NIU to host football state finals in odd years

High school football title games will be held at Northern Illinois University’s Huskie Stadium in DeKalb during odd years starting in 2013 and running through 2021.

The Illinois High School Association’s board of directors approved the state final hosting bid on Monday.

The NIU campus will be home to football title games on Thanksgiving weekends in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2021. The title games will remain at Memorial Stadium at the University of Illinois in Champaign during even years, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2018 and 2020.

The IHSA had to alter the schedule because the University of Illinois will be playing home games on Thanksgiving weekends during odd years.

Other football bids came from Southern Illinois and Illinois State.

Huskie Stadium becomes the fourth host site for the football state title games. Illinois State hosted the games from their inception in 1974 until 1998, and Illinois has been the championship home since 1999.

From 1981-1984, Northwestern University hosted the two largest class games (5A and 6A), while the 1A-4A games were played at Illinois State.

IHSA Executive Director Marty Hickman pointed out that a unique portion of Northern Illinois’ football bid that caught the attention of the IHSA staff and board.

“Athletic directors from over 100 IHSA member schools signed the bid, pledging their support for playing the games in DeKalb,” said Hickman. “Schools from as far away as Galva, Peoria Richwoods and Zion-Benton — places you don’t necessarily associate with DeKalb. It went a long way to showing us how much it meant to the entire region to have the state championships played there. Ultimately, all three football bids were extremely strong and almost interchangeable.”