NIU football looking for solutions in close-game situations

July 27, 2023 at 12:00 pm
CHICAGO – Northern Illinois University will try to replicate a key quality from 2021′s MAC Championship team this season as the Huskies try to bounce back this fall.
The 2021 team made its unexpected run of an 0-6 2020 campaign because it found ways to win close games. Huskies coach Thomas Hammock has said last season’s 3-9 team was a few plays away from making a bowl game and the Huskies worked all offseason to find ways to make winning plays.
“It’s got to come from our mentality and approach,” Hammock said during NIU’s Chicago Media Day on Monday. “When the game gets tight, we need to embrace it. Two years ago we embraced those moments and guys made plays.”
The Huskies sure did. Despite being picked to finish last in the West in the conference’s preseason poll, NIU won seven games by 10 or fewer points in 2021 and earned four wins by three or fewer points. It started the season with a 22-21 win over Georgia Tech before taking down Toledo (22-20), Central Michigan (39-38) and Ball State (30-29).
The 2022 season was a different story. NIU lost five games by eight or fewer points. The Huskies lost by an average of 11.7 points per game in nine losses last season and 14 points per game in its six MAC losses.
NIU brings back a lot of players from that 2021 team that knew how to win. Some key players missed the 2022 season because of injury and the Huskies hope health can help those players be available during important moments.
“It helped a lot,” wide receiver Trayvon Rudolph said. “A majority of the guys from `21 are still here, we’re just adding the extra pieces that we needed to help out because you never know what’s going to happen.”
Players said the key to winning close games is knowing what to do in game-winning situations. The Huskies have spent time over the offseason working on different scenarios, two-minute drills that they might face in the fall.
Hammock will look toward his older players like Rudoph to lead the way both during training camp and in games.
“They just know how to play,” Hammock said of the experienced players. “We’re going to need that experience, especially early in camp to bring the young guys along as well.”
NIU’s inability to make plays in key moments stopped the Huskies from building momentum last season. The Huskies will get a good opportunity to test themselves early during the nonconference portion of the year when they play at Boston College and Nebraska.
No matter how much NIU prepares for the biggest moments of the season, the Huskies know the keys to winning more close games are pretty simple.
“What it really comes down to is being detailed and playing clean football,” quarterback Rocky Lombardi said. “But at the end of the day, a great way to get out of those is to win by more than one possession.”