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HUSKIES AND HAWKEYES TO OPEN 2012 FOOTBALL SEASON AT SOLDIER FIELD

NIU and Iowa Sold Out the Stadium in 2007

DeKALB , Ill. – Northern Illinois and Iowa have agreed to open the 2012 football season at Chicago’s historic Soldier Field, revisiting the scene of the hugely-successful 2007 Labor Day Weekend contest that produced a sellout crowd of 61,500, the largest ever for a Northern Illinois home game.

The 2012 contest, scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 1, will also be held on Labor Day Weekend.

“We’re very excited to be able to play host to Iowa at Soldier Field to open the 2012 season,” said NIU Associate Vice President and Director of Athletics Jeff Compher.  “Given the overwhelming success of the 2007 game, the benefits of playing a game in Chicago for our football program and for our entire university, and the opportunity to return to the city for Labor Day, this was a win-win-win situation.”

In the first NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) game played at the lakefront facility since its renovation in 2003, the 2007 Northern Illinois-Iowa game produced a sell-out crowd and a huge influx of college football fans to the city for Labor Day Weekend.  Fans enjoyed collegiate-style tailgating in the Soldier Field parking lots prior to the game, while Northern Illinois and Iowa alumni gathered in huge groups and held gatherings throughout the city on Friday night and prior to the game on Saturday.

“Both Northern Illinois have huge followings and thousands of alumni in Chicago, many of whom are accustomed to attending football games at Soldier Field,” Compher said.  “In addition, playing in an NFL stadium provides our student-athletes with a great and unique game-day experience while showcasing our program in front of the third-largest media market in the country.”

The 2007 Soldier Field game between Iowa and Northern Illinois, the first game NIU hosted at the facility, was declared a sell-out six weeks prior to the game as tickets were snapped up in just five months.  In October 2008, NIU announced that the Huskies will play Wisconsin at Soldier Field on Sept. 17, 2011.

“We have thoroughly enjoyed working with the people at Soldier Field to make this game a reality,” Compher added.  “It is a tremendous facility and when the time comes, our fans will have the opportunity to help turn Soldier Field cardinal and black and create a home field advantage for the Huskies in downtown Chicago.”

Northern Illinois and Iowa will meet for the eighth time with the Hawkeyes claiming all seven previous meetings, including a 16-3 victory over NIU at Soldier Field on Sept. 1, 2007.

“It’s always special when our players have the chance to play in an NFL stadium,” said NIU Head Coach Jerry Kill, “especially when, for many of them, that stadium is right in their backyard.  It is the stadium where many of our players dreamed about playing as kids and where their hometown team plays.  Then you add playing in Chicago, where so many of our fans live and work, and taking on a great opponent like Iowa on a beautiful September day, it doesn’t get any better than that.”

Huskie Athletic Support Fund donors and NIU season ticket holders will receive first priority to purchase tickets in the prime seating locations. To become a member of the HASF, call 815-753-1923.

Northern Illinois opens the 2010 season at Iowa State on Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010, and plays its first home game on Sept. 11 versus North Dakota.  Season tickets for 2010 Huskie Football are on sale now for just $85 for the complete five-game home schedule with discounts for NIU Alumni Association members, senior citizens and Varsity Club members.  A three-game mini-plan is also available for just $50.  For more information or to purchase tickets, go to www.NIUHuskies.com or call the NIU Athletics Ticket Office at 815-752-6800.

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For more information, contact Donna Turner, NIU Athletics Media Relations, 815-793-5474.   Keep up with all the latest news and information on Northern Illinois sports, read “Huskie Happenings” daily on www.NIUHuskies.com.