The Northern Illinois University football team wrapped up its first week of spring practice Saturday with a two-hour workout in full pads in Huskie Stadium.

The practice included “live” 11-on-11 periods with the Huskie defense, which features nine returning players who started at least six games a year ago, challenging the NIU offense on every repetition.

“I like where we are,” said Thomas Hammock, who enters his sixth season as head coach at his alma mater in 2024. “The guys are really competing. We’ve had intense practices every single day. Our defense is playing at a high level, really forcing our offense to execute and play physical. It’s a battle and I really love the competition. It was a long practice today and we got a lot of reps and a lot of quality reps in.”

With 100 players on the spring roster, the focus again this spring is on developing the less experienced players who have the ability to move into a starting or back-up role, strengthening the entire roster. As a result, multiple players are receiving reps at every position throughout the practice.

“One thing we talk about a lot is developing the middle third of our football team, guys that are fighting for playing time, fighting for [a spot on] special teams and guys that may not have as much experience as guys that have started,” Hammock said. “If we can raise the floor with the middle third, that gives us an opportunity to be better as a football team. We have a lot of guys that have played, a lot of seniors that have been here and have investment in the program. We have to keep raising the floor so that we can be as good as we can be.”

With seniors making up one-third of the spring roster (34 of 100), there is no shortage of experienced players to assist the newcomers and underclassmen in making that jump. Hammock has seen the seniors and members of the Leadership Council set the tone.

“Jashon Prophete has stepped up as a leader, Nate Valcarcel has stepped up as a leader, Ethan Hampton is doing a nice job and J.J. Lippe is probably the one guy people wouldn’t think about, but he’s a guy that has really taken charge,” Hammock said. “We put a lot on our seniors, we put a lot on our Leadership Council and those guys have done a phenomenal job.”

The Huskies return to practice Tuesday morning for the fourth of 15 spring workouts. Spring practices conclude with the Spring Showcase on Saturday, April 27 at Huskie Stadium. For the complete schedule, see 2024 Spring Football Central on NIUHuskies.com.

NIU’s 2024 schedule includes six home games, five on Saturday, along with road games at Notre Dame (Sept. 7) and N.C. State (Sept. 28). Season ticket prices start at just $105 or get reserved West Side seats starting at $152. Discounts are available and parking is included. Season ticket members also receive additional benefits like invitations to special events and access to away game tickets. Go to NIUHuskies.com/myhuskies or call 815-753-PACK to create your account, renew or purchase new season tickets.