2013 Poinsettia Bowl, Utah State vs. NIU: TV time, team profiles and more

In a low-scoring first half, Northern Illinois racked up 234 yards of offense, but penalties and key stops by the Utah State defense limited the Huskies to just a touchdown. Quarterback Jordan Lynch snuck in from a yard with eight minutes left in the half, canceling out two Utah State field goals and giving the Huskies a 7-6 halftime lead.

The Aggies put the game away with a 17-play, 80-yard drive that chopped 7:19 off the clock in the fourth quarter, capped off by a one-yard touchdown run by DeMartino for a 21-7 lead.

(“Mid-major elite” obviously means something different now than it did a few years ago, when TCU and Utah were still mid-majors and Boise State had not yet fallen back to the pack.)

It would perhaps be more fun to watch both USU and NIU taking on major-conference teams of similar caliber -- Utah State ranks between Michigan and Ole Miss this season, while NIU falls in the Texas Tech or Cincinnati neighborhood -- but in the absence of that, a nice showcase of two solid mid-major programs isn’t a bad fall-back option.

Two of the best non-power conference teams in the country will square off in an early bowl game as Northern Illinois and Utah State will play in this year’s Poinsettia Bowl. Television coverage begins at 9:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

Rankings and records: Northern Illinois is ranked No. 23. Utah State is unranked. Northern Illinois went 12-1, with an 8-0 conference record good for the division title. Utah State went 8-5, winning their division with a 7-1 conference record. Utah State won the only matchup between the two schools, way back in 1995.

The Aggies (Mountain West, 8-5 SU, 8-5 ATS, 6-7 OU) came up short in a 24-17 loss to Fresno State in the MWC Championship on December 7 as a 3-point road underdog. The Aggies covered in four of their last five games prior to this loss and the total has now stayed UNDER in their last four contests. They were 4-3 ATS in seven road games this year.

Northern Illinois (Mid-American, 12-1 SU, 8-5 ATS, 8-5 OU) climbed to No. 14 in the BCS rankings while posting a perfect 12-0 SU mark in the regular season, but it got its doors blown off by Bowling Green, 47-27, in the MAC Championship as a three-point favorite.