"It's Northern Illinois, they beat us last year, and GameDay is coming!" Such is the rallying cry at Bowling Green State University during this week of weeks for what is commonly referred to as the MAC -- also known as the Mid-American Conference. MAC Commissioner Rick Chryst must be running in place. Despite being in one of the most competitive, tradition-laden football conferences in the country he is all too accustomed to conducting business in relative obscurity. He knows full well that this moment is a huge splash with long-term potential for his conference. While the big schools gobble up the headlines, the blue-chippers and the millions, MAC teams play hard and well before crowds of 5,000 to 40,000 fans. Players considered an inch short, a step slow or a year lacking in experience show up at the proud programs nestled in the Midwestern realm of the mighty Big Ten (11?), and dream of the day they can knock off the big boys. Well, that they do, virtually every year. What they do not do in the normal course of things is to match two of their own who have knocked off some monsters, are ranked in the top 25 and have marquee players and who combine to bring the national spotlight on the little football league that can flat-out play. Americans adore underdogs and here we have a game with two of those creatures. If that seems mathematically impossible, consider the fact that no game involving two MAC teams has ever received even a sniff of this type of exposure. Oh, some years there is mild interest in the championship game if someone like Marshall's Byron Leftwich is starring on one leg, but this is a regular-season game, and the last time this league had two ranked teams facing one another was in 1973 when No. 17 Miami (OHIO) played No. 19 Kent State. Can you recall that score? Probably not unless you played in the game. (Miami 20, Kent State 10). The game within the game for this one is obvious to the most casual fan, because the surreal media crush will seem like the Super Bowl to the tenth power to the players and coaches. The sports information departments will be inundated with requests for credentials and camera crews will invade the stadium with miles of wire, special lights and strange demands. Campus cops will issue more tickets than at any time in their history and will have a harder time collecting on them. Students will cut class, relying on the well-worn tradition of finding any excuse to party at the expense of calculus. Even some faculty and administrative staff will be affected, forgetting academic routines in favor of foraging for tickets. Student athletes who have been allowed to be normal students for the most part will become instant celebrities, receiving attention from the very ladies who have avoided them for years. Distant relatives will show up from Ontario or Denver expecting their "favorite nephew" to have a couple of extra ducats on the fifty. Moms and dads will be inundated, prompting apologetic late-night calls asking for "just one more". Parents can be funny that way. On one occasion during my coaching career I allowed walk-on players to dress out for a big game as a reward, and I shall never forget spending thirty minutes on the phone with an irate mother whose reason for berating me was that her son was not issued the number she wanted him to wear as he sat upon the bench. The only polite way I could think to silence her was to ask how old her son was. After a long silence she murmured, "Well, he is twenty two." She never called back. Sadly, one more element will infiltrate. The gamblers, the brutal leeches of competitive sport, will find a way to penetrate, looking for an edge. Any injury, discord, disciplinary issue or late coaching decision that affects performance will be used to feed the gambling monster. Trust me, all of this will have a stunning effect on the players, coaches and everyone surrounding them. Simply put, the team that can maintain focus through the morass just described will win. It would be wise for coach Gregg Brandon of Bowling Green to sequester his players from Thursday night until game time if possible. There is often an advantage to the visiting team in games of this sort. There are simply fewer family and "friends" to plant themselves in the players' hotel rooms once the team leaves its own campus. But there is a good chance both teams will be distracted. If that is the case, play will be very sloppy and the result goes up for grabs. Game planning will be predicated on simplicity and practices will be tailored to the realities of the off-field demands. They should be short, crisp, and yet demanding in the tiny details. This week more than ever a premium must be placed on snap count, technique, ball handling and special teams. Hidden yardage is remarkably close between these teams as kick and punt returns, penalties and net punting are virtually equal. Bowling Green has a big edge on offense (514.6 yards per game to 373) and a small one on defense (317 allowed to 335). That is offset by a marked advantage for NIU in turnover margin (plus-7 to minus-1). The Huskies have also been great in the red zone, scoring 100 percent of the time. Owing to sharp coaches on both sidelines and bright players on the field, once the nerves are sorted out this will be a "MAC Daddy" of a football game!
Game Plans
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No. 14 Northern Illinois
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Bowling Green
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Offense |
Your job is to maintain possession. Keep the Bowling Green offense on the bench. |
You must score touchdowns in the red zone. If history is a guide you will not get there very much. |
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When you penetrate the red zone, continue your great job. Points every time. |
Josh Harris, keep your chip-on-the-shoulder approach but be poised as well. |
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Michael Turner, you must break tackles and long runs. |
The revenge factor will hurt if you allow it to become overly emotional. Smart football! |
Defense |
You are facing the No. 2 offense in the country. Poise, responsibility and hustle are required. |
T.J. Carswell, you are no longer a converted safety. Fill like a linebacker! |
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Last year you whipped these guys, but their balance is even more pronounced this time. |
Kevin Newson, NIU knows you are the leading tackler. Read keys and expect play-action. |
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Variety and disguise in coverage will be required to contain Josh Harris. |
You must play much better run defense than last week. This is Turner "The Burner". |
Special Teams |
No blocked punts this game. Focus on mechanics. |
Fake responsibility must be perfect. Remember last week and remind each other. |
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Steve Azar, you like pressure. Be prepared! |
Punt coverage, remember lane integrity. Remember last year's return! |
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Prepare a fake punt and be ready to call it when least expected. They are vulnerable. |
You must get heat on Azar. |
Players |
Brian "The Beast" Atkinson, you must lead when it gets tough. The team looks to you. |
Foolish penalties must be eliminated in key moments. |
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Team defense must not become preoccupied with Josh Harris. |
Ted Piepkow, you can be the key to better run defense. Lead! |
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Prepare for this to be louder than Alabama. Have a "togetherness" plan. |
Talk up third-down efficiency. Keep up the great percentages. |
Coaches |
Bowling Green remembers last year. It will not help them if you jump them early. |
Use last week's mistakes to keep heads on straight. |
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Know your personnel, and have individual meetings with players who may be distracted. |
Understand the revenge factor will go out the window on the first kickoff. |
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Joe Novak, your experience could be the difference. |
This one is all about focus. Get the team away from the distractions! |
ESPN college football analyst Bill Curry coached for 17 years in the college ranks. His Game Plans for marquee matchups appear each week during the college football season.
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