The 2013 Northern Illinois Huskies football team represented Northern Illinois University as a West Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) member during the 2013 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by first-year head coach Rod Carey, the Huskies compiled an overall record of 12–2 with a mark of 8–0 In conference play, they won the MAC West Division title, and advanced to the MAC Championship Game, where they lost to East Division champion Bowling Green. Northern Illinois was invited to the Poinsettia Bowl, where they lost to Utah State. The team played home games at Huskie Stadium in DeKalb, Illinois.
Fresh off their Orange Bowl appearance the previous season, the Huskies went undefeated until the MAC Championship Game. This garnered national attention with the anticipation of another Bowl Championship Series (BCS) bowl appearance. Starting quarterback Jordan Lynch finished third in voting for the Heisman Trophy. The season marked the Huskies' sixth consecutive trip to a bowl game and their second consecutive bowl game loss.
Schedule
Rankings
Game summaries Iowa
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Jordan Lynch threw for three touchdowns and ran for two more, as the team came away with their second win of the season.
Eastern Illinois
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Kent State
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Cameron Stingily ran for a career-high 266 yards and two scores as Northern Illinois remained undefeated with a 38–24 win over Kent State.
Akron
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The Huskies used their defense and kicking game to beat Akron 27–20 on Saturday night after the offense went 1 for 15 on third-down conversions.
Central Michigan
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Lynch had three rushing touchdowns and was 20 for 30 through the air for 155 yards and another score to help Northern Illinois (7–0, 3–0 Mid-American) extend the nation's best conference winning streak to 20 games. Lynch rushed for 316 yards, an FBS record for a quarterback, and the 23rd-ranked Huskies stayed unbeaten with a 38–17 victory at Central Michigan.
Eastern Michigan
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UMass
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Ball State
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Toledo
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Western Michigan
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Bowling Green (MAC Championship Game)
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Utah State (Poinsettia Bowl)
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Roster
Awards Jamaal Bass All-MAC First Team Outside Linebacker
Ken Bishop All-MAC First Team Down Lineman 2x MAC West Division Defensive Player of the Week (Weeks 3, 10)
Da'Ron Brown All-MAC Second Team Wide Receiver
Rod Carey MAC Coach of the Year
Dechane Durante All-MAC Third Team Defensive Back
Tommylee Lewis All-MAC First Team Wide Receiver 1x MAC West Division Offensive Player of the Week (Week 3) 1x MAC West Division Special Teams Player of the Week (Week 5)
Tyler Loos All-MAC First Team Offensive Lineman
Jordan Lynch Vern Smith Leadership Award MAC Offensive Player of the Year All-MAC First Team Quarterback 7x MAC West Division Offensive Player of the Week (Weeks 1, 4, 5, 8, 10, 12, 13)
Mathew Sims 1x MAC West Division Special Teams Player of the Week (Week 1)
Cameron Stingily 1x MAC West Division Offensive Player of the Week (Week 6)
Jared Volk All-MAC Second Team Offensive Lineman
Jimmie Ward All-MAC First Team Defensive Back
Joe Windsor All-MAC Third Team Down Lineman
References