Ben Gross: Well Jackie, there’s no football this Saturday; how are we going to fill up the sports section this week?

Jackie Thyfault: Well, there may be no football games, but I happen to know there will be a couple of volleyball games this weekend. Hint hint, just an idea.

BG: Jackie, while I adore the volleyball team and its head coach, I’m sorry to say volleyball doesn’t sell papers.

JT: Silly Ben, our paper is free.

BG: Touché. But I’m the Homecoming king, so I’m going to dictate what we debate about.
JT: As much power as I’m sure the position of Homecoming king has to offer, I think I’ll take point on this one. So King Ben, what do you think is the most crucial asset to the football team, its offense or defense?

BG: It’s got to be the defense, Jackie. You know what they say, defense wins championships.

JT: The last time that happened was in 1983; hey Ben, wasn’t that the year you started college?
Currently, I think our offense has been bringing in the wins for NIU this season.

BG: While the Huskies have to score points to win, except in those rarest of occasions when a team gets negative points, it’s more about keeping points off the board for this team.

In NIU’s three wins this season, it’s allowed just over 10 points per game. In their two losses this season, the Huskies are allowing opponents to average 31 points.

JT: When you look at the averages, things do look pretty good for the defense. But when you look at individual games, you see it’s the offense that’s shown the most consistency.
For example, the defense was spectacular against Western Michigan but was lackluster against Idaho.

The offense, however, has scored 20 points or more in all five games this season. It’s gone over the 30 mark three times.

BG: And that’s why the defense is the most crucial aspect to this team.
NIU has shown it can’t win in a shootout. The game against Idaho proved that.

When the Huskies have been successful, it’s been when their defense has limited opponents.
In NIU’s three wins this season, the defense has allowed an average of 270 yards. In losses this year, that number bumps up to 455 yards.

JT: The top ten scoring offenses in the nation have an overall record of 41-3. On the flip side, the top ten scoring defenses have an overall record of 37-9.

The numbers don’t lie: Offense wins games. Defense keeps you from losing games.

BG: Jackie, Jackie, Jackie, don’t you know that numbers do lie? Number 18 once told me that I was an adult. But then 40 said I was a man. One of them has to be lying.

You can’t just look at scoring offenses or scoring defenses, you have to look at scoring margins. The best in the MAC is Central Michigan with a 14.2 point difference. The Chippewas record, 4-1.
NIU’s got an offense that is almost, and at times, running on all cylinders. The only way to make the scoring margin shift positively for the Huskies is for their defense to dominate. That’s why defense is the most crucial part of this team.

JT: You know what Ben, I can settle this argument in two words; Chandler Harnish.
Actually, I lied. I need a couple more words.

We can’t forget about the dream team, Me’co Brown and Chad Spann. Can you say, “Spanntastic?”

BG: You know Jackie, I’m the King and I think I’ve learned something from King Solomon on this issue. Let’s split the team in half, and then we’ll see who really cares.

JT: Go ahead. I’ll get the better half.

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