Northern Illinois Football

DeKALB | NIU’s depth chart is simply a piece of paper, not a binding contract.

Huskie head coach Jerry Kill said he’s looking for depth during camp before the team’s season opener against Wisconsin on Sept. 5. One position that has caught Kill’s eye in particular? Tailback.

“We’ve got, shoot, about 400 of them in camp, you ought to think we find two; one, two or three,” said Kill of finding a starting running back. “You’re going to need depth at that position.”

After spring practices, the Huskie head coach could have simply named Me’co Brown and Ricky Crider the starting running backs for surviving camp, but entering the summer sessions, Kill said the competition for the starting position is "wide open."

“The way I looked at it is whoever survives camp survives me,” said the second year head coach. “During this camp we’ll see who survives and who’s mentally tough to take the grind and the punishment. And if there’s no clear cut guy we’ll work at it."

One back who’s looking to earn the nod from Kill is senior Justin Anderson.

In his sophomore season, Anderson was named the premiere running back after Montell Clanton suffered a season-ending knee injury in the second game of the year. The sophomore had no problem picking up the slack, carrying the ball 274 times for 1,245 cards and eight touchdowns.

But that was under former NIU head coach Joe Novak.

In 2008 Anderson saw his carries drop by 81 percent; primarily carrying the ball out of a direct snap formation.

The running back has moved on with the past, however, and has been preparing to make an impact as a senior.

Anderson missed most of spring practice with a broken foot. This also caused him to be held out of a majority of the weight lifting and summer training that other running backs went through as he was rehabbing.

Although the senior couldn’t be on the field, he still took the summer to prepare himself mentally.

“I prepared myself mentally so I’m pretty much ready for any type of scenario or situation,” Anderson said. “I’m trying to discipline myself for now and the future; just trying to prepare myself.”

The senior said he’s the most disciplined he’s ever been in his life. Anderson cut out junk food, pop, and sweets from his diet. He analyzed days worth of game film and did whatever he could do physically to get himself into football shape this summer.

The 23 year old is hoping all of this will allow him to become the back that Kill is looking for—one that makes plays.

“[The tailbacks] have got to go make plays. Hell, I can’t make them,” Kill said. “They have to make my life easy, and make that decision clear cut.”

One advantage Anderson does hold compared to other running backs is his senior status. The Huskies have only 16 seniors on their 2009 roster. Of those, seven are listed as starters, with Anderson not being one of them.

Anderson has noticed that he has already been leading his fellow running backs by example. The running back finishes every play by running all the way to the end zone. This summer, the other Huskie running backs have taken Anderson’s example, finishing every play as a touchdown.

But Anderson knows the coaching staff is looking for a running back who is more of a playmaker than a leader.

“We need to take the pressure off of Chandler Harnish. He had to do way too many things last year,” Kill said. “We need to have a tailback, or two, we’ve got to have a tight end step up, we’ve got to have a wide receiver who’s going to make play; we’ve got to make somebody make him like good instead of him trying to make everyone else look good.”

Anderson believes he’s the back that can do this. But in order to be the man, he’ll have to prove that he can survive Kill’s camp first.

If Northern Illinois head football coach Jerry Kill wants consistency at running back, look no further than the veteran of the group, Justin Anderson.

As a sophomore, Anderson exploded onto the scene for the Huskies in place of the injured Montell Clanton. In 10 starts, he rushed for 1,245 yards, eight touchdowns, and averaged 103.8 yards per game.

Those numbers were in the Joe Novak era. Anderson was the ninth-straight back under Novak to rush for 1,000 yards.

No offense to coach Kill, but if Novak felt Anderson was the next 1,000 yard rusher with two more seasons to shine, then he was probably right.

In 2008, Anderson picked up just 209 yards in just two starts. Freshman quarterback Chandler Harnish led the team in rushing with 539 yards.

Last year was last year, now it's time to make things right. The Huskies have a tradition of running backs, and Anderson is next in line. Me'co Brown had a productive freshman year, and Chad Spann filled in nicely but Kill's running backs have a Tennessee Titans-like combo to it.

Let Anderson pick up the bulk in his senior season and use the small, fast, and shifty Brown as the change-of-pace back. With this tandem, the Huskies can have a consistent running game. They don't have to rely on a pair of sophomores, one being the quarterback  and the other being Brown.

Great running backs have been a part of NIU football, dating back to LeShon Johnson, Thomas Hammock, A.J. Harris, Michael Turner, and Anderson's predecessor, Garrett Wolfe.

It would be a shame if the Huskies' new offensive system does not promote the qualities that brought NIU success.

While I think Brown can be the No. 1 guy someday, now is not his time. Anderson, who has a true running back skill set, is the main back. His yards per carry average (4.4) doesn't tell the story. The more carries Anderson sees, the more success he finds.

Unlike Brown, he's not a one-touch home run threat. Instead, he pounds the ball up the middle and, without warning, breaks off the big run. As Wolfe did at NIU, Anderson almost always picks up positive yards.

While I understand a change of regime brings a change of systems, why argue with a system that produced four outright or Co-MAC West championships, two bowl games, and three legitimate Heisman Trophy candidates at running back?

Maybe it's just me, but why fix what isn't broken?

[Photo by Jerry Burnes]

Northern Illinois University has a secret. A deep, dark secret.

See, after over 40 years as a member of the NIU family, former Sports Information Director Emeritus Mike Korcek was not renewed by the athletic department.

That's not the secret. The secret is why.

NIU deputy athletics director for external affairs Glen Krupica made the choice to not retain Korcek, telling the DeKalb Daily Chronicle that the position had "run its course."

"Now that three years have past, the Hall of Fame display is up and intact, and Mike had done a tremendous amount for years on that," Krupica said. "Since we have that project done, the department felt the position was not needed anymore."

Now, Glen, enlighten Huskie Nation with the real reason Korcek's tenure is over. Certainly, a part-time position is not costing the university that much money. Korcek's knowledge of NIU is needed for alumni events, the hall of fame, and all that. It simply cannot be "absorbed."

The direction NIU's athletic department has gone over the past few years has not been a good one.

In his tenure at NIU, Korcek spent 22 years as Sports Information Director and over 30 in the department. He attended school at NIU and left only to join the Army, where he received an honorable discharge.

He led the Heisman Trophy campaigns for LeShon Johnson and Michael "The Burner" Turner. Johnson finished sixth in 1993, on a 4-7 team, with no TV games or Internet to promote on. Korcek also led his staff to over 50 CoSIDA awards, including Best in Nation. During the 2003 season the NIU football team went 10-2 with no bowl game appearance. Thanks in large parts to Korcek's efforts, they were a victory away from a Sports Illustrated feature.

He is as close to legendary status as one can get in the industry.

So now Krupica and Athletic Director Jeff Compher have some questions to answer. How can Krupica, a former basketball manager and someone moved up the ranks with Korcek's help, get rid of the walking NIU encyclopedia? 

A small FBS school such as NIU cannot afford to lose a person such as Korcek. This is especially the case when current SID Donna Turner was giving media incorrect information on NIU's bowl record in the Independence Bowl press box. For the record, entering the bowl, they were 2-1, not 1-2.

Is this move a clash of political ideologies coming to a head or is it an "out with the old" move by NIU?

Either way, the Huskies made a terrible decision that lit up the message boards and incited alumni all across the country. Korcek was connected to many boosters, many sponsors, and he has a legacy rooted deeply inside the current foundation of NIU athletics.

This move could come back to hurt them.

When I spoke to Korcek on the situation he said he had only hoped to help out his alma mater in this capacity and would have done the work for free if asked in a professional matter.

That was not the case.

That's the new story inside the NIU athletic department. No respect for the past, no respect for tradition. It's all about the money, the fame, and the glory.

All of which NIU will not find as a 6-7 Mid-American Conference team.

Last season was the start of a new era in NIU football. An unknown entity named Chandler Harnish stepped into the starting role at quarterback in the Huskies first game versus Minnesota. The redshirt freshman threw for 326 yards and two touchdowns.

As Harnish entered MAC play, the mystery of a new quarterback led to 1,528 yards, eight touchdowns, nine interceptions and also a team-leading 539 rushing yards.

Heading into the 2009 season, Harnish is no longer a mystery. Neither is his redshirt sophomore comrade, DeMarcus Grady, who also saw starts last year due to injuries to Harnish and senior Dan Nicholson. The in-game experience has helped increase the learning curve for both QBs.

“Coming into spring ball, one thing I really noticed was I’m able to focus on the small things,” Harnish said. “Last year, I was trying to learn an offense, trying to learn the big picture, but now this year, I pretty much understand what we’re trying to do and we’re able to build on that and do a lot of different things with wide receivers and backs, so its going a lot better.”

This season leaves second-year head coach Jerry Kill with two experienced quarterbacks and also redshirt freshman Brandon Rogers to enter as a backup. The Huskies will also have a different look to the receiving corps., as Matt Simon, Britt Davis and Marcus Perez have all graduated, leaving Nathan Palmer, Marcus Lewis and Landon Cox to take over.

As Kill pointed out, this year’s receivers all have in-game experience.

“The good thing is all the kids that we have played last year and they’ve got a lot of experience in there,” Kill said. “We’re not near as deep as we were a year ago, therefore these kids are getting more reps. In some ways not having as much depth, as long as we can stay healthy, our timing is a little bit better and things of nature.”

Even though Harnish stands out as the Huskies’ likely starter, both he and Grady recognize that competition is always a part of the game, especially if one guy isn’t getting the job done.

“Competition is always a great thing as far as the quarterback position because if you mess up and the other guy does well, then you need to come back the next play and have a good play to rebuttal what he is doing,” Harnish said. “The fact that they’re understanding what we’re doing, we’re able to bounce ideas off each other and get a picture of what we’re doing and it helps us all develop as quarterbacks.”

Grady also recognizes the competition factor, but said the quarterbacks are reliant on each other.

“There’s always competition, we’re always trying to get better but at the same time we need each other,” Grady said. “We both have a good relationship going and we help each other. So there’s a bit of a competition but at the same time we need each other, so we’re going to work with each other to try and improve.”

Grady, who has been often labeled as the "running quarterback," is working hard in practice to try and shed that label. He said he’s been working on footwork, throwing the ball and developing a base. Grady commented that he feels as if he is far ahead of where he was last year.

As Grady looks to improve on mechanics he also looks to improve on diminishing turnovers, something both Kill and Harnish look to reduce.

“One of the things we started off saying right at the beginning of spring ball was we need to limit our interceptions and I think that comes with just being able to read different coverages and play consistent football,” Harnish said. “There’s nothing special about it, there’s no special type of ingredient that we need to do but we need to be consistent and just understand what we’re trying to do as an offense.”

[Photo By Jerry Burnes]

by Steve Nitz [Staff Writer]

From 1999-2007, NIU had a 1,000 yard rusher. The nine-year streak ended in Jerry Kill’s first season at the helm of the NIU football program.

Last year the team’s leading rusher was quarterback Chandler Harnish with 539 yards.

No NIU back had more than 110 carries, as the team moved to a carry-by-committee approach. Four backs carried the ball at least 40 times.

Kill wants that to change this year.

“We need somebody to step up and make some plays,” Kill said. “We would like one or two [backs] to emerge and take the job.”

Me’co Brown and Chad Spann are the main cogs in the backfield. Brown led the team in carries last year with 110 while Spann had 88.

Kill said Justin Anderson is also in the picture. Anderson ran for 1,245 yards in 2007, but after leading the team in carries in last season’s opener at Minnesota, his playing time diminished, and he only carried the ball 53 times on the year.

“It’s one of those things where we played the youngsters that were playing well and doing well,” added Kill. “According to what we were doing and the personnel groupings we were in, there’s a whole lot that goes into it.”

One thing Brown has going for him in spring practice is he is fully healthy.

During last season’s game at Eastern Michigan, a game in which he ran for 117 yards, Brown suffered a bone bruise in his foot which bothered him the rest of the year.

“I was trying to fight through the pain,” Brown said. “I got 98 percent for the bowl game, right now I’m 110 percent.”

Brown, going through his first year of spring practice, also has a better grasp of the offense and blocking schemes going into his second season.

“The game, it’s slowed down,” Brown said. “From practice during the fall to [spring] practice, it’s way slower.”

Spann came on at the end of last season, once he got healthy after pulling a hamstring in training camp.

“I just have to come out here and be more consistent,” Spann said. “That’s everything—pass blocking, knowing your assignments. Being out here and making plays.”

Even though Kill would like one or two backs to emerge and fully grasp the job, he pointed out the fact the Huskies were third in the MAC in rushing last season, and he’s not afraid to go with a committee again.

“We still ran the ball well,” Kill commented. “We would like one or two of those guys to emerge and take the job. If [they] don’t we’ll do the same thing.”

by Ben Gross [Staff Writer]

Rome wasn’t built in a day—and neither will the NIU athletic program under the direction of Jeff Compher, athletic director and associate vice president.

Instead of using swords and warriors to create his empire, however, Compher and his staff will utilize their newly created Northern Illinois University Intercollegiate Athletics Strategic Plan.

The strategic plan keeps the missions simple; “We develop champions in the classroom, in competition and in life.” It also provides a clear set of values for the department, RED (Represent NIU with pride, Expect success and Demand integrity).

While it’s easy to write this down, it will be harder to make sure it comes to fruition. But Compher is dedicated to making this mission statement a living promise.

“There are six different goal areas, and we have objectives to complete over the next three years,” the athletic director said. “Our goal was to make this a living document; not a dust collector on the shelf.”

The six goals NIU will work on over the next three years relate to developing a culture for student-athlete success, instilling a “compliance conscience” throughout the campus, developing and maintaining outstanding programs, producing an environment of gender equity, enhancing external resources and ensuring fiscal responsibility.

Students will not see all these goals in action but will see some changes made to the athletic program because of this document.

“For the average student, ultimately what we want it to do is have an impact on their experience with our athletic department,” Compher said.

One way the department aims to achieve this is by building a sense of community between the campus and students. Compher wants to eventually develop a high school-like atmosphere around athletics at NIU, where students and faculty feel connected to student-athletes.

To achieve this, the athletic director believes student-athletes need to mingle with other student organizations. Compher would also like student-athletes to become recognizable on campus as he feels many students do not know they have student-athletes in their classes.

Along with the six main goals, the strategic plan has 14 initiatives that will be completed this year. One of these initiatives is to improve the basketball game day experience for students and the community.

NIU made an effort to achieve this last season by offering tickets to the T.I. and Ludacris concert at the NIU men’s basketball game against Akron.

The Huskies had 1,881 fans at that game. The Akron game was the third most attended home conference game.

Students might also begin to recognize new construction in the upcoming year. While nothing is set in stone, one of the strategic plan’s goals is to, “Identify and secure sources of funding for current and future capital projects.” Under this goal, the department has listed a sub-goal stating: “Launch structured campaign for Indoor Practice Facility.”

The development of a indoor practice facility might still be distant, though, as the department is organizing the facility needs of its programs.

“We wanted to look at a facilities plan, like what makes sense,” Compher said. “We just wanted to kind of put that out there, that we need to set some priorities for facilities.”

While students won’t see it directly, the athletic department is also trying to find ways to be fiscally responsible.

Along with the rest of the university, the department is in a hiring freeze. Compher is also having his sports find ways to travel for less money and is looking to bring in more ticket sales by dropping the price of season tickets for football.

Coaches, student-athletes and members of the community responded well to the strategic plan, according to Compher. The athletic director discussed the plan with his coaches over a five-hour session one day in the Sky Room of the Holmes Student Center. He said everyone left the meeting feeling excited.

Carol Owens, NIU women’s basketball head coach, agreed with Compher’s assessment.

“RED: it’s pretty simple, it’s catchy, it’s part of who we are,” Owens said. “We wanted to come up with something that our athletic department would be known for. We wanted something that defined who we are.”

by Steve Nitz [Staff Writer]

Larry English has just been enjoying the ride.

Since the Independence Bowl, the former NIU defensive end has been in the process of getting ready for the NFL Draft on Apr. 25 and 26. The 2007 and 2008 MAC MVP spent a week at the Senior Bowl in January and worked out at the NFL Scouting Combine in Indianapolis in February.

“I’ve been enjoying it,” English said of his experience the past couple of months. “I’ve been relishing every moment.”

Friday afternoon, English, as well as nine other NIU seniors—wide receivers Matt Simon, Britt Davis and Marcus Perez, offensive tackle Jon Brost, cornerbacks Bradley Pruitt, Melvin Rice and Chase Carter, linebacker Josh Allen and defensive tackle Alex Krutsch, worked out in front of 19 NFL teams at NIU’s Pro Day.

English ran the 40-yard dash, the 60-yard shuttle, completed the broad jump and also did position drills. English ran a 4.62 40-yard dash and said he improved on everything from the combine. His 40 time in the combine was 4.77.

“I think I helped myself,” English said.

English also has individual workouts coming up with the Patriots, Browns, Broncos and Giants.

English is considered one of the top prospects in this year’s draft and is a possible first-round pick. Draft Countdown has English going to Atlanta at No. 24 but Todd McShay of Scout’s Inc. and Mel Kiper Jr. of ESPN have both dropped English into the second round.

English, however, says he tries to avoid mock drafts and things he can’t control.

“I try to stay away from [mock drafts],” English said. “So many different things can happen in the draft.”

Along with the defensive end, Simon has been training since early January and has a chance to hook on with a team as an undrafted free agent. Simon’s 40 time was a 4.48. In addition to participating in the other drills, he ran routes with Dan Nicholson throwing to him.

“I’m real excited with everything and real pleased with how I ran,” Simon said.

Simon said a couple of teams have contacted him after Pro Day and may get a personal workout.

“Anything from here on out that comes I’m grateful for,” Simon said. “I’m happy for any opportunity that’s thrown my way.”

By Jerry Burnes (Sports Editor)

When Larry English first watched the game of football, he didn’t fully understand the game. He picked up the concept but never realized that the men more than twice his size at the time were wearing pads.

Safe to say that every one of English’s 31.5 career sack victims are glad they wear pads in football.

“As a kid watching games on TV, I never knew they wore pads,” English said. “I always thought they were just really big guys playing football. Since then I always wanted to play football.”

English said he started playing football in the fourth grade and has missed one season ever since. In sixth grade, he was sidelined for the season after breaking his shoulder in summer camp.

Now, that same kid who never knew football required pads has turned into one of the scariest sights for MAC quarterbacks. English is the two-time Vern Smith Award winner for the MAC Most Valuable Player and entering the 2008 season, was the NCAA active leader in sacks, the same stat line that placed him atop the all-time sack list at NIU.

All the stats and accolades, however, don’t make their way into English’s head. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound defensive end seems humbled by the position he’s in.

“It’s been fun, that’s the biggest thing,” he said. “I’m blessed to be in this position. Not too many people get the chance to be in this spot.”

That spot has English heading to the NFL. What team, is still to be determined, but he’s projected to be a first-day draft pick by many experts.

“Sometimes you can’t help it [listening to the experts] but I really try not to spend my time seeing what people are saying about me,” English said. “In some cases it’s out of my hands so I just try not to stress myself out with it too much.”

On his road to the draft, English has still been in contact with his old NIU coach Joe Novak and still keeps in touch with his old teammates. He’s been in the NFL Scouting Combine with the best players in college football.

“Anytime you get to be around that kind of talent, it’s fun,” he said. “I thought I did OK. I could have done better.”

If English goes as the experts predict, he will be the highest draft pick in NIU history. Higher than NFL MVP candidate Michael Turner, higher than Super-Bowl starter Ryan Diem, and higher than NIU’s all-time leading rusher Garrett Wolfe — an accomplishment that would be an honor for English.

“It would mean a lot and it would be [an] honor,” he said. “Especially with the caliber of players to come out of NIU and into the NFL.”

Photo courtesy of Mike Greene, Northern Star.

When Larry English first watched the game of football, he didn’t fully understand the game. He picked up the concept but never realized that the men more than twice his size at the time were wearing pads.

Safe to say that every one of English’s 31.5 career sack victims are glad they wear pads in football.

“As a kid watching games on TV, I never knew they wore pads,” English said. “I always thought they were just really big guys playing football. Since then I always wanted to play football.”

English said he started playing football in the fourth grade and has missed one season ever since. In sixth grade he was sidelined for the season after breaking his shoulder in summer camp.

Now, that same kid who never knew football required pads has turned into one of the scariest sights for MAC quarterbacks. English is the two-time Vern Smith Award winner for the MAC Most Valuable Player and entering the 2008 season, was the NCAA active leader in sacks, the same stat line that placed him atop the all-time sack list at NIU.

All the stats and accolades, however, don’t make their way into English’s head. The 6-foot-3, 255-pound defensive end seems humbled by the position he’s in.

“It’s been fun, that’s the biggest thing,” he said. “I’m blessed to be in this position. Not too many people get the chance to be in this spot.”

That spot has English heading to the NFL. What team is still to be determined but he’s projected to be a first-day draft pick by many experts.

“Sometimes you can’t help it [listening to the experts] but I really try not to spend my time seeing what people are saying about me,” English said. “In some cases it’s out of my hands so I just try not to stress myself out with it too much.”

On his road to the draft, English has still been in contact with his old NIU coach Joe Novak and still keeps in touch with his old teammates. He’s been in the NFL Scouting Combine with the best players in college football.

“Anytime you get to be around that kind of talent, it’s fun,” he said. “I thought I did OK. I could have done better.”

If English goes as the experts predict, he will be the highest draft pick in NIU history. Higher than NFL MVP candidate Michael Turner, higher than Super-Bowl starter Ryan Diem and higher than NIU’s all-time leading rusher Garrett Wolfe -- an accomplishment that would be an honor for English.

“It would mean a lot and it would be [an] honor,” he said. “Especially with the caliber of players to come out of NIU and into the NFL.”

This article is courtesty of the Northern Star. (http://www.northernstar.info/article/6962/) For more on NIU sports, please visit www.northernstar.info/sports.

I cannot express how good it feels to have the site up and running.

While I enjoy having a site, especially one as successful as The College Football Place, it involves just a ton of work, and that workload tripled over the past few days. While a hacker may be more technically adept than I am, and they might get their thrills from seeing other people suffer, they will never be able to stop our effort or deter us for even a second from bringing everyone the best college football community on the net.

As we get back to football, I have been pretty good throughout the bowls thus far in some pretty tough games, going 7-4 against the spread. Jordan is lagging a little behind, but as we have seen throughout the season, he usually ends up on top in a big way when the final tallies are made. Jordan made his pick on this one, and it was the first thing I posted when the site came back up.

We start to hit full speed, as today is the last day for a while where we just have one college football game. So lets look a little deeper into this one and see what we find.

Independence Bowl    Independence Stadium  Shreveport, LA

Northern Illinois (6-6) vs. Louisiana Tech (7-5)

Sunday December 28, 2008    8:15 EST     The Line: Louisiana Tech -2

Overview:

For those of you tuning into this one expecting a high scoring offensive show, you may be a little disappointed. This game shapes up as a defensive struggle by two teams who like to burn the clock so with the clock rules that were changed this season this has a good chance of being the shortest college football bowl game in history.

So while this may be forever known as the game where neither the Big 12 nor the SEC, who had a bowl tie in for this game, had enough teams bowl eligible to fill the slot, this thing sets up for all kinds of dubious distinctions.

While Northern Illinois had a nice turnaround season, they never had that marquee win that many teams have and use to build on. They won just about every game one would have thought they were going to win, and lost in those games they were picked to lose. While they were slightly better against the spread (6-5), they really would like a win here to have that something extra to build on for next year.

Louisiana Tech had a nice season for a team with modest expectations, and was highlighted by winning four of their last five games to get them into this bowl. While the season started with a win against and SEC team, Mississippi State, it also included a loss to Army. Louisiana Tech appears to be a program headed in the right direction, and a win in this one should go a long way on helping them gain some ground on the elite teams in the WAC.

See Mitch's Independence Bowl College Football pick against the spread