The University of Akron Athletics
Saturday, November 26
DeKalb, Ill.
1:30 PM ET
University of Akron
at
Northern Illinois
Akron Heads West for Showdown with Northern Illinois
November 24 | Football
Akron (1-9, 0-6 MAC) at Northern Illinois (3-8, 2-5 MAC)
Saturday, Nov. 26
Huskie Stadium
DeKalb, Ill. • 1:30 p.m. ET
Series History: Northern Illinois leads 11-5
Live Stats:Â www.GoZips.com
Live Stream: www.GoZips.com (subscription may be required)
Television:Â www.GoZips.com (subscription may be required)
Radio:Â 640 WHLO AM (Dave Skoczen - pxp and Joe Dunn - color)
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WHAT'S AHEAD
The University of Akron football team travels to DeKalb, Ill, for a showdown with Northern Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 26. The 1:30 p.m. ET tilt will be broadcast on ESPN3 with Jim Barbar and Ryan Cavanaugh calling the action with a link on GoZips.com.
HEAD COACHES
Northern Illinois: Thomas Hammock (Northern Illinois, 2002), overall record: 17-26 (Fourth Season)/record at Northern Illinois: 17-26 (Fourth Season)
Akron: Joe Moorhead (Fordham, 1996), overall record - 53-34 (Seventh Season)/record at Akron - 1-9 (First Season)
SERIES HISTORY
Akron is meeting Northern Illinois for the 17th time in program history with the Huskies owning a 11-5 series advantage. In the last meeting between the two schools, Northern Illinois registered a 49-0 triumph past Akron on Oct. 26, 2019 at Huskie Stadium.
The series between the two schools dates back to the 1966 campaign when Northern Illinois earned an 31-18 home victory over Akron.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Northern Illinois enters action this week against Akron at 3-8 on the campaign, including 2-5 in the Mid-American Conference, following a 29-23 home setback against Miami on Wednesday, Nov. 16.
Freshman QB Nevan Cremascoli directs the Huskies' attack passing for 456 yards, including throwing for five touchdowns. Sophomore RB Harrison Waylee and sophomore RB Antario Brown have rushed for 872 and 689 yards, respectively, while running for 12 combined touchdowns. The duo of redshirt senior WR Cole Tucker and junior WR Kacper Rutkiewicz have pulled down 41 and 24 passes, respectively, for 599 and 405 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Defensively, the duo of sophomore S C.J. Brown and sophomore LB Daveren Rayner have combined to record 73 and 71 tackles, including posting 36 and 30 solo stops, respectively. Northern Illinois has tallied 29 sacks and 61 tackles for a loss.
As a team, the Huskies average 28.6 points per game, while their opponents net 31.7 points per outing. Northern Illinois has thrown for 183.6 yards and rushed for 199.6 yards per tilt.
As a team, the Huskies rank second in the NCAA in kickoff return defense (14.11), 15th in fumble recoveries (11), 24th in rushing offense (199.6), 26th in defensive touchdowns (2) and red zone offense (.889), 30th in team sacks (2.64), 37th in turnovers gained (18), 39th in turnover margin (0.36) and 43rd in time of possession (30:49)
Individually, Waylee is ranked 38th in the NCAA in rushing yards per game (87.2) and 42nd in rushing yards (872) and rushing yards per carry (5.55).
IN OUR LAST MEETING (OCT. 26, 2019 - DEKALB, ILL.)
On a cold and rainy Saturday at Huskie Stadium, Akron fell 49-0 to Northern Illinois on Oct. 26, 2019 in DeKalb, Ill.
QB Zach Gibson threw for 36 yards on a 4-of-15 effort and found WR Jeremiah Knight for a 14-yard long pass. In addition, WR Julian Hicks led the receiving corps with 22 yards on three receptions.
RB Brandon Lee was Akron's leading rusher, picking-up 76 yards on 10 carries, including a 25-yard long carry. RB Michiah Burton followed with 39 yards on eight carries with a 19-yard long attempt.
On the defensive side of the ball, LB John Lako and redshirt senior LB Bubba Arslanian (Aurora, Ohio) posted double-digits in tackles. Lako recorded 15 takedowns, while Arslanian registered 12 tackles. LB Josh Ward tallied the Zips lone sack for a seven-yard loss, he finished the game with five tackles.
ZIP TIDBITS
• WR Shocky Jacques-Louis owns 800 receiving yards on the campaign and is on pace to become only the fifth Zips to post a 1,000-yard receiving season. He would join Domenik Hixon (1,210-2005), Jabari Arthur (1,171-2007), Dan Ruff (1,041-1968) and Jerome Lane (1,018-2016).
• The 65 receptions for WR Shocky Jacques-Louis rank as the sixth-best single-season mark in program history, while redshirt junior WR Daniel George's (Fort Washington, Md.) 53 catches is nine shy of cracking the top-10 leaderboard. Jacques-Louis needs two catches to surpass Matthew Cherry (2003), who won an Academy Award in 2019, and Domenik Hixon (2004) for fourth place.
• QB DJ Iron's 2,606 passing yards ranks as the eighth-best single-season effort in program history. He enters the Northern Illinois game 17 yards behind Charlie Frye (2,623-2004) for seventh place and 56 yards shy of Luke Getsy (2,662-2006) for sixth place.
• QB DJ Irons is on pace to become only the fourth 3,000-yard single-season passer in program history joining Charlie Fry (3,549-2003), Luke Getsy (3,455-2006) and Dalton (3,387-2012), while his 260.6 passing average ranks as the fourth-best single-season mark in program history.
• Akron boasts a league-best three receivers in the top-12 in the MAC as WR Shocky Jacques-Louis, WR Alex Adams and WR Daniel George rank second (80.0), third (76.3) and 11th (59.7), respectively.
• WR Alex Adams posted his third consecutive 100-yard receiving game against Eastern Michigan pulling in six catches for 102 yards.
• QB DJ Irons has completed 25 or more passes in six of 10 games this season, including a recent string four straight for the Zips. He has completed 60 percent or more of his passes in seven of Akron's 10 games this season.
• WR Alex Adam's 200-yard receiving outing at Kent State represented the first Akron receiver to hit the 200-yard plateau in a game since a 217-yard effort from Dustin Burkhart against UAB on Sept. 7, 2019.
• QB DJ Irons connected on a school-record 43 completions against Ohio finishing the game 43-of-54 for a career-high 418 yards passing. His 43 completions stand as a single-game high for Division I this season and best the previous school-record mark of 37 set by Dalton Williams in 2012. Additionally, his 54 pass attempts ranks as the fifth-best single-game performance in program history.
• The Zips have posted an interception in five of Akron's 10 games this season.
• WR Shocky Jacques-Louis has registered four 100-yard receiving games this season pulling in eight catches for 122 yards against Saint Francis (Sept. 1), nine receptions for 103 yards at Tennessee (Sept. 17), 11 catches for 152 yards at Ohio (Oct. 8) and nine receptions versus Miami (Oct. 29) for 103 yards. He enters play against Northern Illinois rated 11th in the NCAA in receptions per outing (6.5), 35th in receiving yards per game (80.0) and 43rd in receiving yards (800).
• Akron is rated 21st in the NCAA in passing offense (283.1), 36th in completion percentage (.645), 37th in kickoff returns (21.60) and 48th in time of possession (30:36).
• Individually, QB DJ Irons is rated ninth in completions per game (25.30), 22nd in completion percentage (.668), 28th in passing yards per game (260.6) and 36th in passing yards (2,606), while WR Shocky Jacques-Louis is ranked 25th in kickoff returns (23.5) and 41st in all purpose yards (110.80). LB Bubba Arslanian is rated third total tackles (11.2) and 28th in solo tackles (5.0).
• LB Bubba Arslanian has sparked Akron's defensive efforts over the course of his decorated career having recorded 177 solo tackles, including 50 this season, and 190 career assisted tackles. He is ranked 17th among active career leaders across all divisions in total tackles (367), 18th in assisted tackles (190), 40th in solo tackles (177) and 59th in total tackles per game (8.34). Additionally, he is rated sixth in Division I in total tackles per contest (8.34), seventh in total tackles (367), ninth in assisted tackles (190), 18th in solo tackles (177) and19th in solo tackles per tilt (4.02). Arslanian has had 10 or more total tackles in 24 of the last 32 games he has played in overall. Arslanian surpassed the 300-tackle plateau for his career against Bowling Green on Oct. 1, 2022.
• Arslanian has paced the Zips in tackles over 22 of Akron's last 25 contests he has appeared in dating back to the 2019 campaign.
UP NEXT
Akron closes out its season with a 1 p.m. rescheduled contest at Buffalo on Friday, Dec. 2.
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Saturday, Nov. 26
Huskie Stadium
DeKalb, Ill. • 1:30 p.m. ET
Series History: Northern Illinois leads 11-5
Live Stats:Â www.GoZips.com
Live Stream: www.GoZips.com (subscription may be required)
Television:Â www.GoZips.com (subscription may be required)
Radio:Â 640 WHLO AM (Dave Skoczen - pxp and Joe Dunn - color)
Â
WHAT'S AHEAD
The University of Akron football team travels to DeKalb, Ill, for a showdown with Northern Illinois on Saturday, Nov. 26. The 1:30 p.m. ET tilt will be broadcast on ESPN3 with Jim Barbar and Ryan Cavanaugh calling the action with a link on GoZips.com.
HEAD COACHES
Northern Illinois: Thomas Hammock (Northern Illinois, 2002), overall record: 17-26 (Fourth Season)/record at Northern Illinois: 17-26 (Fourth Season)
Akron: Joe Moorhead (Fordham, 1996), overall record - 53-34 (Seventh Season)/record at Akron - 1-9 (First Season)
SERIES HISTORY
Akron is meeting Northern Illinois for the 17th time in program history with the Huskies owning a 11-5 series advantage. In the last meeting between the two schools, Northern Illinois registered a 49-0 triumph past Akron on Oct. 26, 2019 at Huskie Stadium.
The series between the two schools dates back to the 1966 campaign when Northern Illinois earned an 31-18 home victory over Akron.
SCOUTING NORTHERN ILLINOIS
Northern Illinois enters action this week against Akron at 3-8 on the campaign, including 2-5 in the Mid-American Conference, following a 29-23 home setback against Miami on Wednesday, Nov. 16.
Freshman QB Nevan Cremascoli directs the Huskies' attack passing for 456 yards, including throwing for five touchdowns. Sophomore RB Harrison Waylee and sophomore RB Antario Brown have rushed for 872 and 689 yards, respectively, while running for 12 combined touchdowns. The duo of redshirt senior WR Cole Tucker and junior WR Kacper Rutkiewicz have pulled down 41 and 24 passes, respectively, for 599 and 405 yards and 10 touchdowns.
Defensively, the duo of sophomore S C.J. Brown and sophomore LB Daveren Rayner have combined to record 73 and 71 tackles, including posting 36 and 30 solo stops, respectively. Northern Illinois has tallied 29 sacks and 61 tackles for a loss.
As a team, the Huskies average 28.6 points per game, while their opponents net 31.7 points per outing. Northern Illinois has thrown for 183.6 yards and rushed for 199.6 yards per tilt.
As a team, the Huskies rank second in the NCAA in kickoff return defense (14.11), 15th in fumble recoveries (11), 24th in rushing offense (199.6), 26th in defensive touchdowns (2) and red zone offense (.889), 30th in team sacks (2.64), 37th in turnovers gained (18), 39th in turnover margin (0.36) and 43rd in time of possession (30:49)
Individually, Waylee is ranked 38th in the NCAA in rushing yards per game (87.2) and 42nd in rushing yards (872) and rushing yards per carry (5.55).
IN OUR LAST MEETING (OCT. 26, 2019 - DEKALB, ILL.)
On a cold and rainy Saturday at Huskie Stadium, Akron fell 49-0 to Northern Illinois on Oct. 26, 2019 in DeKalb, Ill.
QB Zach Gibson threw for 36 yards on a 4-of-15 effort and found WR Jeremiah Knight for a 14-yard long pass. In addition, WR Julian Hicks led the receiving corps with 22 yards on three receptions.
RB Brandon Lee was Akron's leading rusher, picking-up 76 yards on 10 carries, including a 25-yard long carry. RB Michiah Burton followed with 39 yards on eight carries with a 19-yard long attempt.
On the defensive side of the ball, LB John Lako and redshirt senior LB Bubba Arslanian (Aurora, Ohio) posted double-digits in tackles. Lako recorded 15 takedowns, while Arslanian registered 12 tackles. LB Josh Ward tallied the Zips lone sack for a seven-yard loss, he finished the game with five tackles.
ZIP TIDBITS
• WR Shocky Jacques-Louis owns 800 receiving yards on the campaign and is on pace to become only the fifth Zips to post a 1,000-yard receiving season. He would join Domenik Hixon (1,210-2005), Jabari Arthur (1,171-2007), Dan Ruff (1,041-1968) and Jerome Lane (1,018-2016).
• The 65 receptions for WR Shocky Jacques-Louis rank as the sixth-best single-season mark in program history, while redshirt junior WR Daniel George's (Fort Washington, Md.) 53 catches is nine shy of cracking the top-10 leaderboard. Jacques-Louis needs two catches to surpass Matthew Cherry (2003), who won an Academy Award in 2019, and Domenik Hixon (2004) for fourth place.
• QB DJ Iron's 2,606 passing yards ranks as the eighth-best single-season effort in program history. He enters the Northern Illinois game 17 yards behind Charlie Frye (2,623-2004) for seventh place and 56 yards shy of Luke Getsy (2,662-2006) for sixth place.
• QB DJ Irons is on pace to become only the fourth 3,000-yard single-season passer in program history joining Charlie Fry (3,549-2003), Luke Getsy (3,455-2006) and Dalton (3,387-2012), while his 260.6 passing average ranks as the fourth-best single-season mark in program history.
• Akron boasts a league-best three receivers in the top-12 in the MAC as WR Shocky Jacques-Louis, WR Alex Adams and WR Daniel George rank second (80.0), third (76.3) and 11th (59.7), respectively.
• WR Alex Adams posted his third consecutive 100-yard receiving game against Eastern Michigan pulling in six catches for 102 yards.
• QB DJ Irons has completed 25 or more passes in six of 10 games this season, including a recent string four straight for the Zips. He has completed 60 percent or more of his passes in seven of Akron's 10 games this season.
• WR Alex Adam's 200-yard receiving outing at Kent State represented the first Akron receiver to hit the 200-yard plateau in a game since a 217-yard effort from Dustin Burkhart against UAB on Sept. 7, 2019.
• QB DJ Irons connected on a school-record 43 completions against Ohio finishing the game 43-of-54 for a career-high 418 yards passing. His 43 completions stand as a single-game high for Division I this season and best the previous school-record mark of 37 set by Dalton Williams in 2012. Additionally, his 54 pass attempts ranks as the fifth-best single-game performance in program history.
• The Zips have posted an interception in five of Akron's 10 games this season.
• WR Shocky Jacques-Louis has registered four 100-yard receiving games this season pulling in eight catches for 122 yards against Saint Francis (Sept. 1), nine receptions for 103 yards at Tennessee (Sept. 17), 11 catches for 152 yards at Ohio (Oct. 8) and nine receptions versus Miami (Oct. 29) for 103 yards. He enters play against Northern Illinois rated 11th in the NCAA in receptions per outing (6.5), 35th in receiving yards per game (80.0) and 43rd in receiving yards (800).
• Akron is rated 21st in the NCAA in passing offense (283.1), 36th in completion percentage (.645), 37th in kickoff returns (21.60) and 48th in time of possession (30:36).
• Individually, QB DJ Irons is rated ninth in completions per game (25.30), 22nd in completion percentage (.668), 28th in passing yards per game (260.6) and 36th in passing yards (2,606), while WR Shocky Jacques-Louis is ranked 25th in kickoff returns (23.5) and 41st in all purpose yards (110.80). LB Bubba Arslanian is rated third total tackles (11.2) and 28th in solo tackles (5.0).
• LB Bubba Arslanian has sparked Akron's defensive efforts over the course of his decorated career having recorded 177 solo tackles, including 50 this season, and 190 career assisted tackles. He is ranked 17th among active career leaders across all divisions in total tackles (367), 18th in assisted tackles (190), 40th in solo tackles (177) and 59th in total tackles per game (8.34). Additionally, he is rated sixth in Division I in total tackles per contest (8.34), seventh in total tackles (367), ninth in assisted tackles (190), 18th in solo tackles (177) and19th in solo tackles per tilt (4.02). Arslanian has had 10 or more total tackles in 24 of the last 32 games he has played in overall. Arslanian surpassed the 300-tackle plateau for his career against Bowling Green on Oct. 1, 2022.
• Arslanian has paced the Zips in tackles over 22 of Akron's last 25 contests he has appeared in dating back to the 2019 campaign.
UP NEXT
Akron closes out its season with a 1 p.m. rescheduled contest at Buffalo on Friday, Dec. 2.
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Players Mentioned
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