Novak leaves a legacy second to none at NIU

DEKALB -- When Joe Novak was introduced as Northern Illinois' 19th coach on Dec. 22, 1995, it wouldn't be too dramatic to suggest he took over a program worse than having no program at all.

In addition to inheriting a 3-8 team that wrapped up the Charlie Sadler era with a 45-point loss at not-so-mighty Louisiana Tech, Novak inherited a roster weighted down by bad actors.

The no-nonsense Novak kicked off more than the usual number of holdovers, including one guy who returned to the practice field and attacked Novak before fleeing when players and assistants went after him.

While that misguided passion was bad, the rest of the world's disinterest in NIU football was worse.

Few fans attended the games -- and fewer still bothered to donate to the football program.

The biggest donor -- the BIGGEST donor -- kicked in $5,000 per year.

To understand just how far NIU football advanced during Novak's 12 years at the helm, you simply needed to experience the environment Monday afternoon when he announced his retirement.

He stood in front of a grateful standing-room-only crowd in the McCareins Meeting Room, which was funded by a $250,000 donation from Naperville's Justin McCareins, one of Novak's first NIU recruits and NFL draftees.

And the 150-seat McCareins Room, it should be noted, represents just one of the many showpieces in the $14 million Yordon Center, which was triggered by a $2.5 million donation from Jeffrey Yordon -- a two-year letterman from the mid-1960s who didn't bother reconnecting with his alma mater until he and Novak hit it off in 2002.

"I can't tell you what a great facility we have here," Novak said. "I've had a lot of pro scouts come through in the last three months. And every one of them said, 'Joe, it's as good as there is. Not in the MAC, but anywhere.' "

The stylish bricks, windows, study tables and workout facilities aren't going anywhere any time soon, but the mortar for this fancy infrastructure was provided by Novak's revitalization of the program.

Before his arrival, the Huskies had never been ranked in the national Top 25. They had beaten just one Top 25 foe in their first 27 seasons of Division I football and played in just one bowl.

During Novak's time, NIU knocked off three Top 25 teams in a six-game stretch, climbed as high as No. 10 in the Bowl Championship Series rankings and played in two bowls.

And he did it his way, though if he could do it over again he would skip the part where the Huskies lost 23 games in a row while their youngsters such as McCareins matured.

"I don't recommend that to anybody," he said. "I know in 1998, I started to tell (my wife) Carole, 'Start looking for boxes. We need to be packing up here shortly.' "

But NIU stuck with Novak and was repaid 10-fold.

"Joe Novak embodies everything that's right about college athletics. He just does," said athletic director Jim Phillips, who acted like the most somber person in the room because of Novak's decision.

"Anybody that's met him for 10 minutes understands that. Coach Novak's leaving a legacy. That's pretty amazing."

That's why it makes all the sense in the world to bring in a member from Novak's coaching tree to carry on the job.

There's certainly no shortage of fruit from which to choose:

Stanford defensive coordinator Scott Shafer. Purdue assistant head coach Mark Hagen. Indiana offensive coordinator Matt Canada. Michigan State defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi. LSU defensive backs coach Doug Mallory. Louisville defensive backs coach Mike Mallory. Michigan State line coach Dan Roushar.

While admittedly biased toward his former and current assistants, Novak just has two words for whoever replaces him.

"Be yourself," he said. "Be yourself. And enjoy it."