Northern Illinois will not be going to another BCS bowl game, and Jordan Lynch can probably give up that dream of winning the Heisman Trophy.
On Friday night in Detroit Northern Illinois fell to Bowling Green 47-27, ending its 25-game MAC winning streak.
Lynch didn't have his best night of the season, as he threw for 219 yards, rushed for 126 and had three total touchdowns, but he also threw two interceptions. Tonight was only the second time in Lynch's career that he threw two interceptions in a single game, with the other game being Northern's 40-39 win against Eastern Illinois earlier this season.
Of course, while Lynch didn't have his greatest game, it was more the Northern Illinois defense that let the Huskies down. The Huskies defense gave up 574 yards and three touchdowns of greater than 20 yards, with blown coverages leading to Falcons receivers literally finding themselves with no Northern Illinois defenders within ten yards of them. Of course, the reasons why Northern Illinois lost aren't nearly as important as what the loss cost the Huskies, and even the MAC itself.
Although his chances at winning a Heisman were slim after it was announced no charges would be filed against Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston, there's certainly no hope for Lynch to win the award now. He may not even make the trip to New York at this point depending on how voters view Friday's performance.
And while Northern Illinois would have loved to go to its second straight BCS bowl game, it wasn't the only one. The MAC itself is going to lose out on $8 million from the BCS for qualifying. That's over $615,000 for each school within the conference.
It may have only been one loss in the loss column for Northern Illinois, but in reality it was so much more.
