Northern Illinois heads to Columbus, Ohio to take on the #1 ranked Buckeyes this Saturday. We went to the number one source for Buckeye football coverage to let us know what’s in store for the Huskies. For only the third time in the history of the NIU football program, the team faces the number one ranked team in the country.
For only the third time in the history of the NIU football program, the team faces the number one ranked team in the country. The 2-0 Huskies face the 2-0 Ohio State Buckeyes in Columbus at 3:30 EST. The last time NIU faced the nation’s top ranked team was back in 2006. That opponent also happened to be Ohio State.
The 2006 Huskies were easily handled by the Buckeyes 35-12. The lone bright spot for the Huskies was the stellar performance of star half back Garrett Wolfe. Wolfe rushed for 171 yards as well as an additional 114 yards receiving .
Will this years Huskie manage to do any better than the ’06 squad? I couldn’t really say – so I asked Chris Kopech @ckopech of Land Grant Holy Land, SB Nation’s Ohio State blog, how he sees this game.
Hustle Belt: Cardale Jones is a monster-sized, mobile QB with an incredibly powerful arm. If you had to scheme to defend him, would you try to force him into more throws or into more runs?
LGHL: That’s the fun thing about this Ohio State offense – just when you think you know how to defend a monster like Cardale Jones, he has a different way of beating you. Against Virginia Tech this year, his arm/cannon did the job. But go back a game before that, against Oregon, and he literally ran over Duck defenders. Jones made them pay, usually turning what would otherwise be a three-yard gain, into seven- or 10-yarders. So your questions is very difficult to answer, and I’m glad I’m not the guy on NIU’s payroll tasked with answering it.
Continue Reading: Northern Illinos Huskies vs. Ohio State Buckeyes football: Q&A with Land Grant Holy Land
