2016 Northern Illinois Huskies football team

2016 Northern Illinois Huskies football
2016 Northern Illinois Huskies football
Conference	Mid-American Conference
	West Division
Record	5–7 (5–3 MAC)
Head coach	Rod Carey (4th season);
Offensive coordinator	Mike Uremovich (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Kevin Kane (1st season)
MVP	Kenny Golladay
Captain	Sean Folliard, Kenny Golladay, Jamaal Payton, Corey Thomas
Home stadium	Huskie Stadium
	Seasons ← 2015 2017 →

2016 Mid-American Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Ohio xy	6	–	2	8	–	6
Miami (OH) x	6	–	2	6	–	7
Akron	3	–	5	5	–	7
Bowling Green	3	–	5	4	–	8
Kent State	2	–	6	3	–	9
Buffalo	1	–	7	2	–	10
West Division
No. 15 Western Michigan xy$	8	–	0	13	–	1
Toledo	6	–	2	9	–	4
Northern Illinois	5	–	3	5	–	7
Eastern Michigan	4	–	4	7	–	6
Central Michigan	3	–	5	6	–	7
Ball State	1	–	7	4	–	8
Championship: Western Michigan 29, Ohio 23
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

The 2016 Northern Illinois Huskies football team represented Northern Illinois University as a member of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Rod Carey, the Huskies compiled an overall record of 5–7 with a mark of 5–3 in conference play, placing third in the MAC's West Division. The team played home games at Huskie Stadium in DeKalb, Illinois.

Preseason

For the second straight year, the Huskies were picked to finish third in the division in 2016 in the poll released during the 2016 MAC Media Day at Ford Field in Detroit.^[1]

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 3	9:30 p.m.	at War Memorial Stadium Laramie, WY	CBSSN	L 34–40 ^3OT	18,483
September 10	6:30 p.m.	at South Florida*	Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL	CBSSN	L 17–48	36,557
September 17	2:30 p.m.	San Diego State*	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	CBSSN	L 28–42	14,513
September 24	2:30 p.m.	No. 13 Western Illinois*	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPN3	L 23–28	15,496
October 1	2:30 p.m.	at Ball State	Scheumann Stadium Muncie, IN (Bronze Stalk Trophy)	ASN	W 31–24	7,249
October 8	5:30 p.m.	at Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium Kalamazoo, MI	CBSSN	L 30–45	28,042
October 15	2:30 p.m.	Central Michigan	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPN3	L 28–34 ^3OT	8,495
October 22	2:30 p.m.	Buffalo	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPN3	W 44–7	11,801
November 1	7:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPNU	W 45–20	4,790
November 9	7:00 p.m.	vs. Toledo	Guaranteed Rate Field Chicago, IL (Huskie Chi–Town Showdown)	ESPN2	L 24–31	10,180	^[2]
November 16	7:00 p.m.	at Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium Ypsilanti, MI	ESPNU	W 31–24 ^OT	15,603
November 25	11:00 a.m.	at Kent State	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	CBSSN	W 31–21	4,450
*Non-conference game Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[3]^[4]

Game summaries

Wyoming

NIU at Wyoming

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	3OT	Total
NIU	7	6	7	7	0	7	0	34
• Wyoming	3	10	14	0	0	7	6	40

Date: September 3, 2016
Location:
Laramie, WY
Game start: 10:20 p.m.
Elapsed time: 4:14
Game attendance: 18,483
Game weather: Temperature: 57 °F (14 °C) • Wind: SSE 10 mph • Weather: Mostly cloudy
Referee: Kevin Hassell
TV announcers (CBSSN): Dwayne Ballen (play-by-play), Adam Archuleta (analyst), Cassie McKinney (sideline)

The Cowboys beat the Huskies in triple overtime, 40–34. NIU quarterback Drew Hare went 24-for-39 for 327 yards, with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Receiver Kenny Golladay gained 144 yards on 10 catches with one touchdown and got 82 yards and another touchdown rushing. However, the Huskies had 12 penalties for 108 yards. The game was scheduled to start at 8:30 p.m. Mountain Time, but began almost two hours late due to lightning. The game ended at 2:35 a.m. MT, which was 3:35 a.m. for NIU fans back in Illinois.^[5]^[6]

South Florida

NIU at South Florida

	1	2	3	4	Total
NIU	0	7	0	10	17
• South Florida	14	13	14	7	48

Date: September 10, 2016
Location:
Tampa, FL
Game start: 7:08 p.m. ET
Elapsed time: 3:35
Game attendance: 36,557
Game weather: Temperature: 88 °F (31 °C) • Wind: E 5 mph • Weather: Mostly cloudy
Referee: Tom Stapleton
TV announcers (CBSSN): Dwayne Ballen (play-by-play), Corey Chavous (analyst)

San Diego State

San Diego State at NIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
• San Diego State	14	14	0	14	42
NIU	0	7	14	7	28

Date: September 17, 2016
Location:
DeKalb, IL
Game start: 2:37 p.m.
Elapsed time: 3:40
Game attendance: 14,513
Game weather: Temperature: 78 °F (26 °C) • Wind: W 15 mph • Weather: Partly sunny
Referee: Scott Campbell
TV announcers (CBSSN): Ben Holden (play-by-play), Jay Feely (analyst)

Western Illinois

Western Illinois at NIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Western Illinois	14	0	14	0	28
NIU	0	7	0	16	23

Date: September 24, 2016
Location:
Huskie Stadium
DeKalb, IL
Game start: 2:30 p.m.
Elapsed time: 3:24
Game attendance: 15,496
Game weather: Temperature: 74 °F (23 °C) • Wind: E 9 mph • Weather: Cloudy
Referee: Ron Hudson
Television network: ESPN3

Ball State

NIU at Ball State
Bronze Stalk Trophy

	1	2	3	4	Total
• NIU	10	14	0	7	31
Ball State	10	7	0	7	24

Date: October 1, 2016
Location:
Muncie, IN
Game start: 3:36 p.m. EDT
Elapsed time: 3:21
Game attendance: 7,249
Game weather: Temperature: 63 °F (17 °C) • Wind: WSW 8 mph • Weather: Overcast with showers
Referee: Timothy O'Dey
Television network: ASN/ESPN3

Western Michigan

NIU at Western Michigan

	1	2	3	4	Total
NIU	0	17	6	7	30
• Western Michigan	14	7	10	14	45

Date: October 8, 2016
Location:
Kalamazoo, MI
Game start: 6:35 p.m. EDT
Elapsed time: 3:41
Game attendance: 28,042
Game weather: Temperature: 56 °F (13 °C) • Wind: 10 mph • Weather: Clear
Referee: Larry Smith
TV announcers (CBSSN): Ben Holden (play-by-play), Jay Feely (analyst)

Central Michigan

Central Michigan at NIU

	1	2	3	4	OT	2OT	3OT	Total
• Central Michigan	0	14	0	7	0	7	6	34
NIU	0	7	7	7	0	7	0	28

Date: October 15, 2016
Location:
Huskie Stadium
DeKalb, IL
Game start: 2:30 p.m. CDT
Elapsed time: 3:33
Game attendance: 8,495
Game weather: Temperature: 69 °F (21 °C) • Wind: S 20 mph • Weather: Cloudy
Referee: Ron Hudson
Television network: ESPN3

Buffalo

Buffalo at NIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
Buffalo	0	7	0	0	7
• NIU	10	20	7	7	44

Date: October 22, 2016
Location:
Huskie Stadium
DeKalb, IL
Game start: 2:30 p.m. CDT
Elapsed time: 3:12
Game attendance: 11,801
Game weather: Temperature: 58 °F (14 °C) • Wind: S 14 mph • Weather: Mostly cloudy
Referee: Greg Sujack
Television network: ESPN3

Bowling Green

Bowling Green at NIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bowling Green	7	6	7	0	20
• NIU	14	10	14	7	45

Date: November 1, 2016
Location:
Huskie Stadium
DeKalb, IL
Game start: 7:00 p.m. CDT
Elapsed time: 3:31
Game attendance: 4,790
Game weather: Temperature: 66 °F (19 °C) • Wind: SSW 5 mph • Weather: Clear
Referee: Mark Kluczynski
Television network: ESPNU

Toledo

Toledo at NIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
• Toledo	0	3	14	14	31
NIU	7	7	7	3	24

Date: November 9, 2016
Location:
Chicago, IL
Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST
Elapsed time: 3:39
Game attendance: 10,180
Game weather: Temperature: 51 °F (11 °C) • Wind: W 5 mph • Weather: Clear
Referee: Larry Smith
Television network: ESPN2

The Huskies lost to the Rockets 31–24. The loss eliminated Northern Illinois from bowl game eligibility, ending their conference-record streak of eight straight bowl games. NIU had beaten Toledo in their six previous matchups. This was the first football game ever played at Guaranteed Rate Field, the recently-renamed stadium of the Chicago White Sox.^[7]

Eastern Michigan

NIU at Eastern Michigan

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
• NIU	0	0	17	7	7	31
Eastern Michigan	14	7	0	3	0	24

Date: November 16, 2016
Location:
Ypsilanti, MI
Game start: 7:02 p.m. CST
Elapsed time: 3:54
Game attendance: 15,603
Game weather: 46 F Wind: N 5 MPH, Weather: Clear
Referee: Ron Hudson
TV announcers (ESPNU): Kevin Brown (play-by-play), Craig Haubert (analyst)

Kent State

NIU at Kent State

	1	2	3	4	Total
• NIU	7	0	10	14	31
Kent State	0	7	7	7	21

Date: November 25, 2016
Location:
Kent, OH
Game start: TBA

Postseason awards

All-MAC

Team	Player	Position	Year
1st	Max Scharping	OL	SO
	Kenny Golladay	WR	SR
	Aregeros Turner	Return Spec.	SR
2nd	Levon Myers	OL	SR
	Joel Bouagnon	RB	SR
	Shawun Lurry	DB	JR

^[8]

References

^ "Huskies Third in MAC Preseason Poll - The Official Website of Northern Illinois Athletics". niuhuskies.com. Retrieved August 1, 2016.
^ "2016 NIU-Toledo Game to be played at U.S. Cellular Field". FB Schedules. February 17, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2016.
^ "NIU 2016 Football Schedule Set". The Northern Illinois Official Athletic Site. February 22, 2016. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
^ "2016 Northern Illinois Huskies Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved March 21, 2016.
^ Helfgot, Mike (September 4, 2016). "NIU Comes Up Empty after Lightning Delay, 3 OTs, 3:35 a.m. Finish". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
^ Severson, Jesse (September 5, 2016). "NIU Football: 'Too Many Mistakes' Doom Huskies in 3OT Loss at Wyoming". Daily Chronicle. DeKalb. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
^ Helfgot, Mike (November 9, 2016). "Northern Illinois Out of Bowl Contention after Loss to Toledo at Sox Park". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
^ "MAC Announces 2016 All-MAC Teams and Postseason Awards". Mid-American Conference. Retrieved June 21, 2017.

[1] "Huskies Third in MAC Preseason Poll - The Official Website of Northern Illinois Athletics". niuhuskies.com. Retrieved August 1, 2016.

[2] "2016 NIU-Toledo Game to be played at U.S. Cellular Field". FB Schedules. February 17, 2016. Retrieved March 20, 2016.

[3] "NIU 2016 Football Schedule Set". The Northern Illinois Official Athletic Site. February 22, 2016. Retrieved March 21, 2016.

[4] "2016 Northern Illinois Huskies Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved March 21, 2016.

[5] Helfgot, Mike (September 4, 2016). "NIU Comes Up Empty after Lightning Delay, 3 OTs, 3:35 a.m. Finish". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 7, 2016.

[6] Severson, Jesse (September 5, 2016). "NIU Football: 'Too Many Mistakes' Doom Huskies in 3OT Loss at Wyoming". Daily Chronicle. DeKalb. Retrieved September 7, 2016.

[7] Helfgot, Mike (November 9, 2016). "Northern Illinois Out of Bowl Contention after Loss to Toledo at Sox Park". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 13, 2016.

[8] "MAC Announces 2016 All-MAC Teams and Postseason Awards". Mid-American Conference. Retrieved June 21, 2017.

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v t e Northern Illinois Huskies football
Venues	Glidden Field (1903–1948, 1951–1965) Dekalb Township High School football field (1949–1950) Huskie Stadium (1965–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Ball State: Bronze Stalk Trophy
Culture & lore	"Huskie Fight Song" Huskie Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
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National championship seasons in bold