College Sports

College football preview: W. Michigan at NIU

Posted October 14, 2011 12:00 am

By Mike McGraw

mmcgraw@dailyherald.com

Western Michigan (4-2, 2-0) at Northern Illinois (3-3, 1-1)

When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Huskie Stadium

TV: Comcast SportsNet

Radio: WSCR 670-AM, WLBK 1360-AM.

Series: WMU leads 23-13. NIU won 28-21 last season.

Coaches: Dave Doeren (3-3, first year at NIU); Bill Cubit (44-35, seventh year at WMU).

Players to watch: Western Michigan WR Jordan White ranks third in the nation in receiving yards and has at least 10 catches in four straight games. Western QB Alex Carder has a slight edge over NIU’s Chandler Harnish for the MAC lead in total offense (299 yards to 297.7). ... Northern Illinois LB Ron Newcomb had 4½ tackles for loss and blocked a field goal in last week’s win over Kent State.

The skinny: This is a huge game for Northern Illinois and it could go a long way toward deciding the MAC West title, where NIU, WMU and Toledo appear to be the top contenders. Logic suggests a high-scoring contest, since both teams are averaging more than 30 points per game. The difference is, NIU is second in the MAC in rushing offense, while Western Michigan ranks first in passing offense.

Fast fact: NIU has won 12 straight games at Huskie Stadium.

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