NIU football: Joel Bouagnon piling up touchdowns for Huskies

DeKALB – Northern Illinois running back Joel Bouagnon can't stop scoring touchdowns.

The junior back has flourished in the starting role for the Huskies and is third in the nation and first in the Mid-American Conference in rushing scores – a strong combination of goal line touchdowns and big plays.

"That's a complete package," Northern Illinois coach Rod Carey said. "I think that Joel has a good knack for getting the tough yards and his vision – when the big one's there, he can take it."

The Huskies' leading rusher comes into the game against Eastern Michigan on Saturday with 144 rushes for 725 yards and 13 touchdowns. Those numbers in seven games in 2015 already exceed those Bouagnon put up in 14 games in 2014, in which he had 113 carries for 655 yards and five touchdowns as a backup.

"The thing about Joel, he does exactly what you coach him to do," Northern Illinois running back coach Kelton Copeland said. "If you coach him to take a 6-inch step, he's going to take a 6-inch step. That's a big part of why he's successful. He fits our system so well."

Of his 13 touchdowns this season, seven have come on runs of three yards or fewer. However, in the 45-12 win at Miami (Ohio), Bouagnon had two touchdowns on 22-yard runs and added another score on a career-high 53-yard carry. He also had a 29-yard touchdown in the season opener against UNLV.

The 13 touchdowns put him at third in the NCAA – behind LSU star running back Leonard Fournette and Houston quarterback Greg Ward Jr., both of whom have 14.

"Getting the more bulk of the carries," Bouagnon said of the difference this year. "I was behind Cam (Stingily) last year so just getting the bulk of the carries is big. When you're No. 2, you're waiting to get your play here and there. When you're getting ready for a game, it's a little different, too, because there's more responsibility on your shoulders."

Copeland said that with the run-oriented offense that Northern Illinois runs, the 6-foot-2, 226-pound from Aurora has been a perfect fit in the backfield.

"Everybody who watches Huskie football knows we're going to run the ball," Copeland said. "That's what we do and that's how we win games. Your tailback is going to take the load of that run game. He's a guy, whether it's three yards and a cloud of dust or, boom, knock off a big one for 40, 50, 60 yards, he's able to do both."

Copeland also credits Bouagnon's even-keel personality, being able to not get too high or too low, with the Huskies (4-3 overall, 2-1 in Mid-American Conference) bouncing back after a three-game losing streak earlier in the year.

Entering the season, Bouagnon's career-high in rushing yards in a game was 97 in a lopsided win over Presbyterian in the 2014 opener. So far this year, he's cracked more than 100 yards in four of the Huskies' seven games – including three straight. He's also scored multiple touchdowns in five games.

"He was confident last year, but anytime you play the amount of snaps that he has, I think you get a ton of good stuff," Carey said. "Physically, he's one year older and one year stronger but mentally, definitely a ton of confidence."

Bouagnon's offseason didn't go on without a hitch, though. He missed almost all of spring football with a meniscus injury.

However, it hasn't looked like it so far this season.

"Our training staff does a great job," Carey said. "They identified it, they managed it and rehabbed it perfectly."

While knee injuries tend to be major red flags for the running back position, Bouagnon said he's coming into the game against Eastern Michigan 100 percent healthy.

"When you get hurt, you don't know what's going to happen later in the future," he said. "But I felt like I bounced back pretty well."