ISU Edged by Upstart Northern Illinois

DEKALB, Ill. (AP) - Michael Turner ran for 134 yards and one touchdown, and Josh Haldi threw two TD passes as No. 20 Northern Illinois beat Iowa State 24-16 on Saturday.

The win gave the Huskies (4-0) a perfect 3-0 record against teams from BCS conferences. They knocked off Maryland in overtime to open the season, and beat Alabama on the road last Saturday.

Northern Illinois, ranked for the first time ever, led 17-16 late in the fourth quarter when safety Akil Grant picked off a wobbling pass and returned it 8 yards to midfield. Iowa State quarterback Austin Flynn was hit from behind on the play, sending the ball fluttering into the air and into Grant's hands.

The late interception set up a 49-yard drive that ended with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Haldi to P.J. Fleck with 1:55 remaining.

Iowa State (2-2) got the ball back at its own 29, but Flynn was sacked twice and threw a pair of incompletions as Northern Illinois took over at its own 15 and ran out the clock.

Flynn was 16-of-33 for 182 yards and no touchdowns.

The Cyclones have lost 25 in a row on the road against ranked opponents, a winless stretch that covers 13 years.

Northern Illinois led 14-10 at halftime, but Iowa State kicker Adam Benike had field goals of 43 and 26 yards to give the Cyclones a two-point lead early in the fourth quarter.

After Benike's second field goal, the Huskies responded with an 11-play, 59-yard drive - their longest of the game. Turner ran the ball five times for 19 yards and Haldi was 3-of-3 for 34 yards to set up Steve Azar's game-winning 26-yard field goal.

Haldi finished 15-of-22 for 167 yards.

Iowa State took a 7-0 lead on a 2-yard TD run by Hiawatha Rutland that capped an 8-play, 56-yard drive.

Northern Illinois tied it when Vinson Reynolds intercepted a screen pass 5 yards into the backfield and returned it 65 yards to the 13. The Huskies gave it to Turner from there. Turner put Northern Illinois at the 2 on runs of 9 and 2 yards, and scored on the third play of the drive when he hurdled a defender.

Benike kicked a 23-yard field goal to make it 10-7, but later missed a 36-yard attempt for the Cyclones.

The Huskies took a 14-10 halftime lead when Haldi threw a 38-yard touchdown to Dan Sheldon just inside the near pylon.

Turner, who came into the game averaging 127 yards rushing a game, moved past Mark Kellar to become Northern Illinois' career rushing leader with 3,807 yards. Kellar set the previous record of 3,745 yards from 1971-73.

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Players Mentioned

Adam Benike

Adam Benike

Austin Flynn

Austin Flynn

Hiawatha Rutland

Hiawatha Rutland

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Iowa State University Athletics