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DeKALB – NIU senior wide receiver Trayvon Rudolph said his reputation as a quarterback took a hit earlier this season against Notre Dame, when on a trick play he was off-target to a wide-open Dane Pardridge.
Two months later, his reputation is repaired.
Against Akron on Wednesday, Rudolph found an open Pardridge this time around for a 39-yard touchdown, staking the Huskies to a two-touchdown lead for the first time in a 29-16 win against the Zips.
“I knew I had to make up for Notre Dame. I was telling [coach Thomas] Hammock, don’t give up on me on that one,” Rudolph said. “But it felt amazing. Dane, I told him I got him. I had him against Notre Dame too so I knew I had to make up for it.”
The win secures the Huskies (6-4, 3-3 Mid-American Conference) their second straight bowl berth, the first time the program is in consecutive bowl games since 2017-2018.
Rudolph was a big part of that, especially early on. And ironically it was for everything except pass-catching. He had a 58-yard run for a touchdown on a direct snap that erased the only lead of the game for the Zips (2-8, 1-5). It put the Huskies ahead 10-6 with 8:20 left in the first quarter.
“I’m here to help however I can,” Rudolph said. “Throw, block, run, I’m just here to do my part and help us get wins. Just them trusting me so much and having a bigger role on the team, I love it cause I just love helping us win.”
The Huskies led 23-16 at the break and started the second half with the ball, but the offense started to struggle. They had 274 yards in the first half but punted on their first four possession of the second half.
NIU finished with 439 yards of offense in the game.
Hammock said the team struggled on third down, converting just two of their 12 opportunities in the game.
“We were moving the ball, then we’d not convert on third down,” Hammock said. “I think that was a major factor. We’ve been good all year. I think we were 45% coming into the game on third down and we just weren’t efficient enough on third down to stay on the field.”
But Gavin Williams made sure the Zips wouldn’t come back. With Antario Brown unavailable due to an injury suffered last week against Western Michigan, both Williams and true freshman Telly Johnson eclipsed 100 rushing yards.
And for Williams, most of that came on a 71-yard touchdown run in the fourth quarter that pushed the lead to 29-16. Williams credited Tristan Tewes and Justin Lynch for a couple big blocks on the run.
“That was probably the leanest look we’ve had,” Williams said. “Those opportunities don’t come around often. It was really just trying to make the most of it and not coming on short. I wasn’t trying to go back to the sideline and have coach Ham get after me for not scoring. I had to take off and go get in the end zone.”
Williams had 101 yards on nine carries while Johnson, a true freshman, had 104 yards on 21 carries in his third career game.
Rudolph finished with 57 rushing yards, 39 passing yards and three catches for 20 yards.
It all adds up to a likely bowl bid for the Huskies after snapping a seven-bowl losing streak stretching back to the 2011 season with a 21-19 win against Arkansas State in the Camellia Bowl last year.
After they finish the regular season with games at Miami and at home against Central Michigan, they’ll look for bowl wins in consecutive years for the first time since 2010-2011, the only time they’ve accomplished the feat.
“I don’t think we’ve had back-to-back bowls in a minute,” Rudolph said. “We extended playing time a little bit more and it feels amazing.”