New NIU head coach Jerry Kill’s first recruiting class will be a small one.

The Huskies will only have to fill 10 scholarships when signing day arrives Wednesday. In comparison, NIU signed 19 players last year and 17 in 2006.

“This is a unique situation and a difficult situation,” Kill said. “It’s just a tough thing to come into, and in some ways, it’s good because we got a lot of returning players.”

When a school brings in a new coach, recruiting can be more difficult. By the time the coach has accepted the job, a lot of players have already made their commitments. Plus, some of the players that NIU was recruiting might change their outlook with a new coach.

“That’s what made it tough coming in here; when you take it up a notch, most of them are already committed,” Kill said. “I think everybody in the Chicagoland area was committed before we got the job.”

According to Rivals.com, a Web site devoted to college recruiting, the Huskies have six players who have made a verbal commitment to NIU. A verbal commitment is when a player says they will attend that institution, as they cannot officially commit until National Signing Day.

This group includes defensive tackle Adam Coleman from Bettendorf, Iowa; offensive lineman Richard Hayes from Lake Villa, Ill.; safety Jody VanLaanen from Green Bay; tight end Dan Edem from Apple Valley, Minn.; wide receiver Chase Mejia from Columbia, Mo.; and linebacker Kevin Sabock from Sycamore, the son of former NIU recruiting coordinator Mike Sabock. All four players are rated as “two star” recruits out of five stars by Rivals.

With only a handful of players leaving the program, the Huskies did not lose a great deal of players from a certain position, but they will have to worry about that for the next several years.

“Looking a year out, we’ve got three senior corners. We’re probably going to need a corner a year from now,” Kill said. “We’re going to lose five wide receivers as seniors, so we probably need to pick up one or two wide receivers.”

The biggest loss for the Huskies could be kicker Chris Nendick. Nendick has kicked for the Huskies the last four years, and currently no scholarship kickers are on the roster.

A different recruiting site, Scout.com, lists the Huskies as interested in two kickers, although one has already made a verbal commitment to Iowa.

One difference that Kill faces at NIU is between recruiting in the NCAA Football Championship Subdivision (formerly 1-AA) and the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (formerly 1-A).

Bowl Subdivision teams are allowed 85 scholarships, while Championship Subdivision teams are limited to 63.

“Right now we lack scholarships,” Kill said. “Division 1-A you have more scholarships to work with, plus you try to get that next level of player.”

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