The 2023 season's largest margin: Northern Illinois 55, Akron 14. A 41-point win — the year's high-water mark.
2023 — The 2023 Season
Northern Illinois's 2023 season (7-6) is a middle chapter: table-stakes progress, no crown in the ledger, the program still writing the book.
The Shape — week-by-week · cumulative W–L below
Who carried it
- Rocky LombardiQB2,274 passing yards
- Antario BrownRB1,294 rushing yards
- Gavin WilliamsRB488 rushing yards
- Trayvon RudolphWR531 receiving yards
- Grayson BarnesTE422 receiving yards
- Kacper RutkiewiczWR313 receiving yards
- Raishein ThomasDL74 tackles
- Jaden DolphinLB63 tackles
- Tyler JacksonLB56 tackles
- James EsterDT4 sacks
- George GumbsEDGE3.5 sacks
- Roy WilliamsDE3.5 sacks
Season leaders, 2023.
The season's deepest loss: Northern Illinois 11, Nebraska 35. A 24-point margin the season is remembered by.
The season's last act: Northern Illinois beat Arkansas State 21-19 in the postseason.
"Forward, Together Forward"
2023 is a middle chapter for Northern Illinois — neither a crown year nor a crisis. It is the kind of season that fills the ledger between the named ones and gives the arc its shape.