When asked to put the 2013 Discover Orange Bowl into context, George Bork – maybe Northern Illinois University’s most recognized 20th century student-athlete and star quarterback for the Huskies’ unbeaten 1963 NCAA College Division National Champions – was awestruck.
“It’s amazing that you could go from Glidden Field to the Orange Bowl,” Bork said about that 50-year quantum leap in a 2015 interview. “The accomplishments this school has made athletically, especially in football, are incredible. To be in such a major bowl, (it) makes you so proud.”
The cast of characters in arguably the most high-profile, single, significant NIU athletics event in history are many—head coaches Dave Doeren and Rod Carey, Heisman Trophy candidate and quarterback Jordan Lynch, President John Peters, and, of course, ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit.
So were the plot twists en route to Miami Gardens Sun Life Stadium and meeting Atlantic Coast Conference champion Florida State.
After a season-opening 18-17 setback to Iowa in Chicago’s Soldier Field, Doeren’s Huskies marched through the rest of the regular-season schedule, finishing 8-0 in Mid-American Conference West Division play and posting an NIU-record 12 triumphs. Rallying from a 10-0 first-quarter deficit, the Huskies would dispatch Kent State, 44-37, in double overtime behind 372 total offense yards and four touchdowns by Lynch in the MAC Championship game. During the 14-game season, Lynch would amass an incredible 4,953 yards total offense and 44 TDs. As a junior, No. 6 would wind up No. 7 in the 2012 Heisman voting (and third in 2013).
The History: Not only was this the first “major/major”-bowl appearance for Northern Illinois, but the initial BCS berth for any MAC program.
The Road: As non-automatic qualifiers in the Bowl Championship Series, either NIU or KSU would need help for that at-large BCS bowl bid. Prior to the Mid-Am title game, the Golden Flashes ranked No. 17 and the Huskies at No. 21 in the BCS. Under the then BCS rules, the highest rated team from outside the six “AQ” conferences could garner the automatic at-large bid if it ranked (1) in the Top 16 of the final BCS poll and (2) higher than at least one “AQ” conference champion.
The door opened for Northern Illinois in the Top 16 when UCLA, Texas, and Wisconsin all lost on the final weekend of the regular season. Doeren’s Huskies would finish No. 16 in both the final AP and USA Today coaches’ polls and No. 15 in the BCS, meaning two “AQ” league kingpins – the Big East’s Louisville (No. 21) and the Big Ten Badgers (No. 26) – didn’t make the Top 16. Orange Bowl, here we come.
The Advocate: As the chair of the MAC Council of Presidents, NIU chief executive John Peters represented the non-”AQ” schools on the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee and pushed for mid-major inclusion. Recalled Peters: “In that role I was part of the negotiations which established participation rules for the BCS. Our group bargained hard for a competitive piece to the process that a mid-major team with a good record would be guaranteed a slot in the bowl series under certain conditions. We felt that this was important. The majors finally relented and I was persistent. I believe they agreed to the competitive piece because they did not believe any mid-major would meet the criteria. Ironic that NIU did it a few years later.”
The Timeline: To say the least, it was a hectic three days for NIU. On Friday Nov. 30, the Huskies won the MAC championship. On Saturday Dec. 1, Doeren took the North Carolina State head coaching job after two seasons at the Huskie helm. On Sunday Dec. 2, Huskie offensive coordinator and offensive line coach Rod Carey was promoted to permanent head coach. Later that afternoon, Northern Illinois would accept the Jan. 1, 2013 Orange Bowl berth.
The ESPN controversy: While the Huskie Nation prepared to celebrate, the ESPN bowl selection show took another turn. ESPN analysts Herbstreit, Jesse Palmer, and David Pollack ganged up on the local mid-major. The on-air insults piled up from the trio. Such as: “Northern Illinois is a joke” or “This is a sad state of affairs for college football. They (NIU) don’t deserve…” or “No one ever heard of Northern Illinois until the Toledo game…” or “What has NIU done?” or “Are you kidding?” After the initial vitriol, Herbstreit noted: “Northern Illinois is the pawn of the (BCS) system.” Reminder: The 2013 Orange Bowl would be carried on the main ESPN cable platform. Anything for TV ratings, eh, Kirk?
The Numbers: The month between the MAC title game and the Orange Bowl generated thousands of Huskie column inches, TV interviews, soundbites, and online hits, worth an estimated $88 million in exposure. Back in DeKalb, University Relations, Intercollegiate Athletics, the NIU Foundation, and the NIU Alumni Association collaborated on one of the institution’s most comprehensive and significant marketing campaigns, not only to promote ticket sales but enhance the NIU brand, alumni engagement, and student recruitment via digital platforms, social media, websites, videos, and print / TV / radio advertising. The TV audience for the ESPN cablecast? 10.6 million viewers. The bowl payout? $17 million per team. Of the 72,073 Orange Bowl spectators, there were estimates of 15,000, 20,000, and even 35,000 Huskie partisans in attendance. Among that Cardinal and Black throng were 1,300 NIU students who took 26 buses the 1,436 miles to Miami as part of a leadership development program initiated by Peters and the administration.
The Game: As 14.5-point underdogs, according to Las Vegas, Carey’s Huskies made it a game for three quarters before suffering a 31-10 setback to the talented No. 12-ranked Seminoles. Heading into the fourth quarter, NIU trailed, 17-10. To put things into a talent context, in April, ten FSU players would be selected in the seven-round 2013 National Football League draft, including five in the first two rounds. Said Carey in post-game: “It’s too raw right now for me to summarize this game. I’m proud of our kids, 12-1 on the season. We’re disappointed, but we set a school record in wins. It’s a good season.”
An unprecedented Orange Bowl season, coach.
By Mike Korcek, Sports Information Director Emeritus
Click on photos to enlarge.
