When the Northern Illinois Huskies come to town, the sport of football takes on a different form. The games are shortened by the Huskies’ ground-and-pound offense. The defenses often prevail, turning the spectacle into a low-scoring rock fight. It’s the ultimate war of attrition, and NIU has taken unsuspecting victims in these battles lately — most notably 2024 Notre Dame.
NIU forced Maryland to play this less-glamorous style of football where every point weighs heavy, but the Terrapins survived 20-9
in a Friday night showdown in College Park.
“I’m proud of the way the guys played,” Northern Illinois head coach Thomas Hammock said. “I’m proud of how they competed. They fought for four quartesr against a Big Ten opponent with a lot more resources, and they showed a lot of heart. I don’t know how many teams on our schedule will be as good as them, so we should gain some confidence.”
Neither team scored more than once in a single quarter as the Huskies held their sixth-straight opponent to 20 points or fewer, dating back to Nov. 13, 2024. The defense provided NIU ample opportunities at the upset, limiting Maryland to 19-of-36 in the passing game and stifling the Terrapins to 86 rushing yards on 28 attempts — without a single run eclipsing 11 yards.
However, the Huskies couldn’t generate enough offense itself, falling short of 20 regulation points for the fourth time in five games. The lone touchdown of the night was produced by running back Telly Johnson Jr., who flew through the gap on an inside handoff for a 74-yard sprint with 6:22 remaining in the third quarter. Northern Illinois went for two following that explosive run and an incompletion kept the deficit at 13-9.
“The thought was, we knew what we needed to win the game at that point,” Hammock said. “The book recommended to kick the extra point, but I wasn’t trying to play for a tie ballgame. I wanted to at least have an idea of what we needed. We had a good play, but we didn’t execute it to the best of our ability. My thought was, it would be a 2-point game and a field goal would position us to get the lead.”
The Huskies received two possessions with an opportunity to take the lead afterward. The first was created by free safety Jasper Beeler, who tripped Maryland true freshman quarterback Malik Washington on the NIU 12-yard line. Washington attempted to keep himself upright by using the ball as support, but laid a free pigskin down on the turf instead. Huskies defensive end Jalonnie Williams scooped it up to secure the only takeaway by either team. Armed with momentum on the road, NIU’s offense was ready to capitalize but went backward instead. The Huskies nearly surrendered a safety but instead punted on 4th and 21.
“It felt like the whole second half, we were pinned deep,” Hammock said. “Our field position wasn’t as good in the second half. That was a good defense. They were blitzing. (Maryland defensive coordinator) Ted (Monachino) did a nice job changing personnel, blitzing us, and playing coverage.”
After another series of back-and-forth punts, Maryland ultimately iced the game with 9:20 remaining on a 4th and 5 from the NIU 42. Washington’s delivery flew right over the outstretched arms of Beeler and into the hands of his target Shaleak Knotts. With no defender behind him, Knotts waltzed into the end zone to secure an insurmountable 20-9 advantage.
“We made a call on fourth down,” “We knew exactly what we were trying to do, and we have to have great eye discipline on the back end. That’s what it came down to. We have to have great eye discipline. (Washington) held the ball a long time, and the receiver was able to shake loose.”
Although the run game has been the signature of the Hammock era in DeKalb, NIU was hampered by a passing attack which produced just 91 yards. Outside of Johnson’s breakaway run, the Huskies averaged just 2.3 yards per carry — with Maryland inside linebacker David Wingate serving as the chief inhibitor with 14 tackles. The ability to convert fourth-and-shorts was a positive for the offense, however. NIU finished 4-of-6 in that department including 2-of-2 on the opening drive. The only failures involved an ambitious second quarter fake punt and a last gasp attempt with under 90 seconds remaining.
“Telly had a nice explosive play, but we need more from our running back to be honest with you,” Hammock said. “I thought that was a good defensive front. I thought they played extremely tough. We’ve got to find ways to get better really, really quickly.”
Maryland improves to 2-0 on the season after defeating Florida Atlantic and NIU in double-digit fashion. The Terrapins remain at home for another week awaiting a matchup against FCS Towson, searching for their fourth 3-0 start under seventh-year head coach Mike Locksley.
Meanwhile, Northern Illinois stumbles to 1-1 after a missed opportunity at a “Boneyard win.” The Huskies still seek their first FBS victory of the young 2025 season, and they’ll have to wait a while. After a Week 3 bye, Northern Illinois resumes action Saturday, Sept. 20, hoping to silence a cowbell concert at Mississippi State.
“We’ve got a bye week, so we have time to fix some things, take a look at film,” inside linebacker Quinn Urwiler said. “That was a great team out there and we matched up well, so we’re gonna come back and going to keep playing hard and that’s it.”
