11 national championships, the most players drafted into the NFL out of any school in the country, 874 Associated Press poll appearances, an array of team trophies and the fourth highest winning percentage in NCAA Division 1 history. Each of these accolades describe the University of Notre Dame’s football program, so it would have only been natural for the Fighting Irish to believe that no smaller state school, in the middle of nowhere in Illinois, could beat them. As they headed into their home opener game on September 7 against the Northern Illinois University Huskies, this may just have been what they were thinking.
The University of Notre Dame has one of the historically strongest football programs across the nation; in fact, theirs is such an accomplished football program that they sometimes pay their opponents to beat them. Notre Dame’s athletic department paid NIU $1.4 million to lose their home opener at Notre Dame Stadium. Going into this game, the Irish took fifth on the Associated Press’s national preseason prediction ranking, but, coming out on the flip side, the Huskies earned the 25th AP ranking despite not being ranked since 2013.
On that sunny Saturday morning in South Bend, Indiana, the Fighting Irish and Huskie fans packed Notre Dame’s stands. Among the crowd was NIU head coach Thomas Hammock, accompanied by his friends and family, who are ironically ex-Fighting Irish fans.
Notre Dame’s Riley Leonard scored an 11-yard run touchdown in the first quarter, which set the Irish off to a good start. However, the Huskies’ Antario Brown quickly matched the touchdown. Between then and halftime, the Huskies scored two field goals, one from 42 yards and the other from 21. Heading into halftime, the Northern Huskies led 13-7. Through a tireless and gritty second half, a touchdown for Notre Dame and one more key field goal solidified the Huskie win in the tense, final minute of the game.
Although there is no key play or reason the Irish fell to a historically inferior program like Northern’s, the Huskies’ win could be attributed to their dedication and willingness to work their tails off. This was such a historic moment for the Huskie players and will be a career-defining feat for most. Post-game, a plethora of dedicated college football fans expounded upon how games like these are what make NCAA football unique. Upsets are far less prevalent in a more corporate setting like the professional National Football League, which incentivizes fans from conferences of all sizes to tune in and cheer loudly for their alma mater’s program.
