Akron Zips vs. Northern Illinois Huskies: How to watch online, live stream info, start time, TV channel

How to watch Akron vs. Northern Illinois football game

By Scout Staff

Oct 6, 2023 at 3:30 pm ET • 2 min read

Who's Playing

Northern Illinois Huskies @ Akron Zips

Current Records: Northern Illinois 1-4, Akron 1-4

How To Watch

When: Saturday, October 7, 2023 at 3:30 p.m. ET
Where: Summa Field at InfoCision Stadium -- Akron, Ohio
TV: ESPN+
Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
Follow: CBS Sports App

What to Know

Akron will be in front of their home fans on Saturday, but a look at the spread shows they might need that home-field advantage. The Akron Zips and the Northern Illinois Huskies will face off in a Mid American battle at 3:30 p.m. ET at Summa Field at InfoCision Stadium. Both teams have hit rough patches recently with three consecutive losses for Akron and four for Northern Illinois.

Akron fought the good fight in their overtime match against Buffalo on Saturday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell just short of the Bulls by a score of 13-10. The loss unfortunately continues a disappointing trend for Akron in their matchups with Buffalo: they've now lost six in a row.

DJ Irons put forth a good effort for the losing side as he threw for 136 yards and a touchdown while completing 73.1% of his passes.

Meanwhile, Northern Illinois went for two against Toledo on Saturday, and the resulting failed attempt cost them the contest. Northern Illinois fell just short of Toledo by a score of 35-33.

Northern Illinois' loss shouldn't obscure the performances of Rocky Lombardi, who threw for 258 yards and two touchdowns, and Antario Brown who rushed for 152 yards on only 16 carries. Brown's longest rush was for an incredible 80 yards.

Akron's status as the underdog is well-deserved: they've lost four of their last five games. Admittedly, the team was facing some tough opposition over that stretch, including 2-2 Indiana (Akron's opponents had an average overall winning percentage of 64% over those games). On the other hand, Northern Illinois' loss on Saturday dropped their record down to 1-4.

In addition to losing their last games, the pair failed to cover the spread. Looking ahead, Northern Illinois is the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by five points. This will be Akron's first time playing as the underdogs at home this season.

Everything came up roses for Akron against Northern Illinois in their previous matchup last November as the team secured a 44-12 victory. Will Akron repeat their success, or does Northern Illinois have a better game plan this time around? We'll find out soon enough.