2003 Northern Illinois
10–2 (6–2 Mid-American Conference), coached by Joe Novak. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest upsetBeat No. 21 Alabama 19–16Sep 20
Alabama was ranked No. 21, above it.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 28 | vs Maryland | W 20–13 | 45% |
| Sep 6 | vs Tennessee Tech | W 42–17 | 89% |
| Sep 20 | at 21Alabama | W 19–16 | 31% |
| Sep 27 | vs Iowa State | W 24–16 | 69% |
| Oct 4 | vs Ohio | W 30–23 | 84% |
| Oct 11 | at Central Michigan | W 40–24 | 76% |
| Oct 18 | vs Western Michigan | W 37–10 | 79% |
| Oct 25 | at 23Bowling Green | L 18–34 | 47% |
| Nov 1 | vs Ball State | W 48–23 | 75% |
| Nov 8 | at Buffalo | W 40–9 | 88% |
| Nov 15 | at Toledo | L 30–49 | 55% |
| Nov 22 | vs Eastern Michigan | W 38–24 | 89% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Beat Eastern Michigan 38–24; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 3rd in the Mid-American Conference.
In program history: The 8th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 61 on file).
AP poll, week by week
- Wk 6: 20
- Wk 7: 17
- Wk 8: 16
- Wk 9: 12
- Wk 10: 12
- Wk 11: 21
- Wk 12: 23
- Wk 13: 21
Players on this team
Garrett WolfeRunning back
Doug FreeOffensive tackle
Michael TurnerRunning back- A.J. HarrisRunning back
- Phil HorvathQuarterback
Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 2003.
- Record
- 10–2
- Conference
- 6–2 tied for 3rd in Mid-American Conference
- AP final
- Unranked peak No. 12
- Points
- 386–258
- Coach
- Joe Novak
- Elo
- 1600 +60 this season
- SP+ rating
- -2.9 No. 69 of 117; offense No. 69, defense No. 70
- SRS
- 0.1 No. 58 of 117 in Division I-A
- Recruiting class
- No. 100
- Offensive coordinator
- Matt Canada
- Captains
- Randee Drew, Nick Duffy, P.J. Fleck, Akil Grant and Michael Turner
- Most valuable player
- Michael Turner and Vinson Reynolds
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.0 | own 35 | — allowed |
| Defense | 0.0 | own 29 | — caused |
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. From CollegeFootballData.com.
Top recruits in the 2003 class
| Antonio Tribble S | ★★ | No. 1050 |
| Jimmy Toussaint CB | ★★ | No. 1050 |
| Mark Reiter S | ★★ | No. 1050 |
| Chris Acevedo OG | ★★ | No. 1050 |
| Zach Ullrich DUAL | ★★ | No. 1050 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2003 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Running backs | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Receivers | 3 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Offensive line | 5 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Defensive line | 2 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Linebackers | 1 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Defensive backs | 4 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
| Whole class | 19 | 2.0 | 0.767 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Drafted in 2004
The 2004 draft| Rd 5 | Michael Turner RB | San Diego Chargers |
2003 Mid-American Conference standings
| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
 Miami (OH) | 8–0 | 13–1 | 10 |
| Bowling Green | 7–1 | 11–3 | 23 |
 Northern Illinois | 6–2 | 10–2 | |
 Marshall | 6–2 | 8–4 | |
| Toledo | 6–2 | 8–4 | |
 Akron | 5–3 | 7–5 | |
| Western Michigan | 4–4 | 5–7 | |
 Kent State | 4–4 | 5–7 | |
| Ball State | 3–5 | 4–8 | |
| Eastern Michigan | 2–6 | 3–9 | |
 UCF | 2–6 | 3–9 | |
| Central Michigan | 1–7 | 3–9 | |
| Ohio | 1–7 | 2–10 | |
| Buffalo | 1–7 | 1–11 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.