Eastern Plays Host to NIU Saturday Inside 'The Factory'

Football vs. Northern Illinois
Date	Saturday, Oct. 11 \| 1 p.m.
Venue	'The Factory' at Rynearson Stadium \| Ypsilanti, Mich.
Preview Info	EMU Notes (PDF) \| Media Guide (PDF) \| Press Conference Video
Watch \| Stats	ESPN+ \| Media Stats
Listen	WEMU (89.1 WEMU-FM) \| The Varsity Network App \| SiriusXM \| Eastern Insider Podcast
Follow Us On X	@EMUFB \| @EMUAthletics
Tickets	Click Here to Purchase YOUR Tickets

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) – Coming off a gut-wrenching road loss, the Eastern Michigan University football team returns to the friendly confines of 'The Factory' as the Eagles will play host to the Huskies of Northern Illinois University Saturday, Oct. 11, inside Rynearson Stadium in Ypsilanti. The game between the Eagles (1-5, 0-2 Mid-American Conference) and Huskies (1-4, 0-1 MAC) is slated to kick off at 1 p.m. and will be televised on ESPN+. The game can be heard live on WEMU (89.1 FM), The Varsity Network app, and SiriusXM with Tom Helmer (play-by-play), Rob Rubick (analyst), and Elena Davis (sideline) on the radio call.

EAGLES... START YOUR ENGINES!
Saturday's game is billed as Legends & Classics Day as the program will host its fourth annual Car Show Game as part of Hall of Fame Weekend. Starting at 10 a.m., classic and custom cars will fill the stadium terrace for fans to view some of the best vehicles Southeast Michigan has to offer. Fans are encouraged to arrive early and take in the sights before cheering on the Eagles in their 1 p.m. game with NIU. Click HERE for more on the car show!

HALL OF FAME
The Eastern Michigan E-Club Alumni Chapter will enshrine its five newest members as the Class of 2025 will be honored in the Hall of Fame ceremony Friday, Oct. 10, at 6:30 p.m. before recognizing the class on the field during the game Saturday. The Class of 2025 includes Patrice Beasley (track & field), John Bowler (men's basketball), Nikki Knapp (women's basketball), Ben Reese (track & field), and Bill Tuscany, who served as EMU's Associate Head Athletic Trainer for 32 years and supported 105 MAC championship teams.

NO. 134 IN THE 734
Eastern Michigan is currently playing its 134th season of football with the program first playing in 1891. Tied with NC State and Iowa State for 29th on the all-time ledger in seasons played, the Eagles are third in the Mid-American Conference behind newcomer UMass (143rd season) and Miami (137th). Along with Miami, the only other team on this year's schedule that has played more is UK (135th).

THE EASTERN 500
Through games played Oct. 4, EMU holds an all-time record of 496-635-47, leaving it four wins shy of 500. The Eagles are one of four teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) that could reach 500 wins this season, including Temple (500), Rice (499), and Wake Forest (499).

KNOW THE FOE: NORTHERN ILLINOIS
The Huskies enter the week with a 1-4 overall record and an 0-1 record in the MAC after dropping a 25-14 home game to Miami, Oct. 4. NIU, who opened the season with a 19-17 home win over Holy Cross, has lost four in a row, including road games at Power Four teams Maryland and Mississippi State, and a 6-3 home loss to San Diego State. Josh Holst leads the way with 376 yards on 46-of-77 passing while Chavon Wright (264) and Telly Johnson Jr. (258) are both over 250 yards rushing this season. Defensively, Quinton Urwiler has a team-high 64 tackles with 5.0 TFLs and 1.5 sacks.

ALL-TIME VERSUS THE HUSKIES
Northern Illinois holds a 36-16-2 advantage in the series and has won three consecutive games in the series, including a 20-13 decision in DeKalb in 2023. NIU leads the series in Ypsilanti as well, 17-5-1, with the Eagles having dropped the last meeting, 39-10, in 2022. Eastern is looking for its first win in the series since a 41-33 home win in 2020.

LAST MEETING: EMU AT NIU, 2023
EMU and NIU last met, Oct. 21, 2023, in DeKalb with the Huskies claiming a 20-13 win. Samson Evans led all Eagles rushers with 68 yards and one touchdown in the contest while Jaylon Jackson added 31 yards on the ground, averaging 4.4 yards per carry. Austin Smith's most prolific target in the ballgame was Hamze El-Zayat, who caught six passes for 74 yards, marking season-highs for the first-year Eagle.

The Eastern Michigan offense did a good job keeping drives alive, converting on 50 percent (7-of-14) of third-down attempts, tying a season-best output.. Defensively, Eastern Michigan held up fairly well against the Northern Illinois offensive attack, holding the Huskies to 289 total yards, a season-low for the Eagles defense.

LAST HOME MEETING: NIU AT EMU, 2022
The Eagles and Huskies last played in Ypsilanti, Oct. 15, 2022, with the visitors taking a 39-10 decision. Jaylon Jackson paced the Green and White rushing attack, accumulating 60 yards over the course of the game. Jackson also tacked on 48 receiving yards. Junior Darius Boone added 14 yards on the ground for Eastern Michigan, averaging seven yards per carry.

Andreas Paaske reeled in one catch for 75 yards and one score, the only touchdown of the afternoon for the Eagles. Dylan Drummond got in on the action in the passing game as well, hauling in three balls for 60 yards.

Jose Ramirez paced the Eastern Michigan defensive effort, collecting four tackles, 2.0 of which were for loss, and two sacks. Defensively, Eastern Michigan held up against the Northern Illinois passing attack, holding NIU to 123 yards through the air. In part because of that strong defense, Eastern Michigan receivers out-gained their Husky counterparts, 197-123.

THE LAST TIME?
EMU's matchup with Northern Illinois carries added weight as it closes a significant chapter in the program's Mid-American Conference story. NIU's upcoming move to the Mountain West after the 2025–26 season means this will be the final meeting between the two as conference opponents. It's a fitting bookend for a rivalry that has stretched across multiple eras of MAC football.

Northern Illinois first left the MAC after the 1985–86 school year, spending more than a decade as an independent before joining the Big West. It later returned to the conference in 1997–98. Since rejoining, the Huskies have become one of the league's most consistent programs, claiming six MAC championships and serving as one of EMU's most frequent and familiar opponents. Their second departure will mark the end of nearly three decades of shared conference history between the two schools.

For Eastern Michigan, this is not the first time the program has seen a MAC foe move on. The Eagles have faced several departing members over the years, going 1–3 in those matchups. They fell to Marshall in 1998, Temple in 2009, and UMass in 2015, while earning a win over UCF in 2003. Each of those games marked the end of a brief but memorable conference era, as those teams transitioned to new leagues in pursuit of different opportunities.
Nov. 14, 2015 • UMass • L, 17-28
Oct. 3, 2009 • Temple • L, 12-24
Nov. 8, 2003 • UCF • W, 19-13
Sept. 26, 1998 • Marshall • L, 23-26

GOING GREEN IN THE RED ZONE
Eastern is one of nine FBS teams and the only squad in the MAC with a perfect red-zone record this season, scoring on all 20 trips in 2025. Tied for the fourth-most red zone appearances among the nine with perfect scoring, the Eagles have recorded 12 touchdowns, including nine rushing and three passing, and a group-best eight field goals. The Eagles remain the only team in the MAC that is among the top 60 nationally with Western Michigan next on the list at 63rd with an 86.7% conversion rate (13-of-15).

TAKING CARE
The Eagles are 11th nationally and first in the MAC in turnovers lost with three and are only of 10 teams nationally that have yest to lose a fumble in 2025. Eastern is also 37th in passes had intercepted and third in the MAC with three picks surrendered.

DRIVEN
Eastern Michigan's offense delivered one of the most efficient performances in program history at Buffalo, Oct. 4, 2025. The Eagles marched the field for touchdown drives of 99, 96, and 94 yards, each starting inside their own 10-yard line. It marked the first time in the modern statistical era (since 2000) that EMU recorded three 90-plus-yard touchdown drives in a single game. The 99-yard drive matched the longest in school history, equaling one at Akron in 2024. The 17-play, 94-yard drive was the longest in plays by any EMU team since 2021 and ranks among only 10 17+-play scoring drives since 2001.

TRIPLE PLAY
While the Eagles have recorded 37 drives of 90+ yards (since 2000), they have recorded multiple drives in the same game just three times during that span. Along with the drives of 99, 96, and 94 yards at Buffalo (Oct. 4), Eastern last accomplished the feat Nov. 25, 2022, against Central Michigan with a pair of drives measuring 90 and 91 yards. The first instance came Nov. 2, 2017, against Ball State with drives of 94 and 97.

PLAYTIME
On the 94-yard scoring drive at Buffalo, the Eagles ran 17 plays and chewed up 7:46 off the game clock. The 17 plays run tied for the sixth most in a single drive for Eastern (since 2000). The 17 plays also ranks seventh in the FBS this season behind a 24-play drive put together by Hawaii at Air Force.

EARLY DRIVES SET THE TONE
Eastern Michigan's opening-drive results over the past two seasons show mixed outcomes on both sides of the ball. Offensively, the Eagles scored on four of 16 first-half drives, producing three touchdowns and one field goal, while most ended in punts or turnovers. Second-half starts showed a slight improvement, with five scoring drives in 16 opportunities, including four touchdowns, though 10 ended in punts. The most recent came against Central Michigan, Sept. 27, marking EMU's first second-half opening-drive touchdown since the 2024 season finale at Western Michigan, Nov. 30. Defensively, opponents found success on scripted series. Seven of 16 first-half drives resulted in touchdowns, with the same number coming on second-half opening possessions. EMU forced 15 combined stops across both halves, highlighted by takeaways against Toledo and Ohio and a missed field goal by LIU.

EXTENDING DRIVES: THIRD-DOWN CONTROL
Eastern Michigan leads the MAC in third-down conversions at 40.9%, ranking 66th nationally. Noah Kim, completing 70% of his passes and ranking fourth in the MAC, is 25-for-48 throwing the ball on third down, with 19 of those completions resulting in the chains moving. Even more impressive, Kim is 17-of-31 on third-and-long situations and 9-of-12 on third-and-medium.

UPPER HALF
Since 2016, Eastern has posted 55 wins, which ranks as the sixth-most victories of any team in the MAC.
75 • Toledo
72 • Ohio
63 • Western Michigan
62 • Miami
58 • Buffalo
55 • Eastern Michigan
52 • Northern Illinois
51 • Central Michigan
42 • Ball State
38 • Bowling Green
31 • Kent State
28 • Akron
18 • UMass
* updated through 2025 Week 6 games

SINGLE SCORES
Since the start of the 2016 season, Eastern is second nationally with 60 one-score games played, sitting behind Northern Illinois (64).
1. Northern Illinois - 64 (31-33)
2. Eastern Michigan - 60 (29-31)
3. Texas - 59 (26-33)
4. Iowa State - 58 (26-32)
t5. Nebraska - 56 (16-40)
t5. Kansas State - 56 (26-30)
7. North Carolina - 52 (22-30)
t8. Oklahoma State - 51 (31-20)
t8. Tulsa - 51 (23-28)
10. California - 49 (20-29)

NO CLOSER MARGIN
With their 31-30 loss at Buffalo, the Eagles fell to 22-27 all-time in one-point games and have dropped two consecutive contests after falling at home to Toledo, 29-28, Nov. 2, 2024. Those two losses snapped a three-game winning streak in one-point games. Under Chris Creighton, the Eagles are now 3-3 in one-point games.

McMILLAN 100
Dontae McMillan ran for 117 yards on 20 carries with one touchdown at Buffalo, Oct. 4, to mark his second 100+ yard game of the season and the sixth of his career. McMillan, who recorded his first 100-yard game with the Eagles earlier this season at home against Louisiana (Sept. 20), accomplished the feat by not losing yardage as he gained and netted 117 yards, marking the second game this year he has not gone backwards with the first being the game with Ragin' Cajuns.

CENTURY MARKS
Dontae McMillan's 117 yards rushing at Buffalo marked the 230th game in program history that an EMU player has rushed for over 100 yards in a single game. Coupled with the 126 yards he earned against Louisiana (Sept. 20), McMillan became the 41st different player in program history (134 years) to record multiple 100-yard rushing games in a career and the 37th to do so in the same season. All told, since the 2000 season, Eastern rushers have surpassed the 100-yard barrier multiple times in the same season in 24-of-26 seasons. The only times EMU failed to have multiple 100-yard rushing games in that span was in 2023 and 2006.

DONTAE'S DOUBLE SCORES
Along with his yardage at Buffalo, Dontae McMillan scored two touchdowns with one each on the ground and in the air. Prior to the 2025 season, McMillan had never recorded a receiving touchdown and now has done so twice after recording his first against Long Island. In that game, he also ran in one score to mark his first contest with one of each way of scoring in his career.

DOUBLE DUTY DONTAE
Dontae McMillan is among the top backs in the MAC as he ranks first in yards (533) and yards per carry (6.5) while ranking second in yards per game (88.8). But he doesn't stop there as his 118.8 all-purpose yards leads the MAC and ranks 21st nationally. McMillan, who has added 180 yards through the air, is the only player in the MAC top five that has over 500 yards rushing and over 150 yards receiving while he also is one of only four players in the top 10 of the MAC that hasn't added yardage from returning kicks and/or punts.

LEADER OF THE MAC
Noah Kim continues to find himself among the MAC leaders for quarterbacks as he has accumulated 1,336 yards on 123-of-195 passing, the highest in the league. Ranked first with 123 completions, Kim's 222.7 yards per game average is 11.7 yards per game better than the next quarterback. Overall, Kim is averaging 20.5 completions per game, which leads the MAC and stands 36th in the FBS. On a national level, his 1,336 yards rank 31st in the FBS.

THROUGH THE AIR
Noah Kim has accounted for 11 touchdowns through six games, including a career-high seven passing and four rushing. Kim added one rushing and two passing scores at Buffalo, Oct. 4, to give him at least one passing touchdown in five of six games played this season while moving surpassing his previous single-season passing touchdown total of six recorded in 2023 with Michigan State. Overall, Kim is third in the MAC and 75th nationally with 11.0 points responsible for per game.

ONE IF BY LAND...
While Noah Kim has shown off his arm strength, he also featured his legs recently. Entering the game at Kentucky (Sept. 13), Kim had never tallied a rushing touchdown. He tallied his first ground score on a five-yard scamper late in the fourth quarter against the Wildcats and then added his second on EMU's first score of the Sept. 20 game with Louisiana, marking back-to-back rushing scores for the signal caller and the team. His 14-yard run at Central Michigan made it three consecutive games before he extended his streak to four in a row with a 1-yard rush in overtime.

KESSINGER KICKING IT
Rudy Kessinger continues to be a reliable weapon for the Eagles as the redshirt freshman is 11-of-15 in field goal attempts and a perfect 15-of-15 in extra-point attempts. Kessinger leads all MAC kickers in scoring with 48 points while tying for third overall in scoring with 8.0 points per game. He also is second in made field goals with 11, which is one behind the leader, and makes him one of only two that have recorded 10+ field goals.

KICKING CAREER
Mitchell Tomasek, the MAC leader and fifth-ranked punter in the FBS at 48.0 yards per punt, has made his way into the program's all-time top five in career punting yardage as he has accumulated 8,394 yards during his time with the Eagles, which ranks fifth. The sixth punter in EMU history to surpass the 8,000 yard barrier, Tomasek moved ahead of Jay Kurtz (2010-12), who previously held the fifth position with 8,063 yards.

PULLING OUT THE DRIVER
Mitchell Tomasek has hit 54 of his 188 career punts for 50+ yards (28.7%), including 13 over 60 yards, while recording just 16 touchbacks. For his career, Tomasek has recorded a best of 72 yards at Jacksonville State (Sept. 23, 2023) while hitting a 70-yarder at home against Ball State (Oct. 7, 2023). He has recorded at least three punts of 62 yards or better in all three seasons he has played for the Eagles and is one away already from making four consecutive years after recording punts of 63 and 62-yards at Texas State.

ABOVE THE NORM-AN
Jayvin Norman has helped the Eagles gain solid starting positions after kickoffs as he has accumulated 295 yards on kick returns, which ranks third in the MAC and 10th in the FBS. As it stands, Norman is averaging 22.7 yards per return, which ranks 23rd nationally and fourth in the MAC in his first season as the returner for the Eagles.

EVANS SACKS
Carter Evans recorded a career-best 1.5 sacks at Buffalo (Oct. 4) which included a strip-sack late in the game that the Eagles recovered. Evans, who finished with three tackles, tied his career-high for TFLs with 1.5 that he set one week prior at Central Michigan, while also forcing his first career fumble.

BIG MAN SCOOP
Warren-Stevens Tayou recorded the first fumble recovery of his career as Carter Evens forced a strip-sack that Tayou scooped up and returned 11 yards before being tackled. Tayou finished the game at Buffalo (Oct. 4) with one tackle and 0.5 sacks.

THE MARSHALL SAYS STOP!
Jason Marshall had another career game on defense as he posted 10 tackles at Buffalo (Oct. 4), including nine solo stops. Marshall, who entered the season with who entered the season with just four total tackles in his career, posted a career-high total for the fifth time this season and the third consecutive game after posting six against Louisiana and nine at Central Michigan in the previous two games.

FLYING THE FLAG
When a MAC team defeats a member of a "Power Four" conference, they celebrate by hoisting a black flag with the MAC logo placed above crossbones, something the Eagles have done four times since 2017 with victories over Rutgers, Purdue, Illinois, and Arizona State. Dating back to the start of the 2006 season, at least one member of the MAC has flown the flag with the conference accumulating 48 wins in that stretch of 19 consecutive seasons, including 32 against the Big Ten. All told, the MAC has posted wins against foes from the Big Ten (32), SEC (2), Big 12 (6), the former Pac-12 (2), the ACC (4), and one over Notre Dame. Overall, in the Eagles' four wins tie for the sixth-highest total in the MAC with Ball State and Western Michigan while Northern Illinois leads the way with nine, both Bowling Green and Central Michigan have six, and Ohio and Toledo have five. In 2025, the streak continued as Ohio handed visiting West Virginia (Big 12) a 17-10 decision in Athens, Sept. 6.

MAKING DEBUTS • TRANSFERS
Eastern has seen 34 players take their first snaps with the team this years with 21 transfers (20 in 2025 and one from 2024) on that list, including: Kadin Bailey, Duke Clayton, Caleb Coley, Nathan Dibert, Caleb Dobbs, Tavierre Dunlap, Makhi Gilbert, Ronn Hardin, Nick Harris, James Jointer Jr., Noah Kim, Tanner Lemaster, Joshua Long, Ja'Quel Mack, Andrew Marshall, James Monds III, Marco Patierno, Benson Prosper, Porter Rooks, Juan Salas Jr., and Warren-Stevens Tayou.

ON THE STARTING LINE
Through the Buffalo game (Oct. 4), 20 different players have earned their first starts with the Eagles, including one against the Bulls as Benson Propser earned his first career start on offense.
Along with latest addition, the 19 other players to earn starts with Eastern this year include: Messiah Blair, Tylan Boykin, Dodji Dahoue, Nick Deveraux, Caleb Dobbs, Tavierre Dunlap, Nicholas Gallegos, Makhi Gilbert, Noah Kim, Bryce Llewellyn, Joshua Long, Andrew Marshall, Jason Marshall, Sterling Miles, Benson Prosper, Donmiel Rogers, Porter Rooks, Terrance Saunders, and Owen Snively.

2025 Most First-Time Starters
20 - Eastern Michigan
14 - Navy, Louisiana Tech, Bowling Green
13 - Old Dominion, NC State
12 - Oregon, UTSA, Syracuse, Fresno State

MAKING DEBUTS • FRESHMEN
Twelve freshmen have seen their first collegiate playing time this season with redshirt freshman Javon Thomas taking the field at Kentucky. He joins the list of first-year players that also includes: Tylan Boykin, Quincy Byas, Marvell Eggelston Jr., Antonio Floyd, Reggie Gardner, Hector Gonzalez, Ray Hester, Rudy Kessinger, Harold Mack Jr., Zah'eed Pierre, and Donmiel Rogers.

BACK ON THE LANES?
The Eagles will look to return to the postseason in 2025 and claim their seventh appearance under Chris Creighton. For the 2025 season, the MAC has affiliations with four games: the former Bahamas Bowl (vs. Conference USA), the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl (vs. Mountain West), the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (vs. MWC), and the GameAbove Sports Bowl (vs. Big Ten). Additionally, the MAC could send teams to two of the following: 68 Ventures Bowl (vs. Sun Belt), Boca Raton Bowl (vs. Group of Five), Camellia Bowl (vs. ACC/Sun Belt), Cure Bowl (vs. Group of Five), Frisco Bowl (vs. Group of Five), Myrtle Beach Bowl (vs. ACC/SBC), and New Mexico Bowl (vs. CUSA).

BOWL APPEARANCES
Since 2016, 12-of-13 current MAC teams have played in at least one bowl, with the Eagles appearing in six, which ranks tied for third-most with Miami while Ohio and Toledo lead the way with seven.
7 • Ohio, Toledo
6 • Eastern Michigan, Miami
5 • Buffalo, Northern Illinois, Western Michigan
4 • Central Michigan
3 • Bowling Green
2 • Ball State, Kent State
1 • Akron
0 • UMass (only bowl was 1964)

THEY HAVE THE TOUCH
Over the past 11 seasons (2014-24), the Eagles' 26 blocked kicks have them tied for third-most among all teams in the MAC as Eastern, Miami, and Toledo are one off the pace set by both Central Michigan and Northern Illinois, who each have 27. Over that span, Eastern has tallied at least one block in nine consecutive years (20 blocks) with Akron next with six consecutive years (8). EMU is one of three schools (CMU and Toledo) that has recorded at least one block in 10-of-11 seasons during the current span.

NO KICKING ZONE
Since taking over the program in 2014, Chris Creighton's teams have blocked 26 kicks, including at least one in each of the past nine consecutive years. In 2024, the Eagles blocked four kicks, the second-highest total for the team under Creighton behind only the six blocks tallied in 2014. Last year, Eastern blocked one punt and one point-after try at Washington (Sept. 7), blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown at home against St. Francis (Sept. 21), and blocked a 31-yard field goal attempt at Ohio (Nov. 13). The four blocks tied for the MAC lead with Northern Illinois while ranking sixth among all NCAA FBS teams. Overall, in the 11 seasons under Creighton, EMU has blocked 10 field goal attempts, 10 punts with five being returned for touchdowns, and six extra-point attempts with one returned for a two-point defensive score.

AYE, AYE CAPTAINS!
The Eagles will be led by six captains in the 2025 season. Following a vote of the current roster, the players selected Jefferson Adam, Tavierre Dunlap, Dramarian McNulty, Noah Kim, Zach Mowchan, and Mickey Rewolinski to serve as captains this season.

ON THE HORIZON
The Eagles return to the road next week when they head to Oxford, Ohio, to take on Miami University. The game, which will kick off at 12 p.m., will stream live on ESPN+. Tom Helmer (play-by-play), Rob Rubick (analyst), Elena Davis (sideline), and Greg Steiner (halftime) will have the call on WEMU (89.1 FM), The Varsity Network app, and SiriusXM.

Eastern Michigan Athletics

Players Mentioned

Jefferson Adam

Kadin Bailey

Messiah Blair

Tylan Boykin

Quincy Byas

Duke Clayton

Caleb Coley

Dodji Dahoue

Nathan Dibert

Caleb Dobbs

Tavierre Dunlap

Carter Evans

Antonio Floyd

Nicholas Gallegos

Reggie Gardner

Makhi Gilbert

Hector Gonzalez

Ronn Hardin

Nick Harris

Ray Hester

Rudy Kessinger

Noah Kim

Tanner Lemaster

Bryce Llewellyn

Joshua Long

Harold Mack

Ja'Quel Mack

Andrew Marshall

Jason Marshall

Dontae McMillan

Dramarian McNulty

Sterling Miles

James Monds III

Zach Mowchan

Jayvin Norman

Marco Patierno

Zah'eed Pierre

Benson Prosper

Mickey Rewolinski

Donmiel Rogers

Porter Rooks

Juan Salas

Terrance Saunders

Owen Snively

Warren-Stevens Tayou

Javon Thomas

Mitchell Tomasek

Related Videos