Northern Illinois — Mountain West
HC
Rob Harley · Huskie Stadium · DeKalb, IL · 23,595 cap
PPA off / def
0.05 / 0.19
2025
Class rank
#82
class of 2026
Returning PPA
44%
returning production
| 2015 |
OSU W 20–13 | Columbus |
| 2006 |
OSU W 35–12 | Columbus |
2026 schedule
2025 results (3–9)
Statistical comps — 2025 Northern Illinois's closest analogs
Nearest neighbors by z-scored success rate, explosiveness, run rate & havoc (offense + defense), 2015–25.
2025 leaders
Transfer portal — 2026 (7 in / 22 out)
| Incoming |
|---|
| Taron Dickens | QB | ← Western Carolina | ★★★ |
| Tyrese Stanley | S | ← Morehouse | ★★★ |
| Avery Jones | S | ← Lafayette | ★★★ |
| Chevy Trask Jr. | OT | ← South Carolina State | ★★★ |
| Mathias Davis | EDGE | ← Central State | ★★★ |
| Daine Hanson | OT | ← Texas-Permian Basin | |
| Mathias Smith-Davis | EDGE | ← Central State | |
Origins
Lynch ran for 1,920 yards as a quarterback in 2013 and finished third for the Heisman while taking NIU to the Orange Bowl. The 2024 team went to Notre Dame and won.
Founded 1895 · Northern Illinois State Normal School, founded for the prairie counties · first football 1899 · defined by Jordan Lynch
All-time record
All-time
324–352–4
1966–2025
Win %
47.9%
60 seasons played
Winning seasons
26
43% of seasons
By level: D-II 2–13 (1966–1968) · FBS 322–339–4 (1969–2025)
| Best seasons | W | L | Conference |
|---|
| 2013 | 12 | 2 | Mid-American |
| 2012 | 12 | 2 | Mid-American |
| 2014 | 11 | 3 | Mid-American |
| 2011 | 11 | 3 | Mid-American |
| 2010 | 11 | 3 | Mid-American |
Season records from CollegeFootballData, which is why the span starts at 1966 — that is where its coverage of this program begins, not necessarily the first year it fielded a team.
Play-calling tendencies (2025 · garbage time excluded)
| Situation | Plays | Run % | Success % | Nat'l | Avg yds | Expl % |
|---|
| 1st down | 260 | 75% |
38% | 121 of 136 | 4.7 | 8% |
| 2nd down | 210 | 63% |
28% | 136 of 136 | 4.3 | 7% |
| 3rd & short (≤3) | 39 | 79% |
49% | — | 3.7 | 5% |
| 3rd & medium (4–7) | 61 | 52% |
38% | — | 5.6 | 16% |
| 3rd & long (8+) | 57 | 39% |
18% | — | 5.8 | 11% |
| 4th down | 32 | 59% |
66% | — | 4.4 | 6% |
139 drives · 23% ended in points · 6.9 plays and 31.5 yards per drive · 0.25 PPA per drive
Success: 50% of yardage needed on 1st, 70% on 2nd, 100% on 3rd/4th. Explosive: 12+ yd rush / 16+ yd pass. National rank is shown only for 1st and 2nd down, where every team has 100+ plays; the later buckets average 18-43 and a rank there would be noise.
League leaderboard →Most valuable plays (by PPA, 2025)
| Wk | Opp | Play | Yds | PPA |
|---|
| 2 | Maryland |
Telly Johnson Jr. run for 74 yds for a TD (Two-Point Conversion failed) |
74 | 7.14 |
| 7 | Eastern Michigan |
Telly Johnson Jr. run for 80 yds for a TD (Andrew Glass KICK) |
80 | 6.39 |
| 12 | Massachusetts |
(11:52) No Huddle-Shotgun #14 J.Macon pass complete short middle to #24 E.Porter caught at… |
67 | 6.17 |
| 6 | Miami (OH) |
Lazaro Rogers run for 76 yds for a TD (Andrew Glass KICK) |
76 | 6.15 |
| 9 | Ball State |
(11:49) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush left for 53 yards gain to the BALL00 TOUC… |
53 | 5.35 |
| 13 | Western Michigan |
(11:28) No Huddle-Shotgun #45 T.Johnson Jr. rush left for 43 yards gain to the WMU00 TOUCH… |
43 | 4.97 |
| 1 | Holy Cross |
Ross Pedro run for 32 yds to the NIU 13 Ross Pedro fumbled, recovered by NIU Danny Vuckovi… |
32 | 4.13 |
| 9 | Ball State |
(06:02) No Huddle-Shotgun #15 J.Holst rush right for 36 yards gain to the BALL33 (#16 M.Mc… |
36 | 3.93 |