs and play action draws against the Florida State defense that is ranked fifth in the country in rush defense (2.7 yards per carry).

One of the questions I have is whether the NIU defense can keep the Seminole offense at bay.

Florida State is led by senior quarterback EJ Manuel's passing attack that has totaled 3,101 yards and 22 touchdowns.

While Manuel isn't as mobile as Lynch, the Seminoles have a respectable rushing attack that averages 203 yards per game.

While the Huskies have the 18th ranked scoring defense in the nation, they haven't played the same caliber of teams that Florida State has.

While I believe Lynch will be the main reason Northern Illinois scores a lot of points, the Huskies have to be able to get at least a few stops in the event the game becomes a shootout.

I picked NIU to win in my college bowl picks earlier this month. But it depends on whether the NIU defense can handle the step up in competition and how Lynch performs on a very big stage at Sun Life Stadium.

un·der·dog [uhn-der-dawg, -dog]

noun

 1. A loser or predicted loser in a struggle or contest

As a society, we love the underdog. We embrace the little guys. We pull for the “predicted loser.” We cheer for the mortals who aren’t given a fighting chance against a superior opponent, whether it’s in our sport of choice or in another walk of life altogether. 

We love underdogs because we’ve all been in that position before. We’ve been told that we can’t accomplish something—and again, not necessarily in an athletic event—although many of us know what that feels like on this stage.

We love the underdog because it’s something different. It’s something we don’t anticipate to happen, but we root for the ones that bring about an unexpected result. A little chaos is refreshing every now and then.

In college football, however, we do not love the underdog.

We don’t love chaos. In fact, we can’t stand the little guys. We like our walls just the way they are and anything slightly off protocol enrages the locals.

We don’t have “Cinderellas,” we have “Busters.” And while college basketball fans embrace their unexpected performers in a robust postseason, we greet our underdogs with pitchforks and claims of a broken BCS system. They are outcasts. 

Our system is indeed broken, but the teams are most certainly not. So why is it that we can’t root for an underdog—especially one such as Northern Illinois in 2012 and soon to be 2013—which has played its way into a BCS bowl?

When we finally learned that Northern Illinois was going dancing—our “exciting” coined phrase for BCS participation that I just made up—we booed. Not all of us, but ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit certainly did and others joined in.

Herbstreit used the term “games that matter” when describing the BCS (along with his outrage), and that Northern Illinois was somehow depriving us of some greater potential BCS matchup. Forget about being a Cinderella, the Huskies are a nuisance.

What exactly are we really missing out on? What would we learn from a BCS bowl game between Florida State and Louisville, or any other BCS matchup that could’ve happened in its place?

“BCS” no longer comes with the same VIP badge that it once did, and some may argue that it never really had one. Despite this, many can’t accept Northern Illinois and its presence in a New Year's Day bowl game.

As a wise five-year-old once said on the playground: "How ‘bout giving someone else a turn?"

If anything, we should embrace this opportunity for a MAC team with a player like quarterback Jordan Lynch—who finished seventh in the Heisman voting less than a week ago, I might add—to be given one of college football’s grandest stages. But we choose not to.

We simply cannot connect with these teams for whatever reason, despite the fact that we know they can win. And when it comes to “games that matter,” maybe our disinterest centers around the sad truth that they actually don’t.

Unlike college basketball, this is the end game for these teams. Northern Illinois cannot and will not win the national championship, so why should we care if it wins this one game? It’s the end of the road.

Oh, it matters to me, and that’s certainly not how I feel, but it could help explain some of the disconnect on a larger scale. Underdogs in this game can only go so far, and recent history has shown us this.

The greatest underdog of my lifetime is without question Boise State. The Broncos have embraced this role under head coach Chris Petersen, and their win over Oklahoma in the 2007 Fiesta Bowl remains the most exciting college football game of my lifetime.

Boise State was only a 7.5-point underdog in this game, but somehow the triumph felt like more. Perhaps it was the way it transpired that made this underdog feel larger than life.

In the end, it proved to be much more, and you can argue that Boise State's sustained success was constructed with this one moment. This was the foundation. And while Boise State is an exception to our disdain—although some still despise the Broncos—others aren’t so lucky.

It’s the teams and programs that we believe are overmatched, the non-traditional, non-power schools, that don’t have the same storied history as your school. Houston, for example, made things very interesting last year until the deck of cards came crashing down. Many were happy to see them fall.

Northern Illinois is the next underdog to have a shot at taking down one of the giants, although Florida State will not go down easily. The Seminoles are bigger, faster, stronger and, outside of the quarterback position, significantly better all over the field. 

Las Vegas has deemed the Huskies nearly a two-touchdown underdog—almost twice that of Boise State back in ’07—and in all likelihood they will not win this game.

They are the latest dog with a chance at redemption, and they’ll go up against a program with more history than almost every university in the country. They'll be without their head coach, who has moved onto a bigger program, which would make it all that much more improbable.

It’s a wonderful story and NIU has a chance to seize the moment. The Huskies will take full advantage of this “Us against the World” mentality heading into this game, using it as motivation throughout the month.

And while it’s really only “Us” against the Florida State Seminoles, somehow it doesn’t seem that far off.