Dec. 27, 2008

SHREVEPORT, La. - After five days of outdoor practices, team events and outings, bowl gifts and even free time, the Northern Illinois Huskies wrapped up pre-Independence Bowl preparations and entered "game" mode Saturday in Shreveport, La. Northern Illinois (6-6, 5-3 Mid-American Conference) takes on Louisiana Tech (7-5, 5-3 Western Athletic Conference) Sunday night at 7:15 p.m. in the 33rd Independence Bowl, which will be nationally televised by ESPN.

Prior to the team's Saturday walk-through at Independence Stadium, Northern Illinois Head Coach Jerry Kill, defensive end Larry English (Aurora, Ill./Marmion Academy) and quarterback Chandler Harnish (Bluffton, Ind./Norwell) took part in the pre-bowl press conference.

English summed up the Huskies' bowl experience, his third in five seasons at Northern Illinois.

"The experience has been great," said the fifth-year senior, who won the MAC's Vern Smith Leadership Award for the second consecutive season while leading the Huskie defense to a No. 1 ranking in the league. "Especially for the seniors, for us to have the opportunity to go out with something like this...it has been like a big family vacation. We've enjoyed each other's company and being together as a team. I can't stress how happy we are to be here, to get down here, and get to have fun with each other playing the game we love."

Meanwhile, Kill, the first-year NIU head coach who will coach in his first bowl game after just one season at the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level, thoroughly embraced the benefits of the bowl system for his young program.

"Our experience here at the Independence Bowl, seeing the growth of these young people over the past month and past week - I am all for the bowl system," he said. "I don't think we should get away from it. I've been in the playoffs [as head coach at Southern Illinois] and coached in the Division II National Championship, and the thing that people forget is this thing is about the kids. Their experience here has been unbelievable. There's nothing like the bowl system in how it rewards the kids and how it helps them grow."

"This is a great opportunity to tell all the people of Shreveport how much we appreciate the hospitality we have been shown," Kill said. "We are so glad to be here. It's been very beneficial for our football team. We've grown and improved since we've been here. It's been a very positive experience for us. We know that we may be outnumbered in the stands tomorrow and I know we're not the home team, but this has been our home for the last five days."

Northern Illinois spent two days in Shreveport before "official" bowl activities got underway with a Team Welcome Party Christmas night featuring authentic Southern food, bowling, pool and other games. On Friday, both teams attended the Minuteman Luncheon featuring CBS Sports' Tim Brando, a Shreveport native, and Spencer Tillman. At that event, NIU offensive tackle Jon Brost (Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove HS) was honored as one of the bowl's Scholar-Athletes of the Year. Friday afternoon, the team visited Barksdale Air Force Base in nearby Bossier City where the highlights included a tour of the B-52 bomber.

Saturday morning, the players were up early to attend the FCA Breakfast where players from each team, as well as the head coaches, spoke. While English, Harnish and Kill attended the press conference, members of the NIU senior class visited children at LSU Children's Hospital and were moved by that experience.

Now, Kill and his players are anxious to enter "game" mode which began following the press conference. The head coach said that although he's not sure what will happen in the game, he has learned one thing about his 2008 team.

"I know they'll be ready to play," Kill said. "I know they'll play very, very hard, because they've done that all year. I think our kids are right where we need them to be. As I told the team a few days ago, this is the last time this group is going to be together - this team.

"It's been a tremendous experience coming here. Just being here with each other is improving the growth of our football program and team. For me, I can't wait to get this over with and get ready to coach the game."

The contest will be the last for 21 Huskie seniors, including English, as Kill tries to tie former NIU coach Bill Mallory for the most wins by a first-year mentor at the school in FBS play.

-- NIU --