Where: Huskie Stadium (24,000), DeKalb, Ill.
Television/Radio: CBSSN/980, 1450
Series: Miami leads, 10-9. The teams are 4-4 at NIU.
Last meeting: Miami scored 20 points in the second half to come from behind and edge the Huskies, 27-24, on Oct. 19, 2019, in Oxford. Brett Gabbert threw for 273 yards and a touchdown, Jalen Walker caught seven passes for 138 yards, Jaylon Bester ran for two touchdowns and Ryan McWood made 14 tackles.
Coaches: Miami’s Chuck Martin is 43-58 in nine seasons at Miami and 117-64 in 15 overall season; Northern Illinois’s Thomas Hammock is 17-25 in four seasons with the Huskies and same overall.
Local connection: 6-foot-4, 251-pound redshirt-senior tight end Miles Joiner (Vandalia Butler) is on he Huskies’ roster
Miami: Rushing – 5-foot-7, 179-pound sophomore RB Keyon Mozee, 106 carries, 455 yards, 2 TD; Passing – 6-foot, 205 fourth-year junior QB Brett Gabbert, 74-of-115, 816 yards, 4 TD, 0 INT; Receiving – 5-11, 190 redshirt senior WR Mac Hippenhammer, 41 catches, 551 yards, 7 TD; Tackles – 6-2, 221 senior MLB Ryan McWood, 99 tackles, 39 solo.
Northern Illinois: Rushing – 5-10, 192-pound sophomore RB Harrison Waylee, 152 carries, 863 yards, 5 TD; Passing – 6-3, 204 redshirt-freshman QB Ethan Hampton, 72-of-122, 798 yards, 7 TD, 6 INT; 6-2, 195 redshirt-senior WR Cole Tucker, 41 catches, 599 yards, 4 TD; Tackles – 6-3, 208 sophomore LB Daveren Rayner, 71 tackles, 30 solo.
Next game: Miami hosts Ball State in the annual “Redbird Rivalry” in a 7 p.m. game on Tuesday; Northern Illinois wraps up its season with a home game against Akron.
Hammock after Northern Illinois’s gutsy 24-21 road win over Western Michigan last Wednesday: “I’m so proud for the players, so proud of the coaches. They stayed committed to the process. They gave the players a chance to win, and the players went out and executed. I think that shows what type of team we are, the character of the young men in our program, and we’re going to continue to move forward.”
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