CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

2023 Northern Illinois

7–⁠6 (5–⁠3 Mid-American Conference), coached by Thomas Hammock.

Schedule and results

Northern Illinois in 2023, game by game: won at Boston College 27–24; lost vs. Southern Illinois 11–14; lost at Nebraska 11–35; lost vs. Tulsa 14–22; lost at Toledo 33–35; won at Akron 55–14; won vs. Ohio 23–13; won vs. Eastern Michigan 20–13; lost at Central Michigan 31–37; lost vs. Ball State 17–20; won vs. Western Michigan 24–0; won at Kent State 37–27; won vs. Arkansas State 21–19+41−24Won 27–24 at Boston College+3Boston CollegeLost 11–14 vs. Southern Illinois-3Southern Illino…Lost 11–35 at Nebraska-24NebraskaLost 14–22 vs. Tulsa-8TulsaLost 33–35 at Toledo-2ToledoWon 55–14 at Akron+41AkronWon 23–13 vs. Ohio+10OhioWon 20–13 vs. Eastern Michigan+7Eastern MichiganLost 31–37 at Central Michigan-6Central MichiganLost 17–20 vs. Ball State-3Ball StateWon 24–0 vs. Western Michigan+24Western MichiganWon 37–27 at Kent State+10Kent StateWon 21–19 vs. Arkansas State+2Arkansas State
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 2atBoston CollegeW 27–⁠2439%
Sep 9vsSouthern IllinoisL 11–⁠1462%
Sep 16atNebraskaL 11–⁠3536%
Sep 23vsTulsaL 14–⁠2247%
Sep 30atToledoL 33–⁠3517%
Oct 7atAkronW 55–⁠1444%
Oct 14vsOhioW 23–⁠1329%
Oct 21vsEastern MichiganW 20–⁠1347%
Oct 31atCentral MichiganL 31–⁠3744%
Nov 7vsBall StateL 17–⁠2066%
Nov 14vsWestern MichiganW 24–⁠049%
Nov 25atKent StateW 37–⁠2765%
Dec 23Bowls & playoffvsArkansas StateCamellia BowlW 21–⁠1951%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Beat Arkansas State 21–⁠19 in the Camellia Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 4th in the Mid-American Conference.

In program history: The 21st-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 61 on file).

Record
7–⁠6
Conference
5–⁠3 tied for 4th in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
324–⁠273
Coach
Thomas Hammock
Elo
1467 +80 this season
SP+ rating
-7.5 No. 93 of 133; offense No. 115, defense No. 46, special teams No. 113
SRS
−8.4 No. 101 of 133 in FBS
Returning
62% of last season’s EPA, No. 48 of 131
Recruiting class
No. 103 roster talent No. 120 in FBS
Offensive coordinator
Eric Eidsness
Defensive coordinators
Derrick Jackson and Nick Benedetto
Offense
Multiple
Defense
4–⁠2–⁠5

How good, play by play

  • Offense53rd of 133
  • Defense54th of 133
  • Offense, opponent-adjusted75th of 133
  • Defense, opponent-adjusted83rd of 133
EPA per playSuccessExplosivenessFBS rank
Offense0.1343%1.2053rd of 133
Defense0.0940%1.1554th of 133
Opponent-adjusted0.08 off
0.14 def		41% off
43% def		—75th off
83rd def
How these are measured

Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.

Drives and havoc

Points per trip inside the 40Average startHavoc
Offense3.4own 2816% allowed
Defense3.4own 3014% caused

CORE rating -5.9, 91st of 133 (offense -2.8, defense 3.0).

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. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.

Leaders

Passing yardsRocky Lombardi QB2,274 yds
Passing touchdownsRocky Lombardi QB11 TD
Rushing yardsAntario Brown RB1,294 yds
Rushing touchdownsAntario Brown RB10 TD
Receiving yardsTrayvon Rudolph WR531 yds
Receiving touchdownsGrayson Barnes TE5 TD
TacklesRaishein Thomas DL74 tkl
SacksJames Ester DT4 sacks
InterceptionsJavaughn Byrd CB3 INT

Top recruits in the 2023 class

Thomas Paasch OT★★★No. 1688
Michael Jimmar OT★★★No. 1850
Mahki Rolle ATH★★★No. 1889
Mason Kidd QB★★★No. 2054
Jacob Welch OT★★★No. 2145

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2023 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks13.00.827
Receivers23.00.805
Offensive line53.00.820
Defensive line23.00.802
Linebackers12.00.789
Defensive backs22.50.798
Athletes and specialists43.00.817
Whole class172.90.811

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.

Roster 122

The 2023 roster

122 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2023 line; 67 have a stat line. See the roster

Transfers in 4

The 2023 portal
Cam’Ron Dabney CB★★★from Kansas
Gavin Williams RB★★★from Iowa
Jake Seibert K★★★from Ohio State
Keshon Artis LB★★★from Virginia Tech

Transfers out 11

Eric Rogers CB★★★to Rutgers
Marques Cox OT★★★to Kentucky
Daveren Rayner LB★★★to Kentucky
Brandon MacKinnon OT★★to Massachusetts
Dustin Fletcher QB★★★no new school on file
Liam Rempel DE★★★no new school on file
Mohamed Toure WR★★★no new school on file
Zeke Williams CB★★★no new school on file
Azhaun Dingle RB★★no new school on file
Harrison Waylee RB★★to Wyoming
Jaiden Credle RB★★to Middle Tennessee

2023 Mid-American Conference standings

TeamConf.OverallAP final
Toledo8–⁠011–⁠3
Miami (OH)7–⁠111–⁠3
Ohio6–⁠210–⁠3
Bowling Green5–⁠37–⁠6
Northern Illinois5–⁠37–⁠6
Eastern Michigan4–⁠46–⁠7
Central Michigan3–⁠55–⁠7
Western Michigan3–⁠54–⁠8
Ball State3–⁠54–⁠8
Buffalo3–⁠53–⁠9
Akron1–⁠72–⁠10
Kent State0–⁠81–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.