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No bowl game too small or far away for NIU

November 19, 2004
BY JOE GODDARD Staff Reporter
<a href='http://www.suntimes.com/output/campus/cst-spt-niu19.html' target='_blank'>http://www.suntimes.com/output/campus/cst-...-spt-niu19.html</a>



Mobile, Ala., Detroit, San Jose, Calif. You name the place, Northern Illinois will find it -- as long as its football team is in a bowl game.

The Huskies haven't gone to a bowl in 21 years, since coach Bill Mallory's 10-2 "bunch of overachievers'' beat Cal State-Fullerton 20-13 in the 1983 California Bowl in Fresno.

"Think of it, 21 years,'' NIU athletic director Jim Phillips said. "I was just a pup then, but I know enough to know that's a long time. This team deserves to go as much as last year's team, which didn't get to go.''

The Huskies were squeezed out of the bowl picture last season despite going 10-2 with victories against Alabama, Maryland and Iowa State. They take a 7-3 record into their regular-season finale Saturday at Eastern Michigan.

"Who's to say where we'll be going this year?'' NIU coach Joe Novak said. "But we won't be going anywhere if we don't win at Eastern Michigan.''

The Huskies might be going to Mobile for the GMAC Bowl on Dec. 22 or to Detroit for the Motor City Bowl on Dec. 27 -- or possibly to San Jose for the Silicon Valley Classic on Dec. 27. That game opened up for a Mid-American Conference school this week because the Pac-10 will not be able to fill all seven of its bowl tie-ins.

"Going all the way out to California with our entire team, coaching staff, band and cheerleaders would cost us financially,'' Phillips said, "but we'd find a way to get it done for the exposure for our players, institution and conference, for our great fans and for our recruiting.

"The earlier we find out where we'd be going, the better, so our fans could make plans. Knowing them like we do, they'll find a way to get a bowl game into their schedules.''

All this, of course, depends on the Huskies beating the host Eagles on Saturday. If they do, and Bowling Green defeats Toledo on Tuesday, then NIU will represent the West Division in the MAC title game Dec. 2 in Detroit.

Novak said he is ready to go anywhere for a bowl.

"When I was assisting at Indiana, a trustee told me: 'If you're invited to a bowl, go. You can't beat that exposure and experience,''' Novak said.

"Do we think we should have gone to a bowl last year? Absolutely. But everything was preassigned before the season even started. I don't think that's right. The seventh-place team in the Big Ten, for example, is assured a bowl if it goes 6-5. We went 10-2 against some quality programs, and we didn't go.

"Sooner or later, something is going to have to be done to change that. It used to be bowl opponents were decided after the season. Let's get back to that. I'm just a coach, but somebody out there has to come up with a solution to make things fair for everybody.''

DiehardHuskie Wrote:No bowl game too small or far away for NIU

November 19, 2004
BY JOE GODDARD Staff Reporter
<a href='http://www.suntimes.com/output/campus/cst-spt-niu19.html' target='_blank'>http://www.suntimes.com/output/campus/cst-...-spt-niu19.html</a>



Mobile, Ala., Detroit, San Jose, Calif. You name the place, Northern Illinois will find it -- as long as its football team is in a bowl game.

The Huskies haven't gone to a bowl in 21 years, since coach Bill Mallory's 10-2 "bunch of overachievers'' beat Cal State-Fullerton 20-13 in the 1983 California Bowl in Fresno.

"Think of it, 21 years,'' NIU athletic director Jim Phillips said. "I was just a pup then, but I know enough to know that's a long time. This team deserves to go as much as last year's team, which didn't get to go.''

The Huskies were squeezed out of the bowl picture last season despite going 10-2 with victories against Alabama, Maryland and Iowa State. They take a 7-3 record into their regular-season finale Saturday at Eastern Michigan.

"Who's to say where we'll be going this year?'' NIU coach Joe Novak said. "But we won't be going anywhere if we don't win at Eastern Michigan.''

The Huskies might be going to Mobile for the GMAC Bowl on Dec. 22 or to Detroit for the Motor City Bowl on Dec. 27 -- or possibly to San Jose for the Silicon Valley Classic on Dec. 27. That game opened up for a Mid-American Conference school this week because the Pac-10 will not be able to fill all seven of its bowl tie-ins.

"Going all the way out to California with our entire team, coaching staff, band and cheerleaders would cost us financially,'' Phillips said, "but we'd find a way to get it done for the exposure for our players, institution and conference, for our great fans and for our recruiting.

"The earlier we find out where we'd be going, the better, so our fans could make plans. Knowing them like we do, they'll find a way to get a bowl game into their schedules.''

All this, of course, depends on the Huskies beating the host Eagles on Saturday. If they do, and Bowling Green defeats Toledo on Tuesday, then NIU will represent the West Division in the MAC title game Dec. 2 in Detroit.

Novak said he is ready to go anywhere for a bowl.

"When I was assisting at Indiana, a trustee told me: 'If you're invited to a bowl, go. You can't beat that exposure and experience,''' Novak said.

"Do we think we should have gone to a bowl last year? Absolutely. But everything was preassigned before the season even started. I don't think that's right. The seventh-place team in the Big Ten, for example, is assured a bowl if it goes 6-5. We went 10-2 against some quality programs, and we didn't go.

"Sooner or later, something is going to have to be done to change that. It used to be bowl opponents were decided after the season. Let's get back to that. I'm just a coach, but somebody out there has to come up with a solution to make things fair for everybody.''

I agree with what he said about the bowl system, in fact during this season i changed my views from pro playoff to pro bowl.

The reason is simple i was watching a memphis game and the announcers said something interesting, the Memphis coach was in favor of playoffs till he went to a bowl. The excitement a bowl win provided his team was like winning a national title, and can we argue there? If we go to a bowl and win i'm going to party like we just be OU in the National title game. I say keep the bowls, but change the system.

I love bowl games. I would like to see perhaps a playoff of the top 4 teams to determine the national champion, but keep the rest of the bowls.

I disagree that there are too many bowls, just too many NON-bowl worthy teams taking up those slots.

Did anyone else besides me sense an interesting tone to this article? I am sensing from Joe's comments that he feels we will be in a bowl if we beat EMU. Do you think they know something?

The bowls should devise some sort of drafting method to fill slots and create match-ups, rather than having pre-determined conference affiliations. They could do a "Selection Sunday" show like the basketball tourney does.

Quote: The bowls should devise some sort of drafting method to fill slots and create match-ups, rather than having pre-determined conference affiliations. They could do a "Selection Sunday" show like the basketball tourney does.

Interesting idea. Of course the Bowls would have to be divided in to tiers or classes, since all bowls are not created equal.

I kind of settle for the plan we have now. I know it's not perfect, but I have yet to see a viable alternative. Keep trying though.

Bowls are not just about team pride, they are also about conference pride. Something that does not exist in the NFL. Conference tie-ins help preserve that. It's a way of saying, "Hey, Conference USA! I bet our best team can beat your best team." Or "Hey Big Ten! I bet if you put one of the best MAC teams against a halfway decent Big Ten team, the MAC team would win." Our automatic bowl tie-ins get to prove this on a regular basis, in case anyone thinks BGSU over NU was just a fluke.

I therefore hope that all three or four MAC teams win their bowls this post-season, even though I am getting really tired of cheering for Bowling Green.

I sensed and read something into Phillip's comments at coaches corner yesterday. I suspect there have been conversations between MAC, NIU and bowl officials in the event certain games have outcomes favorbale to the Huskies. AD said something like "... there is alot of football yet to be played by NIU this year.."

It does offer a glimmer of hope as well as an incentive for players to perform their best tomorrow.

Dog Fan Wrote:Did anyone else besides me sense an interesting tone to this article? I am sensing from Joe's comments that he feels we will be in a bowl if we beat EMU. Do you think they know something?

He said something on Inside Huskie Sports yesterday that made me think the same thing. I think we have an invite to a bowl if we beat EMU no matter what Bg/Toledo do.

talking to a player left me with the same impression---the player was told for xmas the families should come to them --meaning where ever they were--he also said he felt as if the coaches "know something"--as far as players know practices are schueduled thur wed.

Please, please, please make it the SVB and NOT the GMAC .........

Why don't we have a "praying" icon?!