Northern Illinois Huskies 2016 NCAA Football Preview
NORTHERN ILLINOIS HUSKIES
MACtion – West Division
2015 Record – 8-6
ATS – 9-5
2016 MEGALOCKS Opening Power Rating Rank
West Division #2
Conference #2
2015 Recap
Well that was different. The Huskies lost six games for the first time since 2009 and ended the season in disappointing fashion losing the MAC Title game to Bowling Green and following it up with a 55-7 pasting at the hands of Boise St in the Poinsettia Bowl. However, it was not all bad. They still made their seemingly 17th straight MAC Title game in the face of an injury fiasco at QB.
2016 Preview
OFFENSE
The Huskies have all the elements on offense to challenge for another MAC Championship. QB Drew Hare is one of our favorites and is back for his senior season. Hare may not be flashy, but he gets the job done. The past two seasons he has 32 (!) TD passes to go along with only 6 (!) interceptions. In 2014, he rushed for 900 yards and 8 TDs.
The running game looks to be in great shape with both Joel Bouagnon (1,285, 18 TD) and Jordan Huff (660, 8) back in the fold. WR Kenny Golladay is a true #1 WR as last season he hauled in 73 balls for over 1,100 yards at 15.5 yards a pop.
The offensive line seems to always be good. They only return two starters this year so it is a bit of a worry. We feel confident in the Huskies’ track record, and the fact that QB Hare can make any offensive line look better.
DEFENSE
We are not as confident in the defense. Last season the Huskies finished 10th in the MAC in total defense (??) and 7th in stopping the run. This year they lose their top two tacklers from the 2015 unit and are going to have to be much better if they want to continue the tradition of MAC West crowns. The division looks tough.
MEGALOCKS MAC RESEARCH STAFF will also tell you that the Huskies have experienced a decreasing sack total for three years running (40,34,32,27) and they only return one player this season who had more than TWO sacks in 2015. However, CB Shawun Lurry had an FBS-best 9 interceptions and is a legitimate star in the secondary.
SPECIAL TEAMS
PK Christian Hagan hit 14/18 FGs last season and is a reliable option. P Jake Ambrose returns but the Huskies were last in the MAC in net punting in 2015. No comment. KR Aregeros Turner was a weapon on returns last yr averaging over 26 yards and taking two all the way for TDs.
MEGALOCKS ATS Value Rating (10) 6.0
MEGALOCKS says:
You are the champ until somebody beats you. Northern Illinois is going to have their hands full this season in their quest to make yet another MAC Title game. The non-conference schedule is sneaky tough with a road game at Wyoming at 180,000 feet above sea level to start things off followed by a real nasty one at South Florida. Then they get one of the Mountain West’s best squads (San Diego St) at home in DeKalb.
Overall, we give the HUSKIES a 6.0 ATS Value Rating (Above Average) this season. The Northern Illinois Huskies are tougher than a $4 steak. We do have some concerns regarding the offensive line and the defense but this is a winning program that still has a lot of talent returning in 2016. Rod Carey has done a good job ATS compiling a 24-19 record vs the point spread. The Huskies may slip a bit under the radar as hard as that is to believe and we expect them to deliver the goods ATS more often than not.
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Website
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News
http://bleacherreport.com/northern-illinois-football
http://www.sbnation.com/college-football/teams/northern-illinois-huskies
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