Football Comes Home Saturday, Sept. 29, to Host NIU

Football vs. Northern Illinois
Date	Saturday, Sept. 29 \| 6:05 p.m.
Venue	Ypsilanti, Mich. \| Rynearson Stadium (30,200)
Preview Info	EMU Notes \| Press Conference Video \| Teleconference Audio
Live Stats	Fan Stats \| Media Stats
Watch	ESPN+ \| What is ESPN+?
Listen	WEMU (89.1 WEMU-FM) \| TuneIn Radio \| Podcast
Twitter	@EMUFB \| @EMUAthletics
Tickets	Order Tickets Online or call 734.487.3669

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – After its three-game, 5,722 mile road trip, the Eastern Michigan University football team returns home to host Mid-American Conference West Division rival Northern Illinois University Saturday, Sept. 29, at "The Factory" at Rynearson Stadium. The Family/Hall of Fame Weekend affair is scheduled for 6 p.m.
   The Eagles (2-2, 0-1 MAC) fell short of their second road upset of the year at San Diego State University, 23-20, Sept. 22. Meanwhile, the Huskies (1-3, 1-0 MAC) look to regroup after a 37-19 loss at Florida State University, Sept. 22.
   The contest will be televised on ESPN+ with Chris Vosters providing play-by-play and Marcus Ray serving as the analyst. The game will also be aired on WEMU (89.1 FM) with Chad Bush and Rob Rubick calling the action from the press box.

COMING DOWN TO THE WIRE: In EMU's last 29 games, dating back to the start of the 2016 season, 20 have come down to final scores of seven points or less. Of the 20 games, EMU has a 9-11 record, including a 1-2 mark this season.

BEHIND ENEMY LINES: The Green and White have made a living feasting on the opposition behind the line of scrimmage this season. In four games, the Eagles have registered 21.0 tackles for loss and 8.0 sacks.
   Most recently, in EMU's overtime bout at San Diego State, Sept. 22, Eastern racked up 10.0 TFL, the most allowed by SDSU since Boise State recorded 12, Oct. 14, 2017. Additionally, it was the first time the Eagles reached double digit stops-for-loss since registering 10 at Kentucky, Sept. 30, 2017.

OVERTIME STRIKES AGAIN: The 23-20 overtime loss at San Diego State, Sept. 22, was the 14th overtime game in EMU history, as well as the first this season. EMU fell to 5-9 all-time in extra time. It marks the third straight season in which the Eagles have played OT.

SACK LUNCH: Junior Maxx Crosby has picked up right where he left off a season ago and continues to wreak havoc in opponent's backfields. Crosby tallied 2.5 sacks and 3.5 tackles for loss at San Diego State, Sept. 22, his fourth multi-sack game of his career. For his efforts, he was selected the MAC West Division Defensive Player of the Week for the second time in his career.
   For the season, the Colleyville, Texas native ranks second in the MAC and seventh nationally with 3.5 sacks. Meanwhile, Crosby's 16.0 career sacks are slotted fourth in the EMU record books. He trails Kevin Howe's third-ranked mark by 1.5, while he is 9.0 off Avery Brown's program record.

SECOND HALF SHUT DOWNS: The Eastern Michigan defense held San Diego State just 100 yards and a field goal in the second half of the Sept. 22 matchup. It marked the third straight game this season that the Eagles had limited an opponent to less than 175 yards in the final 30 minutes. Furthermore, EMU shutout SDSU in the third quarter for the squad's third consecutive contest without points allowed in the third.
   EMU is ranked 10th nationally in the fewest second-half points given up at just 5.7 a game.

SLOWING DOWN WASHINGTON: San Diego State running back Juwan Washington entered the Sept. 22 game against EMU as the fourth-leading rusher in the country with an average 151 yards per game. EMU's defense not only held Washington out of the endzone for the first time this season, but the Eagles also held Washington below 100 yards for the first time this year. Washington's 61 yards were his fewest since he rushed for 44 versus Army, Dec. 23, 2017.

MANNING THE RED ZONE LIKE SCOTT HANSON: Eastern Michigan currently holds the nation's second-best red zone defense, allowing opponents to score only nine times on 16 attempts. Of the nine scores allowed, EMU has given up just five touchdowns when opponents are inside its 20-yard line.

BIG GAINS: The Green and White have five plays of 50-or-more yards this season, a task the Eagles accomplished four times all of last year. In fact, Eastern's five 50-yard+ plays is its most since the 2016 season when EMU recorded nine plays of 50+ yards. EMU's longest play of the season came against Buffalo, Sept. 15, as Mike Glass III found Arthur Jackson III for a 76-yard gain.

CLOGGING UP THE TIME OF POSSESSION: The Eagles saw a huge shift in time of possession in the second half of its meeting with San Diego State, Sept. 29. The team almost doubled the time it spent with the ball in the final 30 minutes of the game. After Eastern Michigan had the ball for only 11:37 in the first half, the team possessed the pigskin for a total of 20:28 in the second half.

HOT OFF THE BENCH: Coming off the bench the past two weekends, quarterback Mike Glass III has sparked the EMU's offense each time he has taken the field. In two games, Glass III is 26-of-43 for 437 yards and three scores via the air to go along two touchdowns and 98 yards with his legs. In total, Glass III has accounted for 63.3 percent of the Eagles' total offense during the two game stretch.

WORKING LIKE A MACHINE: Quarterback Tyler Wiegers currently leads the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision in completion percentage at 76.1 percent.

TRUE-LY FRESH: Freshman kicker Chad Ryland continued his early season success by splitting the uprights with a pair of field goals and extra points versus San Diego State, Sept. 22. The "true" freshman knocked in a 51-yard field goal to tie the score at three in the first quarter. Ryland's make was the Eagles' longest boot since Dylan Mulder had a 55-yarder against Miami, Nov. 11, 2015. The 51-yarder stands as the eighth-longest field goal in program history, and the longest make in the Mid-American Conference this season.
   Ryland is still 1-of-17 kickers nationally that has not missed a kick this season.

I'll TAKE THE 25 AND GO FROM THERE: Eastern Michigan is 1-of-2 schools (Middle Tennessee) in the Football Bowl Subdivision this season yet to return a kickoff this season. Meanwhile, EMU is the 16th stingiest special teams in terms of kickoff coverage, holding the opposition to an average of 16.0 yards a try.

LENGTHY DRIVES: Eastern Michigan has six scoring drives this season that have totalled more than 10 plays. Four of those drives have terminated with touchdowns, while one of the two field goals capped a 15-play drive for game winner at Purdue. Overall, EMU is one of 26 schools with six-or-more scoring drives of 10+ plays.

BANHAM DOES IT AGAIN: Senior wide receiver Blake Banham recorded his second 100-yard receiving performance of his career in the Eagles' 35-28 setback at Buffalo, Sept. 15.
   Banham leads the Mid-American Conference with 23 catches for 361 yards.

WHO SAID TELEVISION DRAMA IS DEAD?: CBS Sports Network and ESPN can thank EMU for plenty of high drama the past two seasons.

• Sept. 9, 2017: 16-13 win at Rutgers — Eagles win, get sack on game's final play
• Sept. 23, 2017: 27-20 2OT loss to Ohio — Ohio scores on final play in double overtime
• Sept. 30, 2017: 24-20 loss at Kentucky — Eagles intercepted in end zone on final play
• Oct. 7, 2017: 20-15 loss at Toledo — Eagles intercepted on final drive
• Oct. 14, 2017: 28-27 loss at Army — Eagles fail to convert two-point conversion for win
• Oct. 21, 2017: 20-17 OT loss to Western Michigan — Eagles miss field goal in overtime
• Oct. 26, 2017: 30-27 OT loss at NIU — Eagles make field goal, but gives up TD in overtime
• Nov. 8, 2017: 42-30 loss to CMU — CMU pick six with EMU down 5 points with 48 seconds left
• Nov. 15, 2017: 27-24 win at Miami — EMU recovered onside kick with two minutes to play
• Nov. 21, 2017: 34-31 win vs. BGSU — EMU holds off a late rally by the Falcons on Senior Day
• Sept. 8, 2018: 20-19 win at Purdue — Kicker Chad Rylan drills a 24-yard field goal as time expires
• Sept. 15, 2018: 35-28 loss at Buffalo — UB recovered onside kick with 40 seconds to play
• Sept. 22, 2018: 23-20 loss at San Diego State — SDSU hits a 50-yard field goal to force overtime

ALL-TIME AGAINST THE HUSKIES: The Eagles and Huskies have met 48 times in their respective histories in a series that dates back to 1927. NIU holds a strong lead in the all-time tally, going 32-14-2, including winning the last 10 contests. EMU's last two meetings with NIU have been decided in overtime by a combined 10 points.

LAST WIN VS. NIU: Eastern's last win in the series came Sept. 15, 2007, by a 21-19 margin. In that game, Eastern Michigan overcame a 13-point deficit to post a 21-19 victory over Northern Illinois on the road. An EMU interception setup a Pierre Walker game-winning touchdown score with 5:29 left in the game. Then, with the outcome still very much in doubt, Eric Young stepped up to block Chris Nendick's 50-yard field goal attempt as time expired to seal the two-point EMU win.

IT TAKES MORE THAN REGULATION: The last two meetings between Northern Illinois and Eastern Michigan have required more than four quarters to decide the victor.
   The 2017 game at Huskie Stadium was sent into overtime thanks to an EMU blocked field goal attempt as regulation expired. In the extra period, NIU answered an Eastern field goal with a touchdown to hand the Eagles a 30-27 setback, Oct. 26.
   The season prior, Eastern Michigan saw a 21-point edge disappear as Northern Illinois scored 24 unanswered to force OT. NIU scored on its first possession in the extra period, while EMU was stopped on fourth-and-short for the 31-24 decision, Nov. 16, 2016.

WELCOME BACK HALL OF FAMERS: The Eastern Michigan University E-Club Alumni Chapter, the official varsity athletic letterwinners club, will enshrine five new members into the E-Club Athletic Hall of Fame this weekend, Sept. 29. The Class of 2018 will be honored at the Hall of Fame ceremony Friday, Sept. 28, in the atrium of the Convocation Center. The Class of 2018 includes: Virgie Bullie (W. Track & Field), Jordan Desilets (M. Track & Field/XC), Catherine Fortin (W. Golf), Korey Mahoney (M. Golf), and Andrew Wellock (Football).

ON THE ROAD AGAIN: After their first appearance inside Rynearson Stadium in September, the Eagles hit the road once again as they trek to Kalamazoo, Mich., Oct. 6, to tangle with in-state rival Western Michigan University. Kickoff is set for noon at Waldo Stadium.
   Next Saturday marks the beginning of the battle for the Michigan MAC Trophy, an annual trophy that goes to the football regular season series winner between Central Michigan, Western Michigan, and Eastern Michigan. CMU snapped WMU's run of three consecutive Michigan MAC Trophies, while EMU last captured it in 2012.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Blake Banham

Maxx Crosby

Mike Glass III

Arthur Jackson III

Dylan Mulder

Chad Ryland

Tyler Wiegers

Eastern Michigan Athletics