Former Wisconsin assistant Thomas Hammock was at the center of the college football world on Saturday.
His Northern Illinois Huskies went on the road and beat No. 5 Notre Dame 16-14, pulling the upset of the year in college football — arguably the biggest win in Northern Illinois program history.
Related: Takeaways from Wisconsin’s uninspiring Week 2 win over South Dakota
Hammock is in his sixth season at the helm at Northern Illinois. His 26-33 overall record with the program includes a 0-6 2020 campaign and a 3-9 2022 season. But it is highlighted by a 9-5 2021 season that included a win in the MAC Championship Game. The Huskies most recently finished 2023 at 7-6.
Overall, he has stabilized the program in the middle of the MAC, which is far from the place in the sport currently occupied by Notre Dame — the Fighting Irish entered Saturday ranked near the top of the nation after a Week 1 road win at Texas A&M.
Northern Illinois’ win on a last-minute field goal in South Bend, Indiana is the perfect David vs. Goliath upset that help define college football. His postgame interview only added to the terrific story:
https://twitter.com/ChaseDaniel/status/1832556348925735067
There is a Wisconsin connection here. Hammock coached for the Badgers from 2003-04 as a graduate assistant and from 2011-2013 as their running backs coach. He coached a few well-known Wisconsin running backs during his time with the program: Montee Ball, Melvin Gordon and James White.
The former Wisconsin assistant is finding success at Northern Illinois despite the current age of college football making it more challenging for programs at the Group of Five level. His upset over Notre Dame and subsequent viral interview is a perfect reminder that college football is about much more than which SEC team will win the College Football Playoff this year.
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