The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Northern Illinois
Football Hangs Tough at No. 23 Northern Illinois, Falls 27-20
October 12 | Football
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DEKALB, Ill. – Akron opened a 7-0 lead on its first possession, but No. 23 Northern Illinois responded with 17-straight points on its way to a 27-20 victory in a Mid-American Conference game on Saturday night at Huskie Stadium.
Jawon Chisholm capped a nine-play, 71-yard drive with a 1-yard touchdown run to give Akron (1-6, 0-3 MAC) a 7-0 edge with 11:04 left in the first quarter. That was one of two TDs on the ground for the junior, who dove 1-yard into the endzone for his second score with 1:12 remaining in the opening period.
Chisholm closed out the day with 70 yards rushing on 20 carries.
Northern Illinois (6-0, 2-0 MAC) quarterback Jordan Lynch threw for one touchdown and ran for another. His 18-yard scamper to the endzone tied the game at 7-all with 59 seconds left in the first quarter. Then Tyler Wedel converted a 42-yard field goal to give the Huskies a 10-7 lead.
Lynch connected with Desroy Maxwell on a 25-yard scoring strike with 4:52 left in the first quarter as the Huskies made it 17-7.
A 40-yard pass from Lynch to Tommylee Lewis set up Northern Illinois' third touchdown – a 9-yard run by Cameron Stingily with 11:37 left in the third quarter to give it a 24-14 lead.
Huskies safety Jimmy Ward intercepted UA quarterback Kyle Pohl early in the fourth quarter at the Zips 30 to set up a 21-yard field goal by Wedel that made it 27-14 with 11:19 to play.
Pohl's 11-yard touchdown pass to Tyrell Goodman with 5:27 left cut the Huskie lead to 27-20, but NIU's Boomer Mays blocked Robert Stein's extra point attempt.
The Zips' Anthony Holmes blocked a 40-yard Wedel field goal try with 1:15 left and UA regained possession at its own 32, but the Northern Illinois defense stopped Akron on a fourth and 10 at its own 45. UA's Nick Rossi blocked a 46-yard field goal attempt by Wedel during the second quarter.
NIU's Lynch was 16-of-35 for 220 yards passing and ran for 83 more on 15 carries. UA's Pohl was 25-of-56 passing for 262 yards and one interception.
Jatavis Brown led Akron with a game-high 15 tackles, including nine solo stops.
The Zips travel to Miami (Ohio) on Oct. 19 for a 1 p.m. ET contest on ESPN3.
Zips Notebook: The Akron defense kept Northern Illinois well below its scoring average of 42.2 points per game and also held the Huskies to 1-of-15 on third-down conversions ... the Zips defense also held the Huskies scoreless during the second quarter, making them the first opponent to shut them out during a quarter thus far this season ... LB Nick Rossi's blocked field goal in the second quarter was the first of his collegiate career ... it was the first time the Zips blocked a field goal since Hasan Hazime did so at Cincinnati on Sept. 17, 2011 ... PK Robert Stein made his 50th- and 51st- consecutive point after attempts in the first quarter to establish the school record, then had a PAT blocked in the fourth quarter ... the school record of 49 was set by Russ Klaus from 1984-85 ... Stein is 16-of-17 on PATs this season.
