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The House That Bork Built

Huskie Stadium

Huskie Stadium in DeKalb, IL, home of Northern Illinois. Capacity 23,595. Opened 1965.

Huskie Stadium in DeKalb, IL
Huskie Stadium, DeKalb, ILPhoto: Kingfish60559, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Capacity
23,595
Opened
1965
Surface
AstroTurf
Roof
Open air
Elevation
877 ft
Northern Illinois here
91–⁠44 games on file since 2001

Since it opened: Northern Illinois is 183–⁠127–⁠2 in home games from the 1966 season on. Our source names a game’s stadium only from 2001, so that count takes every earlier home game not marked neutral and may include a few played elsewhere.

Biggest games here

From the games on file here, 2001 on: title and postseason games, meetings of two ranked teams, upsets by our pregame Elo ratings and the biggest swings in CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.

Crowds season by season

Average and biggest crowd at Huskie Stadium by season, 2001 to 20260k10k20k30k2001: 13,894 a game over 5 games; biggest 17,3672002: 20,953 a game over 6 games; biggest 25,8222003: 23,575 a game over 7 games; biggest 28,2212005: 22,176 a game over 5 games; biggest 27,6412006: 20,771 a game over 6 games; biggest 27,0392007: 17,864 a game over 5 games; biggest 24,1822008: 18,185 a game over 6 games; biggest 22,0922009: 14,889 a game over 6 games; biggest 21,4272010: 17,760 a game over 5 games; biggest 21,2302011: 15,559 a game over 6 games; biggest 20,2772012: 15,670 a game over 6 games; biggest 18,3742013: 20,669 a game over 5 games; biggest 23,5952014: 13,563 a game over 5 games; biggest 20,1222015: 13,942 a game over 6 games; biggest 17,4652016: 11,019 a game over 5 games; biggest 15,4962017: 11,291 a game over 6 games; biggest 16,7222018: 10,404 a game over 5 games; biggest 16,7622019: 8,518 a game over 5 games; biggest 14,5682021: 9,058 a game over 6 games; biggest 11,3342022: 9,198 a game over 6 games; biggest 14,1102023: 9,456 a game over 6 games; biggest 13,1142024: 12,162 a game over 6 games; biggest 18,6882025: 9,309 a game over 6 games; biggest 13,8272026: 16,437 a game over 2 games; biggest 17,582200120062011201620212026

Biggest crowds on file

28,221Western Michigan at Northern Illinois2003
28,218Iowa State at Northern Illinois2003
28,018Maryland at Northern Illinois2003
27,641Eastern Michigan at Northern Illinois2005
27,039Temple at Northern Illinois2006

Bars are each season’s average crowd, dots its biggest (the record in orange), the dashed rule today’s capacity. Attendance is on file for most games from 2001 on.

Weather on game day

Coldest kickoffs

Hottest kickoffs

Snow at kickoff

Coldest game days before 2004

Hottest game days before 2004

Snow on game day

Kickoffs: the NOAA report nearest kickoff from the closest weather station (NOAA NCEI Integrated Surface Database). Game days: the day’s high and snowfall at the NOAA station nearest the stadium, for Northern Illinois’s home games before 2004 (NOAA GHCN-Daily, public domain).

The stadium’s history

Architect
Holabird & Root, Chicago (west)
HOK Sport (east expansion)
Surface over the years
AstroTurf (2024-present)
FieldTurf (2001–⁠2023)
AstroTurf (1969–⁠2000)
Natural grass (1965–⁠1968)
Expanded
1982, 1995, 2016
Record crowd
28,221 (vs. Western Michigan)

From the stadium’s Wikipedia article, Huskie Stadium.

From above

50 mN ↑
The stadium’s footprint, north up: about 170 by 190 meters (540 by 620 feet), the field in green. Outline from OpenStreetMap, © OpenStreetMap contributors.

Recent games here

Oct 10, 2026Air Force 28, Northern Illinois 7
Sep 12, 2026Illinois State 28, Northern Illinois 24
Nov 28, 2025Kent State 35, Northern Illinois 31
Nov 18, 2025Western Michigan 35, Northern Illinois 19
Oct 25, 2025Northern Illinois 21, Ball State 7
Oct 4, 2025Miami (OH) 25, Northern Illinois 14
Sep 27, 2025San Diego State 6, Northern Illinois 3
Aug 30, 2025Northern Illinois 19, Holy Cross 17
Nov 30, 2024Northern Illinois 24, Central Michigan 16
Nov 13, 2024Northern Illinois 29, Akron 16
Oct 19, 2024Toledo 13, Northern Illinois 6
Oct 5, 2024Northern Illinois 34, Massachusetts 20

Pouring rights

PepsiCo has the stadium’s soft-drink pouring rights. Official source.