Northern Illinois University starting quarterback Chandler Harnish (Bluffton, Ind./Norwell HS) will not participate in the team’s 2010 football spring practices and will have surgery on his injured right knee later this spring, NIU Head Coach Jerry Kill announced Monday.

Doctors have determined that Harnish’s knee, originally injured during the 2009 season, will require surgery which will sideline the junior for NIU’s 2010 spring practices, which open March 23 and conclude April 24.

“Chandler will have surgery and will not be able to participate in our spring drills,” Kill said. “His return will depend on how the rehab process goes, and we’re certainly hopeful he’ll be ready in August. In the meantime, we’ve got four quarterbacks on the roster this spring and we’ll get those guys a lot of work.”

Redshirt freshmen A.J. Hill, Jordan Lynch and Tommy Coughlin join junior DeMarcus Grady as active quarterbacks for the Huskies this spring. Grady started four games and saw action in eight contests in
2009 and has started five games in the last two seasons. He has completed 58.0 percent of his career passes (40-of-69) for 418 yards and five touchdowns while rushing for 518 yards and four scores on 98 carries.

Harnish’s career numbers include a 60 percent completion percentage on 261-of-434 passing with 19 touchdown passes. He has thrown for 3,198 yards in 20 games and accounted for nearly 4,000 yards of total offense
(3,966) with 768 rushing yards on 207 carries. Harnish completed
143-of-223 passes for 1,670 yards in 2009 while throwing 11 touchdown passes versus just six interceptions.

Kill also announced that NIU junior tailback Me’co Brown (Moss Point, Miss./Moss Point HS) has withdrawn from school for personal reasons.

Brown gained 1,155 rushing yards on 258 carries while starting 14 games at tailback for the Huskies over the last two seasons. He ranked second on the 2009 team in rushing with 645 yards on 148 carries and four touchdowns.

Season tickets for the 2010 five-game home schedule can be ordered now through the NIU Athletics Ticket Office in the Convocation Center by calling 815-752-6800, or by contacting Ryan Harris in the NIU Marketing
Office via e-mail at rharris7@niu.edu. Season tickets for all five
games are just $85 for the general public with a three-game mini-plan available for $50. Senior citizens (62 or older), NIU Varsity Club (former letterwinners) and NIU Alumni Association members as well as Northern Illinois faculty and staff, can purchase season tickets for
only $74. Additional information is also available online at
www.NIUHuskies.com under the Tickets link.

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For more information, contact Donna Turner, NIU Athletics Media Relations, 815-793-5474 or 815-753-9513. Keep up with all the latest news on Northern Illinois Athletics, read “Huskie Happenings” daily on www.NIUHuskies.com.