Since Sean Frazier’s playing days at Alabama from 1987-91 and his past three decades as an administrator, he had never looked away from any play on the football field.
Until Saturday in South Bend.
Northern Illinois, where Frazier has been the athletic director for the past 12 years, was lining up for a potential game-winning field goal against No. 5 Notre Dame.
At stake was, well, everything for the Huskies — the biggest victory in school history, an inside track to earn the Group of Five’s College Football Playoff berth and more confirmation that NIU’s Thomas Hammock was one of the best and most underrated coaches in the country.
Touchdown Jesus was looking on, but Frazier couldn’t watch. Across the field, NIU’s Kanon Woodill kicked a 35-yard field goal with 31 seconds remaining.
“I had a donor standing next to me, and I just looked down at the turf,” Frazier said. “I couldn’t watch. I heard screams — half of DeKalb was here — but I didn’t hear a giant roar from the home crowd. Finally, he looked at me and said, 'You can open your eyes.'”
When Frazier opened his eyes, what he saw was the better team was the one with “Huskies” across the front of their white jerseys.
“Hammock did a masterful job,” Frazier said in the understatement of the year after the Huskies defeated Notre Dame, 16-14.
Hammock built the better team, not with a huge NIL war chest, but with love, hard work and a team-first mentality.
“We talk about the hard way, and the hard way means doing it the right way,” Hammock told The Jim Rome Show. “We love our players. We make sure they're doing the things necessary on and off the football field.
“I spend a lot of time with academics. I told our kids last week if they didn't have their study tables done by the time we got on the bus for Notre Dame, they weren’t traveling.
“We have to build complete men. I know college football has transitioned to another level, but I've been in the National Football League. I understand what transactional relationships look like, and we need to be a little bit different here at NIU.”
Word has filtered back to DeKalb that the players NIU lost to power conference schools are not necessarily happier at their new schools.
“They’re telling our kids, you may get more money elsewhere, but [the experience] is not that great,” Frazier said. “You’re just a commodity.
“Our kids, we’re paying ‘em — not Alabama or Wisconsin money — but they also need the love, academically and socially. We got lucky the relationships that Thomas has in place and in his NFL ties.”
NIU’s entire offensive line played at Wisconsin high schools.
“We look more like Wisconsin than Wisconsin, quite frankly,” Frazier said.
The Huskies also feature 20 seniors who came to NIU as freshmen, the third-most seniors who have played their entire career at the same school.
“They’ve all got a [2021 MAC Championship] ring, they’ve won at Georgia Tech and Boston College in their careers,” Frazier said.
They also got a $1.4 million check for playing at — and dominating — Notre Dame. But more importantly, they have college football’s biggest win of 2024. Too bad Frazier never saw the game-winning play.
Maybe Significant (Or Not) 🏈
Trying to figure out one of the most important factors in a team’s win-loss record? How about average third-down distance?
The top five offenses in fewest average third-down yards to go are a combined 10-0 this season. Meanwhile, the teams with the most third-down yards to go are a combined 2-8.
Top Five in Average Third-Down Distance
1. Rutgers, 3.6
2. NIU, 4.2
3. Oregon State, 4.8
4. Army, 5.0
5. Louisiana, 5.0
Bottom Five in Average Third-Down Distance
130. San Diego State, 9.1
131. Houston, 9.1
132. Southern Miss, 9.2
133. Charlotte, 9.2
134. Temple, 9.8
Dream Bowl Projection of the Week 😋
Technically, this isn’t a bowl game, but it's just too good not to include: a projected first-round College Football Playoff matchup between USC and Ole Miss.
Yes, Ole Miss head coach Lane Kiffin against his former Trojans team in Oxford, Miss.
It should provide plenty of fireworks — not only on Twitter leading up to kickoff — but on the field between Kiffin and Lincoln Riley’s offenses. Take the over.
Sandwich Spot 🥪
There are six games that fit my non-scientific model of teams that might be in a challenging schedule or motivational situation.
San Diego State Aztecs
+19 at Cal
Utah State Aggies
+20.5 at Utah
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
+21.5 at NC State
Old Dominion Monarchs
+14 vs. Virginia Tech
Arkansas State Red Wolves
+24 at Michigan
Southern Miss Golden Eagles
+12 vs. USF
Each of the favorites above could be peeking ahead to big games next week: Cal at Florida State, Utah at Oklahoma State, NC State at Clemson, Virginia Tech vs. Rutgers, Michigan vs. USC and USF vs. Miami.
Each of those contests — with the exception of Virginia Tech and USF — is the conference opener for all the teams we’re going against.
Each week, I’ll put my Sandwich Spot plays in the Action Network App — download here for free — on Sundays
Season record: 0-1
