The Daily Chronicle: Smith brothers reach dream together

Northern Illinois defensive backs and twin brother Donald Smith (left) and Chris Smith have taken a long and winding road to DeKalb. The two dropped out of high school before earning their GEDs and attended community colleges in Iowa and Kansas and now play for the Huskies and are excelling in the classroom. (Beck Diefenbach – bdiefenbach@daily-chronicle.com)

The Chicago Tribune: Me'co Brown coming on strong for Northern Illinois

The sophomore leads the MAC and ranks 14th nationally in rushing with 110.3 yards per game. He unleashed a career-long 67-yard touchdown run against Purdue.

"He moved his feet, saw the holes and I was really pleased with a couple of big blocks," said NIU coach Jerry Kill, whose Huskies (2-1) host Idaho (2-1) Saturday.

Rockford Register Star: NIU's fake punt call delivers real results

They challenged a play they shouldn’t have. If they don’t challenge, we don’t fake,” said Sawvel, also the defensive backs coach who came over with Kill from Southern Illinois. “During the challenge, I knew Purdue had the momentum, and I looked at all my guys who had played their butts off the entire game, and I was like: ‘You know what, we can get these two yards.’ I asked (upback) Justin Anderson if he felt good about it, and he said, ‘Oh yeah.’ ’’

At that point, Sawvel told Kill over the headset, saying: “Hey, I think we need to run the fake.” After what Sawvel called a power pause, Kill replied: “Do you really think we have it?” Sawvel answered: “Two yards; we can get two yards.”

Fanhouse: Big Ten suspends Zach Reckman- Sore loser gets suspended

With Progar already down, Reckman jumped on top of him -- and hit Progar's ribs with his right hand for good measure.

From The Daily Chronicle:
Progar said after Tuesday's practice. "We got the win so I just went down. I didn't even notice that guy hit me afterwards either until I watched the film the other day. I didn't even notice. I thought it was one of my own players jumping on me."

Asked if he thought it was a cheap hit, Progar said, "No. I mean, it was but I don't really care."

Idaho Press: Alger: Vandals continue ascent to respect

UI's coming opponent, Northern Illinois, may have looked like a prospective question mark before the season began, but now this team is an exclamation point after beating one Big-10 team and narrowly losing to another.

NIU Football: Huskies' Brown Named MAC West Offensive Player of the Week

Northern Illinois sophomore tailback Me'co Brown was named the Mid-American Conference West Division Offensive Player of the Week Monday after rushing for a career-high 150 yards in 26 carries in the Huskies' 28-21 upset victory over Purdue.

Red and Black Attack: The Boilermakers enter the Boneyard

Just past the door the players normally enter is "The Boneyard." The white fixtures in the shape of bones are affixed to the walls complete with scores such as "NIU 19, Alabama 16" and "NIU 20, Maryland 13" from 2003 serve as reminders of the biggest wins of the program’s history.

The Rivalry: Hey Marshmallow: Purdue's Toughness Comes Under Question After NIU Loss

Two run plays sealed the fate of Purdue. The quarterback run off tackle and the zone read handoff to Me'Co Brown. Sophomore Chandler Harnisch, channeling his inner Tim Tebow, followed his blockers mostly to the right side of the Purdue defense and picked up five yards a pop Along with this same concept came Brown, the angry little scatback who refused to be tackled by the first tackler. Harnisch would read the defense and then stretch the play a little, allowing Brown to squirt through the freshly formed hole.