Two true freshmen starters for NIU on Saturday against Miami (Ohio) made an immediate impact, each having a hand in a touchdown and helping the Huskies open a two-touchdown lead.

The offensive resurgence didn’t last long.

After 136 yards of total offense on their first two drives, the Huskies managed 84 yards the rest of the game as the RedHawks picked up the 25-14 win on Saturday, keeping the Mallory Cup and spoiling NIU’s homecoming.

True freshman Brady Davidson got the start at quarterback while fellow first-year college player Lazaro Rogers got the nod at running back for NIU (1-4 overall, 0-1 Mid-American Conference) against Miami (2-3, 1-0).

Rogers made an impact first, rattling off a 76-yard run on the Huskies’ first play from scrimmage for a touchdown.

On the second drive, it was Davidson’s turn to shine. He led the Huskies on an 11-play, 60-yard drive, capped by a 17-yard touchdown pass to Jake Appleget. He was 7 for 8 for 60 yards on the drive, staking the Huskies to a 14-0 lead with 3:23 left.

“The biggest thing this week was to take what they give us,” said Davidson, a 6-5, 2024 graduate of Rock Bridge in Columbia, Mo. “That’s what that second drive was. They were giving us a lot of that and we were just taking that. We have to be able to keep working and getting back to that mentality.”

That was it for the Huskies’ offensive production. Davidson was 6 for 20 the rest of the way with 46 passing yards. He threw an interception and lost a fumble, plus an earlier fumble led to a safety for Miami that put them ahead 15-14.

The Huskies hadn’t scored more than one offensive touchdown in a game this year. Despite needing barely 9 minutes to accomplish that Saturday, they still ended up under 20 points and taking their fourth straight loss.

“The second drive, we were able to convert some plays which gave us a chance,” said NIU coach Thomas Hammock after his team was 2 for 3 on third down on that long scoring drive and 2 for 11 the rest of the game. “Obviously, we had a nice play in the end zone to score a touchdown. There were some positive plays, but we have to be able to reset from there and put drives together after that.”

The low point came in the third quarter after Miami cut the lead to 14-13. On second and 13, Adam Trick sacked Davidson and the ball popped loose. Izzy Ozoh recovered on the NIU 9, setting up third and 26. After a shovel pass for no gain, Jermaine Agee blocked Danny Vuckovic’s punt and it rolled out the end zone, giving the RedHawks the lead.

Miami started the ensuing drive at midfield and scored a touchdown, a nine-point swing in a game the RedHawks won by nine points.

“It was the same as every other week. Nothing changed in preparation,” Davidson said. “I’ve been preparing like I’m the starter since Week 1.”

Rogers finished with nine carries for 98 yards. The 14 points are the most NIU has scored against an FBS team this year and the Huskies haven’t topped the 20-point mark yet, having entered Saturday dead last in scoring offense and likely to keep that spot.

The defense surrendered 367 yards, the second-most the Huskies have given up all year. Miami had the ball for almost 40 minutes and ran 76 plays to NIU’s 51.

The performance secured the Mallory Cup for the RedHawks. They’ve won all five meetings since the battle became a trophy game in 2018. With NIU’s move to the Mountain West next year, Miami will keep the trophy for the foreseeable future.

NIU senior linebacker and Batavia graduate Quinn Urwiler had 14 tackles, a sack and 1.5 tackles for a loss. He entered the game second in the country in tackles per game and could be moving into the No. 1 spot after this week.

He’d still rather be winning, he said.

“It doesn’t mean anything. I want to win,” Urwiler said. “I would rather get zero tackles and win than have 14 in a loss.”