DeKALB, Ill. - Western Michigan gave up 100 yards rushing to a pair of Northern Illinois quarterbacks as the Broncos fell at NIU, 51-22.  After taking a two-point lead into the break, the Broncos were outscored 44-7 in the second half.

Northern Illinois extended its home win streak to 13-straight games on the strength of a 24-0 third quarter that saw WMU's offense amass 33 yards and register two first downs. Chandler Harnish had 163 yards rushing in the third quarter alone and all of NIU's TDs came on the ground to break the game open.

The Huskies went to a run offense and powered their way to the win, rushing for nearly 500 yards as a team and becoming the first WMU opponent to amass over 600 yards of offense since Michigan State in 2009.

Jordan White did extend his streak of consecutive games with 10 or more catches to a Western Michigan record five-straight games, finishing with 12 catches for 98 yards.  It does snap his streak of four-straight games with 100 yards receiving. 

In a game touted to be an offensive showdown, the first quarter was filled with field goals, muffed kicks and turnovers.  The Broncos scored first, driving into the wind, on John Potter's career matching 45-yard field goal at the 10:45 mark.  It was one of two field goals Potter made in the opening quarter.

Dervon Wallace mishandled the opening kick but was able to recover.  NIU's Perez Ashford did the same but recovered.  He wasn't as lucky on WMU's first punt of the day.  Donald Celiscar was there to scoop up the muff, giving the ball to the Broncos at the Huskies' 26-yard line.

That was NIU's second turnover of the quarter as Doug Wiggins recorded his first career interception to give the Broncos the ball en route to its first score.

Northern Illinois took the lead on a Jasmin Hopkins 13-yard run early in the second quarter to make the score, 7-6.  It was the fourth time this season Western Michigan held an opponent scoreless in an opening quarter.   The Huskies' lead was short lived as the Broncos recorded their first safety since Nov. 5, 2010.

After WMU was forced to punt on a three-and-out, Ben Armer bombed a career long 66-yard punt to pin NIU at its own five-yard line.  That change of field position, coupled with the Bronco defense forcing a three-and-out of its own, resulted in NIU's Ryan Neir having to punt near his own goal line.  A bad snap squirted into the end zone and Neir fell on the ball to ensure WMU was held to just a safety.

Western Michigan built on that momentum, scoring on its next drive, an 11-play, 55-yard drive that resulted in Chleb Ravenell hauling in his fifth TD catch of the season and giving WMU a 15-7 lead at the eight-minute mark of the quarter.

The Broncos had a chance to put more points on the board in the first half but Potter's 46-yard field goal attempt was deemed wide left after the Broncos had driven to NIU's 25-yard line.  Carder was sacked for a 10-yard loss and then a screen pass to Brian Fields went for a loss of six yards.  A 12-yard Carder run put the Broncos' back in field goal position but WMU came up empty.  NIU answered with a 52-yard drive in the final 38 seconds to pull within two points, 15-13, at halftime.