How many times can Lucy keep pulling the football away from Charlie Brown?

Northern Illinois is eight years removed from when it was one of the worst teams in the MAC, so the rags-to-riches angle doesn't really apply anymore. Six straight winning seasons and several high profile wins have changed Joe Novak's program to the point where there are now big expectations.

Last year finally appeared to be the season that Novak would finally get over the hump and win the MAC title game. It wasn't his best team ever, but it got over its biggest annual hurdle, Toledo, and only had to beat an average Akron team to finally bring home the goal that had been so elusive.

One miraculous Luke Getsy to to Domenik Hixon touchdown pass later, NIU lost 31-30 and not only missed out on a title, it was left out of the bowl picture while Toledo went off and blasted UTEP in the GMAC Bowl.

Good grief.

The biggest key this season will be consistency. Toledo is the only MAC team as good as NIU, but the rest of the league has gotten better providing landmines all over the place. Last year, the Huskies were able to beat Miami University, Toledo (at Toledo), and came within a controversial two-point conversion attempt of winning at Northwestern, but lost twice to Akron and once to Ball State. A team good enough to have battle Michigan in the season opener, only to get killed by penalties, shouldn't lose to last year's Ball State team.

Yes, the Sisyphus of the MAC is going to roll that boulder back up the mountain again this year with a team loaded with as much talent as anyone in the league led by All-America candidates Garrett Wolfe at running back and Doug Free at offensive tackle. There's speed, skill, and enough depth in most spots to overcome a disaster. In other words, there's no reason to shoot for anything lower than a repeat trip to the title game and a shot at winning it all.

The Schedule: There are two brutal Big Ten landmines playing at Ohio State and Iowa, but other than that, it's a piece of cake. Yeah, the Huskies have to go to Miami University, but the Toledo showdown is in DeKalb, and missing Bowling Green is never a bad thing. Playing Ohio, Buffalo, Indiana State, and at Ball State early should mean a 4-1 start for any team good enough to dream of a MAC title. Divisional road games at Western Michigan and Eastern Michigan might be more dangerous than they look on paper.

What you need to know on offense ... The nation's 16th ranked offense last season won't be quite as explosive without top receivers Sam Hurd and Shatone Powers, and the ground game might not be the same after losing a few star linemen, but there's more than enough talent returning to hang some big numbers on the board. Garrett Wolfe is one of the nation's best running backs and will be the focal point of the attack. The quarterback situation is tremendous with Phil Horvath and Dan Nicholson each good enough to win All-MAC honors. Receiver Britt Davis is a rising star who has to blow up to open things up for Wolfe and the ground game. The tackles are the MAC's best with future NFLer Doug Free on the left side and sophomore Jon Brost on the other.

Best Offensive Player: Senior RB Garrett Wolfe. Tackle Doug Free is the better pro prospect, but Wolfe is the star. It'll take 1,706 rushing yards to pass Michael Turner on the NIU all-time rushing list, but it might not be the worst thing in the world if Wolfe doesn't have to be used enough to get to that mark. Even though he's a tough 5-7 and 173 pounds, he's not indestructible.

What you need to know on defense ... The NIU defense sacrifices size for speed, and while that was great for the back seven last year, the line didn't produce nearly enough big plays. That should change as Larry English is on the verge of being an unstoppable pass rusher on the other side of Ken West, and there's good interior quickness from sophomore Craig Rusch. However, there's almost no size. The team's biggest position battle is at corner with twins Adriel and Alvah Hansbrough looking to hold off sophomores Melvin Rice and Bradley Pruitt. Whatever happens, the competition should make for a stronger secondary. The linebacking corps will be steady, but not spectacular.

Best Defensive Player: Senior FS Dustin Utschig. Easily the team's biggest surprise, Utshig came from out of nowhere to lead the team in tackles last season and interceptions. He's a tough tackler who was always in the right position and never missed a tackle. He not only has to be productive again, he has to stay on the field with little developed safety depth.

Key player to a successful season: Junior NT Zack Holycross. There's no size whatsoever on the NIU front line since the coaching staff chooses to go with smaller, quicker players. That means the 284-pound Holycross, and his backup, the 273-pound Adam Schroeder, have to hold up or the bigger MAC lines will steamroll over the Huskie front seven. Shudder to think what Ohio State and Iowa might do if Holycross isn't a top run stopper.

The season will be a success if ... Northern Illinois wins the MAC title. It's never fun to get to a point where anything less by a championship is a failure of a season, but it has gotten to that point for the Huskies.

Key game: Nov. 7 vs. Toledo. The Rockets had absolutely owned the Huskies until a stunning 35-17 NIU win last year in the Rubber Bowl changed all of that. These should be the two best teams in the MAC with the winner of this nationally televised showdown almost certain to represent the West in the conference title.

2005 Fun Stats:
- Completion percentage: Northern Illinois 68% - Opponents 57%
- Red zone scoring percentage: Northern Illinois 91% - Opponents 75%
- Fourth down conversions: Northern Illinois 8 of 12 (67%) - Opponents 9 of 21 (43%)

The Last Time Northern Illinois …
…played in a bowl game…2004 (Silicon Valley Bowl vs. Troy)
…missed a bowl game…2005
…pitched a shutout…2002 (Central Michigan)
…was shutout…1999 (Iowa)
…scored 50 points…2004 (Western Michigan)
…went undefeated…never
…won a conference title…1983 (MAC)
…had a 3,000-yard passer…1963 (George Bork)
…had a 1,000-yard rusher…2005 (Garrett Wolfe)
…had a 1,000-yard receiver…2005 (Sam Hurd)
…had a first-round draft choice…never