A 1-5 record at the midway point of the season is not what the NIU football team had in mind.

A loss in Philadelphia on Saturday gave Temple only its fourth win in the last 40 games. As the case has been all season, injuries, penalties and missed opportunities in the red zone sent the team to its fifth loss. Still, head coach Joe Novak insists the team and the coaching staff isn’t looking toward next year.

“We’ve got six games to play and 95 percent of this team is coming back,” Novak said. “I owe it to these seniors; I owe it to the rest of the kids. If you are looking towards next year, next year starts Saturday.”

Injury update

Starting quarterback Dan Nicholson left Saturday’s game in the fourth quarter with an ankle injury and his status is day-to-day. Sophomore Ryan Morris took over for Nicholson and went 1-of-3 for 12 yards and was sacked twice.

“[Nicholson] wasn’t 100 percent going in to the game,” Novak said. “If Morris is better at 100 percent than Dan at 70 percent, I’m gonna go with the guy that gives us a better chance to win.”

A Wide-out problem

Wide receiver Britt Davis is doubtful for this Saturday’s Homecoming game against Western Michigan after not playing against Temple. Greg Turner also missed Saturday’s game and is expected to be back this weekend. The junior will also be back as the team’s regular point after touchdown and field goal holder after NIU failed on two PAT’s Saturday.

Fellow wide receiver Marcus Perez returned to the field against Temple for the first time since injuring his shoulder against Southern Illinois. The junior caught a season-high five passes for 63 yards and had 154 all-purpose yards on the day.

Getting his hits

Freshman defensive tackle D.J. Pirkle recorded his first ever quarterback sack on Saturday and ended the day with two.

Running away

Redshirt sophomore running back Justin Anderson rushed for at least 150 yards for the fourth consecutive game. Against Temple, Anderson ran for 163 yards after rushing for 168, 167 and 157 yards the previous three games. The Chicago native has racked up 736 yards on the season and is ranked 12th nationally in yards per game with 122.7.

Kick-off set

Kick off for the NIU-Wisconsin game on Oct. 20 has been set for 11 a.m. at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network. Overall this season, 10 of the 12 Huskie games will be on broadcast television.

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