March 1, 2007

DeKALB, Ill. - The Northern Illinois football team has played its share of Big Ten teams during Head Coach Joe Novak's 11-year tenure at the school, with games against Northwestern, Michigan, Ohio State and Iowa filling the Huskies' non-conference schedule. So the addition of Big Ten foe Wisconsin to the 2007 NIU schedule, while noteworthy, is not unusual.

However, the Northern Illinois-Wisconsin series announced Thursday by the universities includes a 2009 visit by the Badgers to Huskie Stadium, marking the first time in school history that a Big Ten opponent will face the Huskies on the NIU campus in DeKalb.

The three-game series begins Oct. 20, 2007 when Northern Illinois travels to Madison, Wisc. to play its second Big Ten opponent of the season. The Huskies open the 2007 campaign versus Iowa at Chicago's Soldier Field on Sept. 1. Wisconsin will play in DeKalb on Oct. 24, 2009 before NIU makes a return trip to Camp Randall Stadium on Sept. 17, 2011.

"I want to thank [Wisconsin Athletic Director] Barry Alvarez, [Mid-American Conference Commissioner] Rick Chryst and [Big Ten Commissioner] Jim Delaney for all of their efforts in making this series possible," said Northern Illinois Associate Vice President/Athletic Director Jim Phillips. "To be certain, Wisconsin is a marquis program nationally and it is a historic moment for us to bring a team of their caliber to Huskie Stadium.

"Since arriving at Northern Illinois, one of our goals has been to upgrade our home football schedule," he continued. "Now, with Iowa at Soldier Field in 2007, Navy coming to Huskie Stadium in 2008 and Wisconsin visiting DeKalb in 2009, we certainly feel good about fulfilling that aspiration."

Novak, who enters his 12th season at the helm of the NIU football program in 2007, anticipates great excitement about the series with the Badgers.

"We have said all along that playing Big Ten teams is great for our program," Novak said. "To get Wisconsin to play in DeKalb in 2009 is awesome for our fans, our team and our community. This is quite a coup by Jim [Phillips] to get this done and to bring a team with their history of success to DeKalb. For our Wisconsin kids, I'm sure it will be a thrill to play in Madison next year."

Northern Illinois and Wisconsin have played 10 times previously with the Badgers holding a 9-1 lead in the all-time series, the longest between NIU and any Big Ten school. NIU defeated Wisconsin at Camp Randall Stadium in 1988, 19-17, and narrowly lost to UW in its two most recent meetings, 24-21 in 2002 and 18-17 in 1992.

The Wisconsin series marks the third significant scheduling milestone for the Huskies over the last year, including the announcement of the 2007 home opener versus Iowa at Soldier Field and the addition of a home-and-home series with Navy in 2007 and 2008. Northern Illinois will take on the Midshipmen in Annapolis on Nov. 17, 2007, with Navy making a return visit to DeKalb in 2008. NIU's non-conference game at Tennessee, originally scheduled for the 2007 season, has been pushed back to 2008. The remainder of the Huskies' 2007 schedule will be announced later this month.

Tickets to the NIU-Iowa game at Soldier Field, as well as 2007 season tickets, are on sale now through the Northern Illinois Athletics Ticket Office at 815-752-6800 or on-line at www.niuhuskies.com.

-- NIU --