A few years ago, in 2002, when Northeastern was nothing more than a twinkle in the eye for most of us, our boys of Kent Street were the pick of the Atlantic-10 litter.
There was Brady magic (that is, quarterback Shawn Brady), a strong linebacker (all-time Husky tackles leader Liam Ezekial) and a workhorse back (all-time Husky touchdowns leader Tim Gale). And we were on a roll, too – winning four straight football games to start the season while outscoring opponents by a 149-34 margin.
And then Northeastern visited the buzz-saw that was the state of Delaware, who stole our undefeated season, 27-10.
“We were on a roll and they just punched us in the mouth and stopped everything that we were doing,” Brady said.
The good? Northeastern ended 2002 as Atlantic-10 champs and went to the football subdivision championship tournament while having an all-around awesome season.
The bad? Well, what could possibly be the best Husky squad ever assembled (present squad excluded, of course) had lost a game they shouldn’t have — to a conference opponent no less.
That would be it for that great team; Northeastern eventually lost in the tournament and wouldn’t repeat as champs in 2003. The kicker? That same Delaware team went on to win the whole shebang a year later – compiling a 15-1 overall record that culminated in a 40-0 romp over then No. 6 Colgate in the championship game.
But for Husky fans, there’s a morsel of joy to take away from those two seasons – the lone blemish on the Blue Hens’ record happened on a perfect fall day on a quaint field in Brookline.
Yes, revenge had never been sweeter than on Nov. 8, 2003, when Northeastern beat then No. 2 Delaware, 24-14.
“It was a big turning point,” Brady said. “They were in a similar situation that we were in a year before. People had that game circled on the calendar and we knew we had a better team than them last year. It was gratifying to come off the field.”
Brady, Gale and Ezekial weren’t the only all-time Husky leaders from that squad – it also included Corey Parks, who is second in all-time receiving touchdowns and yards. There was also Miro Kesic, the kicker who scored more points in his career (306) than any other Husky player.
The game was back and forth from the beginning, Northeastern held a 7-0 lead at the half, 14-7 going into the fourth quarter and 24-14 with just less than three minutes to play.
Down by 10 with a few minutes to go, Delaware was looking for something to take away from the game. And, just how the Blue Hens denied Northeastern its perfect season a year before, the Huskies returned the favor.
Sitting on Northeastern’s one yard line, it looked like Delaware would score and attempt an on-side kick. Two-spiked balls later, Delaware was on third-down and it was Northeastern who looked like the title-contenders.
The Blue Hens ran – but were stuffed. On fourth and goal, Blue Hen quarterback Andy Hall (who was later named A-10 Player of the Year) overthrew an open Jesse O’Neil in the end-zone. And that was that. Northeastern had its revenge.
“You see it every week, the worst team can beat the best team,” Brady said.
In no way was Northeastern the worst team that year, finishing 8-4 overall. But Brady’s sentiments ring true to this day.
And the more-and-more there are upsets (Appalachian State over Michigan, Stanford over USC), the more a Husky fan will feel that anything can happen.
So, carry this in-tow while the 2007 edition takes the five-hour bus-ride down to No. 15 Delaware. Gone are the Bradys, the Gales or the Andy Halls. But always present is a possible win against a great opponent.
“They probably do stand out,” said head coach Rocky Hager. “They’re among the top five or 10 teams in the subdivision as far as attendance, so we need to put ourselves in position to execute well.”
But it’s the same field that can be found at any stadium, and it’s the same game that’s played as well. So what does the coach think?
“The field is marked the same, so we’ll be able to play well there,” Hager said.
– Matt Foster can be reached at [email protected].
