NIU loses second straight conference game 28-21 to WMU
KALAMAZOO, Michigan - Offensive and secondary struggles spelled doom Tuesday for Northern Illinois as the Huskies lost in heartbreaking fashion on the road to Western Michigan, 28-21.
Led down the field by freshman quarterback Kaleb Eleby on an 83-yard drive on its last possession, WMU (7-5, 5-3 MAC) defeated NIU (7-5, 6-2) its second straight conference defeat.
The Huskies' last-chance drive ended on an interception thrown by QB Marcus Childers, his third turnover of the day.
Eleby had connected with D'Wayne Eskridge on passes of 15 and 39 yards to put WMU in Huskies territory. A 7-yard pass to Chase Brown out of the backfield placed WMU at 3rd-and-goal from the 3, and Eleby ran the ball in on the next play.
Eleby then hit a wide-open Jayden Reed for the 2-point conversion and a 21-14 Western Michigan lead with 1:28 left in the third quarter.
NIU moved the ball 82 yards in 16 plays on its first possession of the second half, as Childers ran for 25 yards on the drive. His 20-yard completion on a Jauan Wesley deep drag to the Huskies' sideline put NIU inside of the 5, and Childers ran in the score.
Childers completed 14 of 21 passes for 156 yards and ran for 53 yards.
The Broncos' Jamauri Bogan ran 15 yards to the 1-yard line and pounded the ball in on the next play for the game-winning touchdown with 1:36 remaining.
The Broncos benefited from a targeting call on NIU's Josh Corcoran; instead of facing a long third down, the chains were moved and the Broncos' final drive continued. Corcoran will miss the first half of the MAC Championship game.
Less than a minute after WMU had taken the lead late in the third, the Huskies' Sutton Smith picked up a ball dropped by Eleby and shot toward the other end zone 85 yards for his third career fumble return for a touchdown to tie the game at 21. Smith recorded 4 sacks and 5 tackles for loss.
The early offensive struggles of NIU were laid bare to see in the cold and windy conditions at Waldo Stadium on Tuesday. WMU, in its first game after the firing of former defensive coordinator Tim Daoust, held NIU to 4.1 yards a play for the game and only 21 points after having surrendered totals of 42, 59 and 51 over its previous three games. The fewest number of points the Broncos entered having surrendered was 24 in a win over Eastern Michigan.
NIU's offensive line struggled in pass protection early as the Broncos registered 4 sacks and 9 tackles for loss in the first half alone. WMU's Ralph Holley recorded 2 sacks and 3 tackles for loss in just the first half.
After missing his initial field-goal attempt, Gavin Peddie knocked through kicks of 42 and 45 for a 13-7 Broncos lead. Bogan had scored earlier on a 2-yard touchdown for the early 7-0 WMU lead.
The Huskies answered WMU's early score after two possessions.
Childers scrambled for several seconds on NIU's second drive and found Spencer Tears running free down the Broncos sideline, as his 58-yard scoring reception marks the longest passing play for NIU since D.J. Brown's 66-yarder against Florida State. It tied the game at 7.
A Childers fumble could have proved disastrous for NIU, but Peddie missed a 36-yard field goal moments after.