The Northern Illinois University football team holds a spring practices Tuesday in Huskie Stadium at NIU in DeKalb.

As the MLB and MLS seasons have kicked off in recent weeks, several area natives are continuing their professional careers.

Rob Harley’s first spring as NIU coach arrives Wednesday with no rosters, vague answers, and closed practices. But the vibes are strong according to those inside the house. What effect those vibes have on the product, or what the product looks like, remains a question mark.

Matt Majkrzak was announced as the 30th head men's basketball coach for NIU on Tuesday. And in his introductory press conference, he made it clear. He wants to win.

Northern Illinois University President Lisa Freeman and Vice President/Director of Athletics and Recreation, Sean Frazier, introduced NIU’s new head men’s basketball coach Matt Majkrzak at a press conference today in the Convocation Center at NIU in DeKalb.

Former Northern Michigan coach Matt Majkrzak will take over the NIU men’s basketball program, looking to stop a streak of six losing seasons for a Huskies program that has only finished above .500 four times this century.

NIU will play its first schedule of all Saturday game in all 30 years, starting and ending its inaugural Mountain West season at home.

Rashon Burno and is no longer the NIU men's basketball coach. He and the school have parted ways after five years according to a press release from the school.

The Seattle Seahawks are on the hook for a $600,000 buyout for Thomas Hammock's contract, according to documents obtained by Shaw Local. Interim coach Rob Harley's contract runs through June 2027 and will earn him $400,000.

The Mountain West update its conference schedule Tuesday, with NIU now playing new member North Dakota State. New Mexico has been removed this year along with a couple other minor changes.

Seven years of Thomas Hammock gave NIU its highest highs and lowest lows. Beat Notre Dame one week, lose to Buffalo two weeks later. A tenure defined by wild swings, never in the order anyone expected.

Interim coach Rob Harley said NIU didn’t stay rattled after Hammock’s departure: “There’s a lot of excitement for what is next.”

Beating Notre Dame. Winning the Mid-American Conference in 2021. Joining the Mountain West Conference. NIU athletic director Sean Frazier said the biggest accomplishments of Huskies football for the last seven years don’t happen without Thomas Hammock.

After seven seasons leading the Northern Illinois University football program, head coach Thomas Hammock has resigned to return to a coaching position in the National Football League

The New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks will face off against each other in Super Bowl LX and there will be plenty of Illinois connections. Here is a list of players and coaches participating in the Super Bowl who have a connection to Illinois or the Chicago Bears.

NIU announced its finalized 2026 football schedule on Thursday with a trip to Georgia State. That leaves the Huskies with three FBS road games to start the season and a home game against FCS runner-up Illinois State before its inaugural Mountain West slate.

More than a decade after his playing career ended, Jordan Lynch is still making NIU history. Lynch was introduced as a member of the 2026 NFF College Football Hall of Fame Class by the National Football Foundation on Wednesday.

Former Northern Illinois University quarterback and current Mount Carmel High School head football coach Jordan Lynch was named as a member of the 2026 National Football Foundation’s College Football Hall of Fame class.

NIU’s first Mountain West slate is set, so here’s a quick look at every 2026 opponent — from first matchups to long‑distance trips and a few familiar faces. A new league means new storylines for the Huskies.

NIU trailed by 20 in the second half but a putback by Taj Walters at the buzzer gave the Huskies a victory over Central Michigan in the MAC opener.

The Mountain West Conference announced its home and away opponents for the 2026 season, the first for NIU in the conference.

Notre Dame’s playoff tantrum may kill the G6’s seat at the table. So why beg for scraps? Let the Power 4 have their semi‑pro league—G6 should drop to FCS, build a 32‑team playoff, and swing bigger than NIU’s Mountain West move.

A foundational offensive line group. A defensive line that will mostly be here in January. A linebacker that can fill some big shoes. Here are five takeways from NIU's 2026 signing class.

Quinn Urwiler’s NIU career wasn’t just tackles, it was tone‑setting. The Batavia grad leaves as a leader who embodied grit, accountability, and culture in a season that tested the Huskies at every turn.

Gary Givens and Evan Malcore were the latest offensive starters for NIU to hit the transfer portal since the season ended. Both announced on Tuesday and joined Josh Holst, DeAree Rogers, and Jake Appleget, among others

Josh Holst, DeAree Rogers and Jake Appleget were among the first NIU football players to announce entering the transfer portal.

Quinn Urwiler forced his second turnover, the NIU offense was surging, and the Huskies seemed headed toward a win in their final Mid-American Conference game. But Kent State surged and won, 35-31 as the Huskies finished 3-9 and 2-6 in MAC play.

The NIU football team led by two scores in the fourth quarter, but their season and run in the MAC came to an end with a 35-31 loss to Kent State on Friday

The NIU football team will wrap up its season Friday at home against Kent State, playing its final MAC after 38 years in the league.

Running back Chavon Wright lines up at quarterback out of the shotgun. He takes the snap. Looks for an opening. It’s a play NIU has run a lot on third and fourth downs in short yardage situations. But it wasn't there when the Huskies needed it most in a loss to WMU on Tuesday.

Both passing offense struggled Tuesday, but Western Michigan did enough on the ground and defensively in the second half to knock off NIU in the Huskies' final mid-week MAC game.

Fresh off a 45-3 win against the last-place team in the Mid-American Conference, the degree of difficulty shoots up for the NIU football team when the Huskies host first-place Western Michigan on Tuesday.

Jalen Macon led a resurgent NIU offense with four touchdowns in his first career start as the Huskies beat UMass in their best offensive performance of the season.

The two worst scoring offenses in the country will face off Wednesday when the NIU football team heads to UMass. The Huskies are 133rd nationally, averaging 12.2 points per game, while the Minutemen are 134th at 11.3 points per game.

It’s been one of those years for Northern Illinois.  Very little has gone right for the 2-7 Huskies, and the bad news on Wednesday began as soon as the ball was kicked off in a 42-3 loss to Toledo.

NIU was outplayed in all three phases at Toledo on Wednesday night, resulting in a humbling 42-3 loss at the Glass Bowl. The issues began with allowing former Huskie Trayvon Rudolph to return the opening kickoff for a touchdown.

The NIU football team heads to Toledo on Wednesday to take on the Rockets, the last scheduled meeting between the two teams ahead of the Huskies leaving the Mid-American Conference at the end of the school year.

NIU got a double-double from 6-11 true freshman post Gustav Winther, a 10-assist, zero-turnover game from Gianni Cobb and an efficiency clinic from Jao Ituka off the bench in a 102-82 win over Louisiana-Monroe in the season opener on Monday.

"We came in and chose violence." NIU ran 57 times for 305 yards, including 37 carries and 166 yards for Chavon Wright, in a 21-7 win against Ball State on Saturday.

NIU snapped a six-game losing streak and knocked off Ball State 21-7 on Saturday, claiming the Bronze Stalk in the last currently scheduled meeting between the schools.

The NIU football team is 1-9 in rivalry trophy games under coach Thomas Hammock, but can pick up the Bronze Stalk on Saturday when the Huskies host Ball State.

Marengo grad Josh Holst returned to the starting quarterback role for NIU at Ohio on Saturday, but the Huskies lost for the sixth straight time despite season highs in total yards and points.

The NIU football team will try to snap its five-game losing streak on Saturday when it faces defending MAC Champion Ohio at 2:30 p.m. Saturday.

The NIU offense struggled to score points again, this time against an Eastern Michigan defense that had been allowing more than 35 points per game. The Huskies lost 16-10 and still haven't scored 20 points in a game this year.

Eastern Michigan hasn’t given up less than 24 points in a game. NIU hasn’t scored more than 19. Something will have to give Saturday when the Eagles and Huskies clash in Ypsilanti.

After 136 yards of total offense on their first two drives behind the play of two true freshmen, NIU managed 84 yards the rest of the game as the RedHawks picked up the 25-14 win on Saturday, keeping the Mallory Cup and spoiling NIU’s homecoming.

True freshman quarterback Brady Davidson got his first start of the year and NIU responded on its first two drives, scoring touchdowns. But the Huskies couldn’t score again, opening MAC play with a 25-14 loss to Miami (Ohio), their fourth straight loss.

NIU gymnastics will become a member of the Mountain West Conference beginning in the 2026-207 school year the school announced Thursday, joining the Huskies’ football team in the new conference.

Northern Illinois University continued its homecoming celebration with the Huskie Homecoming Block Party Thursday in downtown DeKalb.

It’s a trophy game. It’s a homecoming game. And it’s a chance for a 1-3 team to start conference play off right. Miami (Ohio) heads to DeKalb on Saturday for NIU’s homecoming game. The teams also battle for the Mallory Cup, which started in 2018.