FACTS & STATS: Site: Yager Stadium (24,286) -- Oxford, Ohio. Television: None. Home Record: NIU 2-1, Miami-OH 0-1. Away Record: NIU 1-2, Miami-OH 0-5. Neutral Record: NIU 0-0, Miami-OH 0-1. Conference Record: NIU 1-1, Miami- OH 0-3. Series Record: Miami-Ohio leads, 7-6

GAME NOTES: Still in search of their first victory, the Miami-Ohio RedHawks will host the Northern Illinois Huskies this Saturday afternoon in a Mid- American Conference showdown at Yager Stadium.

The Huskies dropped their third contest of the season this past weekend with a tough, 20-19 setback to Toledo. With the loss to the Rockets, Northern Illinois is now just 1-1 in league action and 1-2 away from home.

As for the RedHawks, they have dropped their first seven games of the season, and dating back to last year the team has lost 12 consecutive games. The last time Miami-Ohio was on the field the team suffered a 28-7 setback to Ohio, and are now 0-3 in league play. Since the start of 2008 the RedHawks have dropped 10 of their last 11 league contests.

The RedHawks currently hold a slim 7-6 edge over Northern Illinois, but the Huskies have won the last four meetings, including a thrilling, 17-13 decision over Miami-Ohio this past season.

The Huskies come into this weekend averaging 29.5 ppg, but the main success for this unit has been the ground game, which is churning out 195.2 ypg and out of the 21 touchdowns scored by the Huskies, 15 have come via the run. Me'co Brown is currently pacing the team with 559 yards on the season, while Chad Spann has contributed 312 yards, to go along with his team-best nine touchdowns. Chandler Harnish has scored twice on the ground for NIU, but the quarterback has been even better with his arm, throwing for 967 yards and six touchdowns against two interceptions. While those numbers are not astounding, the signal caller has done an excellent job managing games. This past weekend the Huskies' ground game was once again strong. Despite the performance by the rushing attack, Northern Illinois still fell to Toledo by one point. Brown led the team with 94 yards and scored once in the loss, while Harnish added 42 yards and two touchdowns. Harnish, who also threw for 157 yards in the contest and was intercepted once, might be unable to go this weekend because of a head injury. If that is the case the team will need to turn to DeMarcus Grady, who has thrown just four passes on the year.

Offensively the Huskies have played well for most of the season, but so has the defensive unit for NIU, which is currently holding teams to just 18.8 ppg. Northern Illinois has forced 15 turnovers on the year thus far (nine fumbles and six interceptions), but pressuring the quarterback has been a problem, as the defense has collected just nine sacks. In the team's recent setback against Toledo, the Huskies did not put forth their best effort. Sure, NIU held the Rockets to only 20 points, but the team was gashed for 157 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, and also allowed 230 yards through the air. The defense did force three turnovers in the loss, and also held Toledo to just 5- of-12 on third down attempts and 2-of-4 on red zone chances, but despite all that success the team still managed to find a way to lose.

Nothing has gone right for the RedHawks offensively, as the team opened the year by posting back-to-back scoreless performances and in six games thus far the team has been held under 10 points four different times. Overall the unit heads into this weekend averaging just 10.1 ppg behind a poor 313.0 total ypg. The rushing attack has been bottled up for just 83.1 ypg, and the passing attack has not been much better, as Zac Dysert comes into this matchup with just four touchdowns and 11 interceptions. The signal caller has thrown for 1,040 yards on the year, but his mistakes with the football have been too costly. Miami-Ohio's offensive woes continued in the team's recent loss to Ohio, as the RedHawks were held to just 218 total yards and seven points. Dysert's problems also carried over, as the signal caller threw for just 166 yards and two interceptions on 19-of-30 passing. Unfortunately the quarterback received little help from the rushing attack, which was limited to just 52 yards on 1.7 yards per attempt.

The RedHawks' troubles are not solely on the offensive side of the football. The defense has also been a problem area this year, as the team is surrendering 35.4 ppg. Miami-Ohio has been unable to stop the run or pass this season, as opponents are gashing the RedHawks for 173.6 ypg on the ground, while earning another 212.1 ypg through the air. The RedHawks have also lacked that big play ability, as the team comes into this weekend with just six takeaways and six sacks. In the team's setback to Ohio over the weekend the RedHawks were punished by the Bobcats on the ground, as the defense allowed 226 rushing yards and two scores on 6.8 yards per attempt. The RedHawks did force a turnover in the loss, but finished the game with no sacks and allowed Ohio to convert on 3-of-4 red zone attempts.

The RedHawks have been terrible this season and even though the team is home, do not expect a win for Miami-Ohio. The defense has been unable to stop the run all season, and that problem should continue this weekend against a Northern Illinois team that loves to pound the ball.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Northern Illinois 38, Miami-Ohio 14

Saturday, October 24th, 1:00 p.m. (et)