Final

N Illinois 63
(6-3, 4-1 MAC)

Toledo 60
(5-4, 4-1 MAC)
Coverage: ESPN2/ESPN 3D
7:00 PM ET, November 1, 2011
Glass Bowl, TOLEDO, OH
Top Performers
Passing: C. Harnish (NIU) - 265 YDS, 6 TD
Rushing: A. Thomas (TOL) - 25 CAR, 160 YDS, 2 TD
Receiving: E. Page (TOL) - 9 REC, 149 YDS, 5 TD
TOLEDO, Ohio -- Chandler Harnish threw a 4-yard strike to Perez Ashford with 19 seconds left for his sixth touchdown pass of the game, lifting Northern Illinois to a wild 63-60 victory over Toledo on Tuesday night.
The Huskies and Rockets combined for 1,121 yards of offense and a Mid-American Conference-record 17 touchdowns in the second-highest scoring game in league history.
Tommylee Lewis returned two kickoffs for touchdowns in the first quarter for the Huskies (6-3, 4-1), who have won four straight and five of six. Harnish completed 17 of 26 passes for 265 yards, and also had 16 carries for 133 yards.
Austin Dantin threw five touchdown passes to Eric Page as the Rockets (5-4, 4-1) finished with 33 first downs and 589 yards of offense. Dantin went 20-for-33 for 322 yards, and Page had nine grabs for 150 yards.
Harnish connected with Nathan Palmer four times for 120 yards and three touchdowns, including a 71-yard play that gave Northern Illinois a 28-14 lead with 9:59 left in the second quarter.
Toledo then scored the next 17 points, capped by Dantin's 5-yard run that made it 31-28 with 11:46 to go in the third.
Adonis Thomas finished with 160 yards rushing and two touchdowns for the Rockets, who had won four straight since a 33-30 overtime loss at Syracuse on Sept. 24.
Thomas' 3-yard plunge gave Toledo a 60-56 lead with 4:16 remaining in the game.
Lewis returned the opening kickoff 100 yards to put the Huskies in front. The Rockets responded with Page's 12-yard TD reception, but Lewis went 95 yards on the ensuing kickoff to make it 14-7.
There was only one turnover in the game, a fumble by Northern Illinois.
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Team Stat Comparison
| NIU | TOL | |
|---|---|---|
| 1st Downs | 27 | 33 |
| Total Yards | 532 | 589 |
| Passing | 265 | 325 |
| Rushing | 267 | 264 |
| Penalties | 5-46 | 9-89 |
| 3rd Down Conversions | 4-10 | 7-12 |
| 4th Down Conversions | 1-1 | 0-1 |
| Turnovers | 1 | 0 |
| Possession | 25:26 | 34:34 |
Scoring Summary
| FIRST QUARTER | NIU | TOL | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | TD | 14:46 | Tommylee Lewis 100 Yd Kickoff Return (Mathew Sims Kick) | 7 | 0 |
![]() | TD | 10:29 | Eric Page 12 Yd Pass From Austin Dantin (Ryan Casano Kick) | 7 | 7 |
![]() | TD | 10:16 | Tommylee Lewis 95 Yd Kickoff Return (Mathew Sims Kick) | 14 | 7 |
![]() | TD | 07:27 | Eric Page 12 Yd Pass From Austin Dantin (Ryan Casano Kick) | 14 | 14 |
![]() | TD | 02:08 | Nathan Palmer 6 Yd Pass From Chandler Harnish (Mathew Sims Kick) | 21 | 14 |
| SECOND QUARTER | NIU | TOL | |||
![]() | TD | 09:59 | Nathan Palmer 71 Yd Pass From Chandler Harnish (Mathew Sims Kick) | 28 | 14 |
![]() | TD | 05:06 | Eric Page 5 Yd Pass From Austin Dantin (Ryan Casano Kick) | 28 | 21 |
![]() | FG | 01:19 | Jeremiah Detmer 41 Yd | 28 | 24 |
| THIRD QUARTER | NIU | TOL | |||
![]() | TD | 11:46 | Austin Dantin 5 Yd Run (Ryan Casano Kick) | 28 | 31 |
![]() | TD | 10:05 | Da'Ron Brown 16 Yd Pass From Chandler Harnish (Mathew Sims Kick) | 35 | 31 |
![]() | TD | 09:51 | Eric Page 60 Yd Pass From Austin Dantin (Ryan Casano Kick) | 35 | 38 |
![]() | TD | 03:30 | Nathan Palmer 19 Yd Pass From Chandler Harnish (Mathew Sims Kick) | 42 | 38 |
| FOURTH QUARTER | NIU | TOL | |||
![]() | FG | 14:09 | Ryan Casano 33 Yd | 42 | 41 |
![]() | TD | 11:51 | Willie Clark 15 Yd Pass From Chandler Harnish (Mathew Sims Kick) | 49 | 41 |
![]() | TD | 10:46 | Eric Page 13 Yd Pass From Austin Dantin (Two-Point Conversion Failed) | 49 | 47 |
![]() | TD | 10:30 | Adonis Thomas 4 Yd Run (Two-Point Conversion Failed) | 49 | 53 |
![]() | TD | 08:00 | Jasmin Hopkins 8 Yd Run (Mathew Sims Kick) | 56 | 53 |
![]() | TD | 04:16 | Adonis Thomas 3 Yd Run (Ryan Casano Kick) | 56 | 60 |
![]() | TD | 00:19 | Perez Ashford 4 Yd Pass From Chandler Harnish (Mathew Sims Kick) | 63 | 60 |
Research Notes
Northern Illinois and Toledo combined for 123 points Tuesday in the Huskies' 63-60 win. It was the third most points combined by two teams in a game since 2004, and the most since North Texas and Navy combined for 136 points in 2007. [+]Most Combined Points in Regulation
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The Northern Illinois - Toledo game featured 8 lead changes. All occurred in the second half. Northern Illinois never trailed in the first half. | ||||||||||||||||||
The 123 combined points scored Tuesday between Northern Illinois and Toledo were the most ever scored in a regulation game in MAC history. The previous most was 108 points in a 2008 matchup between Eastern Michigan and Central Michigan. The Most scored in any MAC game (OT included) was 127 points scored in 2001 between Eastern Michigan and Akron. | ||||||||||||||||||
Chandler Harnish Tuesday recorded his 7th career game collecting at least 100 yards both passing and rushing. Among active FBS players, only Denard Robinson and Taylor Martinez have more with 8 each since 2008. [+]Most Games With At least 100 Yards Passing And Rushing
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Chandler Harnish becomes the 4th FBS player with multiple games with at least 5 TD passes this season. He joins Robert Griffin III, Case Keenum and Landry Jones - all who have 3 such games. [+]Most Games with 5 TD Passes
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