Latest news with #IdahoPotatoBowl
Yahoo
25-03-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Marengo native Josh Holst to battle for NIU's QB1 job in the spring
DEKALB, Ill. (WTVO/WQRF) — Thomas Hammock isn't one to handout starting spots on NIU's football team. He constantly wants his guys competing for jobs. That's why redshirt sophomore Josh Holst of Marengo will have to compete for the QB1 job this spring and possibly into saw some action last season for the Huskies after Ethan Hampton went down with an injury. Holst also got the start at quarterback for the Huskies in the Idaho Potato Bowl. He helped the Huskies to a win by passing for 182 yards and two that performance, he seemed to have the inside track on the start quarterback job going into next season. Hammock though put the brakes on that talk Monday during his pre-camp press conference. Hammock says there are other quarterbacks on the roster who are eager to compete and to show what they can did say that Holst has come a long way since arriving on campus a couple years ago.'You know, Josh is a young man that came to us, he was 165 pounds when he got here, so he needed to develop physically. He has done that. He's 205 pounds as of this morning. He's made jumps and strides every year. And, you know, he's out there commanding it, and he's putting himself in a position to compete. I think he has a lot of guys that want to compete against him.'The Huskies will hold their first of 15 spring practices this Thursday has added 19 players either through the transfer portal or true freshman for spring practices who weren't with the team last fall. Hammock likes how they are fitting says this group of receivers going into next season should be the best he's had in his six years in DeKalb. He also says the offensive line should be deeper than last year, but not as also says this is a mentally strong group of players. He says attitude and effort are keys. There is no negotiating when it comes to those two fall will be the Huskies' final season in the Mid-American Conference. They'll join the Mountain West Conference in 2026. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Chicago Tribune
24-02-2025
- Sport
- Chicago Tribune
Northern Illinois set to join the Horizon League in most sports — besides football — in 2026
The majority of the Northern Illinois athletics department is set to join the Horizon League in 2026, pending approval by the university's board of trustees Thursday. NIU announced in January that its football team would move to the Mountain West Conference in 2026 after 18 straight seasons and 39 overall in the Mid-American Conference. But as a football-only member of the Mountain West, that left the other Huskies sports programs without a conference home. Now NIU hopes to move all of its sports teams except football, women's gymnastics and men's wrestling to the Horizon League in 2026, according to a board agenda item for Thursday's meeting. The university has applied for gymnastics and wrestling to remain affiliate members of the MAC because the Horizon League doesn't have those sports. The move to become the 12th member of the Horizon League requires board approval because of the $1.4 million entrance fee. The Huskies would join Cleveland State, Detroit Mercy, Green Bay, IU Indianapolis, Milwaukee, Northern Kentucky, Oakland, Purdue Fort Wayne, Robert Morris, Wright State and Youngstown State. Upon the announcement of the football team's move in January, NIU cited the changing landscape of college sports, including the potential for upcoming athlete revenue sharing, as reasons it explored the changes. The Mountain West needed new members because five will move to the Pac-12 in 2026. NIU was coming off an 8-5 season that included wins over Notre Dame and Fresno State in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. 'The impact of this move to the Mountain West is going to be felt throughout our entire department and university,' athletic director Sean T. Frazier said then in a statement. 'Our fans are going to enjoy the heightened competition, the media coverage and the additional opportunities the relationship with this conference and these great institutions provides.' The Huskies will remain full members of the MAC for the 2025-26 school year.
