The Northern Illinois University Huskies jumped out to a 19-0 lead in the first quarter as they toppled Central Michigan, 24-16, on Senior Day Saturday (Nov. 30) at Huskie Stadium. The Huskies held the Chippewas to just 204 yards of total offense, including just 51 in the second half.

Obviously we guaranteed ourselves a winning season,” said NIU head coach Thomas Hammock as the Huskies improved to 7-5 with the win. “We did what we needed to do to win the game. There’s no such thing as a bad win. We were going to be aggressive; we were not going to leave anything behind. We tried to give ourselves a chance to maximize our scoring.

“The defense was outstanding. What a great show by our defense to go out there and shine. On offense, we played clean football tonight. No turnovers, while the defense got two turnovers. We had some chances, and we have to make sure to capitalize on those chances.”

Ethan Hampton (Elburn, Ill./Aurora Christian) was 19-of-29 passing for 169 yards, connecting with Trayvon Rudolph (Crete, Ill./Crete-Monee) for nine receptions for 97 yards. Telly Johnson Jr. (Augusta, Ga./Hephzibah) ran for a game-high 84 yards on 20 carries while senior Gavin Williams (Altoona, Iowa/Dowling Catholic/Iowa) ran for 65 yards on six carries and caught three passes for 26 yards.

After the Huskie defense forced a three-and-out on the opening possession of the game, NIU went 66 yards in six plays, capped by a 24-yard touchdown run around the left side by Williams to take a 6-0 lead.

Another three-and-out from the NIU defense and a Central Michigan punt of just 15 yards gave the Huskies a short field for their second drive of the contest.

Starting at the Chippewa 36, NIU needed just five plays to reach the end zone as Hampton faked a handoff up the middle before racing 16 yards for a touchdown, giving NIU a 12-0 lead with 6:55 to play in the opening quarter. Hampton’s score was his second rushing touchdown of the season.

Following a third consecutive three-and-out by Central Michigan to start the game, NIU found the end zone again as Johnson scored from four yards out. Hampton connected with Rudolph for a spectacular over-the-shoulder catch for 48 yards on the opening play of the drive and, three plays later, Johnson was in the end zone as NIU led 19-0.

Central Michigan gained just 37 yards in the first quarter compared to 153 for the Huskies.

The visitors got on the scoreboard in the second quarter as Jadyn Glasser found Jesse Prewitt III for a three-yard touchdown to finish a 72-yard drive. The Chippewa extra point was blocked by Cade Hoberman (Blair, Neb./Westside) and scooped up by JaVaughn Byrd (Milwaukee, Wis./Rufus King) who took it the distance for two points, giving NIU a 19-6 lead with 13:44 left in the second quarter.

CMU added a 40-yard field goal and a second Glassner to Prewitt touchdown pass, this time for six yards, as the Chippewas trimmed the NIU advantage to 21-16 at halftime.

On the opening drive of the second half, the Huskies methodically went 66 yards in 17 plays, using nearly nine minutes before Kanon Woodill (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) converted a 26-yard field goal attempt to give NIU a 24-16 lead.

The NIU defense shut out Central Michigan in the second half as the Huskies forced a pair of turnovers, a third quarter fumble recovery by Nate Valcarcel (Greenfield, Wis./Whitnall/South Dakota) and a fourth quarter interception from Jacob Finley (Birmingham, Ala./Hoover), to hold on for the 24-16 victory.

“I was desperate for a victory for our seniors because of how much they put into the program,” said Hammock, as a school record 30 seniors were honored prior to the game. “I love those guys. They’ve done a lot. We’ve all grown together so to get the win was extremely important today.”

Santana Banner (Flint, Mich./Mountain View [Ga.]) finished with a team-high seven tackles. Seniors Demond Taylor Jr. (East St. Louis, Ill./East St. Louis) and Devonte O’Malley (Midlothian, Ill./Bremen) each had a pair of tackles for loss.

NIU will now await its bowl destination which will be announced on Sunday, December 8. Follow NIUHuskies.com and NIU social media channels for more information on tickets for the bowl game.

NIU POSTGAME NOTES

• Cade Haberman recorded his third blocked kick of the season, the most blocked kicks in a season for a Huskie since Jimmie Ward blocked three punts in 2010.  It is the most blocked placekicks in a season by a NIU player since Quince Holman blocked four kicks (2 PATs and 2 FGs) in 2005.
• NIU’s two-point defensive PAT by JaVaughn Byrd was the third in NIU history and the first since Jalen McKie’s two-point return versus Akron on November 1, 2018.
• Trayvon Rudolph’s nine catches were a season-high and the most for the senior receiver since his 14-catch game versus Kent State in 2021.
• Trayvon Rudolph surpassed the 2,000-yard mark in career receiving on Saturday and now has 2,047 to rank eighth at NIU all-time in receiving yards.  He also is now ninth at NIU all-time in career receptions with 151.  Next is tie for 7^th (155)
• Grayson Barnes has now caught a pass in 14 straight games dating back to the final regular season game of 2023. He has at least one catch in every game this season.
• NIU held an opponent scoreless in the second half for the third time this season (Bowling Green, Akron, Central Michigan).