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Quote:DeKALB, Ill. - Decked out in full pads for the first time this preseason and with officials on hand, the Northern Illinois Huskies went through a two-and-a-half hour practice Saturday at Huskie Stadium. The morning session left head coach Jerry Kill pleased with his team's progress through the first five days.

"After the first five practices, I feel real good about our players," Kill said. "We have put in a good portion of our offensive and defensive schemes. Our kids are in good shape, and the work they did this summer certainly helped. I think they feel good about themselves and being in good shape has allowed them to concentrate on what we're teaching."

One position that has caught Kill's attention is the offensive line, which he said as a whole has developed and played well to date.

"Even though we haven't practiced [Jason Onyebuagu] much, our offensive line as a whole is better," Kill said. "[Senior right tackle] Jon Brost has stood out, but everyone up front has improved. It's hard to single one person out."

Kill also said senior quarterback Dan Nicholson (Chicago/Brother Rice HS) has played well after sitting out the entire spring while rehabbing from shoulder surgery on his right (throwing) arm in January.

"Coming off of shoulder surgery, Dan is throwing the ball pretty well. I've had a lot of people say he looks different - his body. He's done well considering he wasn't out here at all this spring,"

Offensively, among the newcomers, tailback Me'co Brown (Moss Point, Miss./Moss Point HS) has caught the eye of not just Kill, but his teammates.

"If there is an underclassman [newcomer] who has stood out offensively, it's got to be Me'co Brown," Kill said. "When the other players know his name already and are watching him, you know he's doing something right."

Not surprisingly, senior Larry English (Aurora, Ill./Marmion Academy) has been impressive for the Huskie defense early on. English missed spring drills with a torn pectoral muscle. In addition, Kill noted that fellow senior defensive lineman Craig Rusch (Hilbert, Wisc./Hilbert HS) has been moved from tackle to end.

"Defensively, Larry English is a helluva player, I can see why he was the player of the year [in the MAC] last year," said Kill. "We've moved Craig Rusch outside, to defensive end, to try and keep him healthy. We want to keep him on the edge and we feel good with he and Larry there. We are a lot deeper on the defensive line. The three freshmen we added there look good. Adam Coleman (Bettendorf, Iowa/Bettendorf HS) is a true freshman who has come out here and who is very, very intense."

Asked about some of the key question marks going forward, Kill talked about three positions.

"We've got to establish two to three fullbacks and two to three tight ends," Kill said. "I like the way Anthony Antonacci (Naperville, Ill./Neuqua Valley HS) has looked at fullback, and our two freshmen tight ends (Dan Edem and Jason Schepler) have shown up. Defensively, we have to have some safeties grow up after we moved [Alex] Kube to linebacker."

Northern Illinois will practice Sunday as Kill changed the team's original schedule after Monday night's practice was cancelled due to weather. However, he said that practice will be less physical than Saturday's workout.

"Even though today was our first day in pads, I think the kids will tell you we've been working hard all week," Kill said. "Their shoulders are tired, they are beat down a little, so tomorrow, we'll do a lot of teaching and more individual work. We've got to look at the long haul on this.

"[The good thing is] we are reppin' a lot of players. We know with a 12-game schedule, you better have a lot of players ready. I think our practice organization has helped us work a lot of kids."

The Huskies open the 2008 season Saturday, August 30 at Minnesota with the home opener scheduled for Sept. 20 versus Indiana State. Season tickets for the 2008 campaign remain on sale through the NIU Athletic Ticket Office in the Convocation Center, on-line at http://www.niuhuskies.com or by calling 815-752-6800.