2025 Northern Illinois Huskies football team

2025 Northern Illinois Huskies football
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Record	1–1 (0–0 MAC)
Head coach	Thomas Hammock (7th season)
Offensive coordinator	Quinn Sanders (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Rob Harley (1st season)
Home stadium	Huskie Stadium
Seasons ←  2024 2026 →

2025 Mid-American Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Bowling Green		0	–	0					1	–	0
Central Michigan		0	–	0					1	–	0
Kent State		0	–	0					1	–	0
Northern Illinois		0	–	0					1	–	1
Akron*		0	–	0					0	–	1
Ball State		0	–	0					0	–	1
Buffalo		0	–	0					0	–	1
Eastern Michigan		0	–	0					0	–	1
Miami (OH)		0	–	0					0	–	1
Ohio		0	–	0					0	–	1
Toledo		0	–	0					0	–	1
UMass		0	–	0					0	–	1
Western Michigan		0	–	0					0	–	1
Championship: December 6, 2025
* Ineligible for postseason play due to low APR score As of September 6, 2025

The 2025 Northern Illinois Huskies football team will represent Northern Illinois University in the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 2025 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Huskies are expected to be led by Thomas Hammock in his seventh year as the head coach. The Huskies play home games at Huskie Stadium, located in DeKalb, Illinois.

This will be the Huskies' last season competing in the MAC as the program will join the Mountain West Conference as football-only members beginning with the 2026 season. ^[1]

Offseason

Transfers

Outgoing

Player	Position	Destination
Akim Lanieux	WR	Arizona State
Andre Cobb	DB	Fresno State
Ethan Tierney	S	Fresno State
Ethan Hampton	QB	Illinois
Amariyun Knighten	DB	Indiana
Raishein Thomas	DE	Mississippi State
Nevaeh Sanders	DE	Mississippi State
Cam Thompson	WR	Mississippi State
Santana Banner	S	Missouri
Jalen Johnson	WR	New Hampshire
Kenny Lueth	QB	Northern Colorado
Dane Pardridge	WR	Rutgers
Luke Marble	QB	South Dakota State
Dashaun Gibson	DB	Southern Illinois
Kyle Thomas	WR	Southern Illinois
Skyler Gill-Howard	DL	Texas Tech
Trayvon Rudolph	WR	Toledo
Christian Medlock	OL	Toledo
Keyshaun Pipkin	WR	UT Martin
Isaac Hatfield	LB	UTSA
Grayson Barnes	TE	West Virginia
Cam'Ron Dabney	DB	Western Carolina
Christian Fuhrman	LB	Unknown
Chase Schutty	TE	Unknown
Jalonnie Williams	DE	Withdrawn

Incoming

Player	Position	Previous school
Andrew Glass	K	Kent State
Thomas McCoy	WR	Marshall
Keshawn Lyons	CB	McKendree
Miles Thompson	CB	Texas Tech
Alvin Gulley Jr.	DL	Yale
Chavon Wright	RB	Charleston

^{[2] [3]}

Preseason

The MAC Football Kickoff was held on Thursday, July 24, 2025 at the Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan from 9:00 am EDT to 1:30 pm EDT. ^[4]

Preseason polls

Coaches Poll

On July 24 the MAC announced the preseason coaches' poll. ^[5]

MAC Coaches poll
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Toledo	135 (7)
2	Miami	131 (3)
3	Ohio	123 (3)
4	Buffalo	115
5	Northern Illinois	94
6	Bowling Green	81
7	Western Michigan	71
8	Eastern Michigan	68
9	Central Michigan	65
10	Ball State	41
T11	Akron	39
T11	Massachusetts	39
13	Kent State	12

Coaches poll (MAC Championship)
Predicted finish	Team	Votes
1	Toledo	6
2	Miami	4
3	Ohio	3

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	2:30 p.m.	Holy Cross *	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPN+	W 19–17	10,569
September 5	6:30 p.m.	at Maryland *	SECU Stadium College Park, MD	BTN	L 9–20	35,331
September 20	3:15 p.m.	at Mississippi State *	Davis Wade Stadium Starkville, MS	SECN
September 27		San Diego State *	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL
October 4		Miami (OH)	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL
October 11		at Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium Ypsilanti, MI
October 18		at Ohio	Peden Stadium Athens, OH
October 25		Ball State	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL (Bronze Stalk Trophy)
November 5	6:00 p.m./7:00 p.m.	at Toledo	Glass Bowl Toledo, OH	ESPN2/ESPNU
November 12	6:00 p.m.	at UMass	Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium Hadley, MA	ESPN2/ESPNU/CBSSN
November 18	6:00 p.m.	Western Michigan	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPN2/ESPNU/CBSSN
November 28	11:00 a.m.	Kent State	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPNU/CBSSN
*Non-conference game All times are in Central time

^[6]

Game summaries

Holy Cross (FCS)

See also: 2025 Holy Cross Crusaders football team

Holy Cross Crusaders (FCS) (0–0) at Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Crusaders (FCS)	0	3	0	14	17
Huskies	3	3	0	13	19

at Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois

• Date: August 30
• Game time: 2:30 PM CDT
• Game attendance: 10,569
• Referee: Marcel Kerr
• TV announcers (ESPN+): Kelsie Kasper, Ryan Cavanaugh

Game information

First quarter NIU – Andrew Glass 20-yard field goal, 4:00. Huskies 3–0. Drive: 8 plays, 63 yards, 3:24. Second quarter HC – Luis Palenzuela 33-yard field goal, 3:22. Tied 3–3. Drive: 4 plays, -2 yards, 1:49. NIU – Andrew Glass 39-yard field goal, 0:10. Huskies 6–3. Drive: 12 plays, 71 yards, 3:07. Third quarter No scoring plays. Fourth quarter HC – Blake Youngblood 16-yard pass from Cal Swanson (Luis Palenzuela kick), 10:34. Crusaders 10–6. Drive: 4 plays, 77 yards, 1:27. NIU – Dev'ion Reynolds 96-yard kickoff return (Andrew Glass kick failed), 10:21. Huskies 12–10. NIU – Chavon Wright 2-yard run (Andrew Glass kick), 4:15. Huskies 19–10. Drive: 8 plays, 61 yards, 4:05. HC – Alijah Cason 97-yard kickoff return (Luis Palenzuela kick), 4:03. Huskies 19–17.

Statistics	HC	NIU
First downs	11	17
Total yards	218	289
Rushing yards	63	180
Passing yards	155	109
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	17–29–1	14–24–1
Time of possession	26:34	33:26

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Holy Cross	Passing	Cal Swanson	17/29, 155 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Cal Swanson	12 carries, 51 yards
	Receiving	Max Mosey	6 receptions, 71 yards
Northern Illinois	Passing	Josh Holst	12/18, 101 yards, INT
	Rushing	Chavon Wright	11 carries, 77 yards, TD
	Receiving	Dearee Rogers	7 receptions, 73 yards

at Maryland

See also: 2025 Maryland Terrapins football team

Northern Illinois Huskies (1–0) at Maryland Terrapins (1–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0
Terrapins	-	-	-	-	0

at SECU Stadium • College Park, Maryland

• Date: September 5
• Game time: 7:30 PM EDT
• TV announcers (BTN): Joe Beninati (play-by-play), Matt Millen (color analyst) and Kylen Mills (sideline)

Statistics	NIU	MD
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Maryland	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Mississippi State

See also: 2025 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team

Northern Illinois Huskies (1–1) vs. Mississippi State Bulldogs (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0
Bulldogs	-	-	-	-	0

at Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, Mississippi

• Date: September 20
• Game time: 3:15 PM CDT
• TV: SECN

Statistics	NIU	MSST
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Mississippi State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

San Diego State

See also: 2025 San Diego State Aztecs football team

San Diego State Aztecs (0–0) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Aztecs	-	-	-	-	0
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0

at Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois

• Date: September 27

Statistics	SDSU	NIU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
San Diego State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Miami (OH)

See also: 2025 Miami RedHawks football team

Miami RedHawks (0–0) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
RedHawks	-	-	-	-	0
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0

at Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois

• Date: October 4

Statistics	M-OH	NIU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Miami (OH)	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Eastern Michigan

See also: 2025 Eastern Michigan Eagles football team

Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) vs. Eastern Michigan Eagles (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0
Eagles	-	-	-	-	0

at Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, Michigan

• Date: October 11

Statistics	NIU	EMU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Eastern Michigan	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Ohio

See also: 2025 Ohio Bobcats football team

Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) vs. Ohio Bobcats (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0
Bobcats	-	-	-	-	0

at Peden Stadium • Athens, Ohio

• Date: October 18

Statistics	NIU	OHIO
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Ohio	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Ball State (Bronze Stalk Trophy)

See also: 2025 Ball State Cardinals football team and Bronze Stalk Trophy

Ball State Cardinals (0–0) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	-	-	-	-	0
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0

at Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois

• Date: October 25

Statistics	BALL	NIU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Ball State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at Toledo

See also: 2025 Toledo Rockets football team

Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) vs. Toledo Rockets (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0
Rockets	-	-	-	-	0

at Glass Bowl • Toledo, Ohio

• Date: November 5

Statistics	NIU	TOL
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Toledo	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

at UMass

See also: 2025 UMass Minutemen football team

Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) vs. UMass Minutemen (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0
Minutemen	-	-	-	-	0

at Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Hadley, Massachusetts

• Date: November 12
• Game time: 7:00 PM EST

Statistics	NIU	MASS
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
UMass	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Western Michigan

See also: 2025 Western Michigan Broncos football team

Western Michigan Broncos (0–0) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Broncos	-	-	-	-	0
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0

at Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois

• Date: November 18
• Game time: 6:00 PM CST

Statistics	WMU	NIU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Michigan	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

Kent State

See also: 2025 Kent State Golden Flashes football team

Kent State Golden Flashes (0–0) vs. Northern Illinois Huskies (0–0) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Flashes	-	-	-	-	0
Huskies	-	-	-	-	0

at Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, Illinois

• Date: November 28
• Game time: 11:00 AM CST

Statistics	KENT	NIU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Passing: Comp–Att–Int
Time of possession

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kent State	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving
Northern Illinois	Passing
	Rushing
	Receiving

References

1. Bonagura, Kyle (January 7, 2025). "Northern Illinois to join Mountain West as football-only in '26". ESPN . Retrieved June 29, 2025.
2. "Northern Illinois Football Transfer Portal". ON3.
3. "Northern Illinois Huskies 2025 College Football Transfer Portal". 247Sports.
4. "2025 Division I FBS Media Days". www.sportswriters.net. FWAA. Retrieved June 28, 2025.
5. "Toledo Selected as Favorite in Head Coaches Preseason Football Poll". getsomemaction.com. Mid-American Conference. July 24, 2025. Retrieved July 24, 2025.
6. "2025 Northern Illinois Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved February 13, 2025.