FINAL SCORE: (#23) BOWLING GREEN ST. 34, (#12) NORTHERN ILLINOIS 18

BOWLING GREEN, OH---Josh Harris passed for three touchdowns and 23rd-ranked Bowling Green St. tallied 634 yards of total offense to defeat No. 12 Northern Illinois 34-18 in a battle of Top 25 teams highlighting Mid-American Conference play Saturday (Oct. 25).

BGSU won its fourth consecutive game and took command of the MAC West Division race at 4-0 in the league and 7-1 overall. Northern Illinois---which entered the contest rated 12th in the Associated Press poll and 14th according to ESPN/USA Today---had its season-opening seven-game winning streak stopped, with the Huskies falling to 3-1 in the league with a similar 7-1 overall mark.

The Falcons needed just three minutes to grasp control, scoring two touchdowns in that span to begin the contest. Bowling Green St. used a no-huddle offense to cover 81 yards in seven plays on its first drive, with P.J. Pope rushing three yards for a 7-0 lead. NIU's attempt for a quick answer was thwarted as Janssen Patton intercepted P.J. Fleck's pass on a reverse-option on the Huskies' second snap from scrimmage. Harris needed just two plays to take the Falcon offense the rest of the way, hitting James Hawkins from 31 yards out for a 14-0 cushion with 12:59 left in the first quarter.

Northern Illinois tailback Michael Turner raced 68 yards for an apparent touchdown two plays after the ensuing kickoff, but a holding penalty brought the play back to stop the drive and forced a punt as Northern Illinois could not manage a first down.

"They hit two big (plays) early, and we got a touchdown called back. The first part of the game didn't go the way we wanted," Huskie coach Joe Novak said. "Michael's run that was called back was a crucial play. We thought we were back in the game at 14-7, and then I saw the flag fall. But the officials didn't cost us the game. We missed a lot of tackles today."

BGSU was on its way to another score before Huskie cornerback Randee Drew intercepted a Harris pass and returned the ball 20 yards to the Falcons' 27-yard line. Steve Azar's 41-yard field goal trimmed the deficit to 14-3 with 7:28 remaining in the quarter, but Northern Illinois would get no closer as the Huskies failed to take advantage of two first-half turnovers. Shaun Suisham connected on a 32-yard field goal early in the second stanza and a 17-yard pass from Harris to Charles Sharon three minutes later extended the margin to 24-3 at the intermission. That score was also set up by a Janssen interception, one of three picks by the senior cornerback.

The Falcons' dominance was evident in the halftime statistics as the hosts rolled up 370 yards of offense compared to only 62 for Northern Illinois in the opening 30 minutes. Harris was 17-of-28 for 279 yards and two touchdowns while Drew's two interceptions were the only blemish on Bowling Green St.'s efforts before the break. Turner was held to 48 yards on 13 carries in that span, with Josh Haldi completing three of eight passes for only 23 yards.

"We struggled early and we got behind. When we get behind, we lose our best weapon (Turner)," Novak said. "We got our butts beat by a good football team. We didn't play very well and we keep falling behind. Congratulations to Bowling Green. They (BGSU) we better today, no question. They made plays, we didn't. We calmed down at halftime and made a little run, but it wasn't enough. But there's a lot of football to be played.

After Suisham's 28-yard field goal midway through the third quarter, Northern Illinois tried to rally in the closing stages of the third quarter. Haldi hit Shatone Powers from 11 yards out to trim the deficit to 27-10, capping a 60-yard drive with 5:01 left but Harris answered just six plays later as Sharon got behind the Huskie defense and took a 55-yard strike in stride for a 34-10 lead. Haldi's 50-yard pass to Fleck and two-point conversion run brought Northern Illinois within 34-18 with 1:06 remaining in the quarter but the Huskies could get no closer.

Harris completed 27 of 43 passes for 438 yards and the three touchdowns and also rushed 17 times for 89 yards. Cole Magner caught seven passes for 100 yards with Sharon's two TD grabs highlighting a six-catch, 124-yard effort.

Turner finished with 87 yards on 18 attempts but that was enough to push the senior tailback over the 1,000-yard mark for the season as he now has 1,016 through eight games. Haldi endured six sacks to complete 14 of 29 passes for 165 yards, hitting Fleck five times for 82 yards. Powers also had five receptions for 54 yards, while Drew's two interceptions give him five for the season and 13 in his career.

Northern Illinois' defense had allowed 17.0 points and 335.0 yards per game prior to Saturday but could not halt BGSU's offense which started the day ranked second in the nation at 514.6 yards per contest. The Falcons ran 93 offensive plays compared to only 57 for Northern Illinois, which managed a season-low 227 yards of total offense. The hosts' 634 yards were the most allowed by the Huskies since Oregon State rolled up 654 in a 67-28 victory on Nov. 16, 1996---Novak's first season in DeKalb.

NIU dropped from the ranks of the unbeaten, leaving Oklahoma, Miami (FL) and Texas Christian as the last three Division I-A teams with unblemished records. Saturday's game marked the first time in 30 years that MAC teams have met while both were ranked in the national polls. Miami (OH) was No. 17 in the polls on Nov. 10, 1973, when the (then) Redskins of MU defeated 19th-ranked Kent State, 20-10.

Northern Illinois returns to DeKalb next Saturday (Nov. 1) versus Ball State University. The 1:05 p.m. (CST) contest is scheduled for telecast on Fox Sports Net-Chicago.

-30- --- Copy by Robert Hester

Northern Illinois University Football

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