WEST POINT, N.Y. --Needing yet another rally with a seesaw road game up for grabs, Northern Illinois quarterback Jordan Lynch knew just who to look for.
He found him - and just in the nick of time.
Down 40-35 with 4:29 to play, Lynch connected with a streaking Martel Moore from eight yards out - their second touchdown on the afternoon - and the Huskies sent Army to its fifth straight home-opening defeat 41-40 on Saturday.
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Northern Illinois (2-1, 0-0 Mid-American Conference) made its first visit to Michie Stadium in 20 years a happy one despite trailing 40-35 with just 8:55 to play.
"When the game's on the line, we try to go to our playmakers," said Lynch, who finished with 342 yards and four touchdowns on 18 of 27 passing. "Martel's our playmaker out there. I just gave him a chance. He was in rhythm and made a nice catch."
The senior Moore had 134 receiving and Lynch added 125 on the ground as Northern Illinois used a potent passing game to counter Army's triple-option.
Larry Dixon had three scores on 136 yards rushing and Trent Steelman had two touchdowns on 116 yards rushing for the Black Knights (0-2), while Raymond Maples added a score on 159 yards. It was Army's first game with three hundred-yard rushers since 1996.
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"Our guys overcame a lot in that game to win," said Huskies coach Dave Doeren, whose team notched its first victory in a road-opener in five years. "They found a way to get it done. I'm excited to be able to run and pass the ball, the balance we had."
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Illinois State downs EIU in overtime
NORMAL, Ill. --Matt Brown accounted for seven touchdowns, and his fifth scoring pass of the game, a 25-yarder to Tyrone Walker in the second overtime period, capped a career-high 473-yard performance and gave Illinois State a wild 54-51 victory Saturday over Eastern Illinois.
Eastern Illinois had taken the lead on a 40-yard field goal by Cameron Berra, whose 20-yarder at the end of regulation sent the game to overtime.
Brown, who added two rushing touchdowns, also hit Donovan Harden for two scores and Lechein Neblett and Cameron Hunt for one apiece. The five touchdowns, on 42-of-57 passing, tied Brown's career high. Walker led all receivers with 11 catches for 142 yards.
The teams combined for 1,042 yards of total offense. The Redbirds (3-0) won despite being penalized 22 times for 178 yards.
Taylor Duncan rushed for three touchdowns and Jimmy Garoppolo had 387 yards passing and two scores for the Panthers (1-2).
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Southern Illinois rolls past SE Missouri St.
CARBONDALE, Ill. -- Kory Faulkner threw for 384 yards and three touchdown passes, both career highs, Saturday night to lead Southern Illinois to a 35-14 win over Southeast Missouri.
Faulkner, a junior, connected with David Lewis, MyCole Pruitt and LaSteven McKinney for touchdowns. Mika'il McCall ran for 81 yards and two scores for the Salukis, who led 21-0 at halftime, scoring the final TD of the half after a 13-play, 99-yard drive.
SIU (1-2), in its home opener, amassed 565 yards of total offense, a Saluki Stadium record.
Southeast Missouri (1-2) was held to 186 yards, just 73 through the air. Lewis Washington and Paul McRoberts scored for the Redhawks.
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Iowa State crushes Western Illinois
AMES, Iowa --Steele Jantz threw three touchdown passes and James White ran 56 yards for another score, leading Iowa State to a 37-3 victory over Western Illinois on Saturday night.
Penalties and turnovers frustrated Iowa State at times, but the Cyclones still had enough to overpower their FCS opponent and start 3-0 for the second straight year and sixth time since 1981. Four of the five previous 3-0 starts led to bowl appearances.
Jantz completed 19 of 26 passes for 209 yards, with touchdown throws of 16 and 5 yards to Chris Young and 22 yards to Aaron Horne. He was intercepted once and lost a fumble.
Western Illinois (2-1) trailed 31-0 before Pat Smith kicked a 26-yard field goal in the first minute of the fourth quarter. Iowa State was playing its second-team defense by then.
While never in danger during the game, Iowa State still has a lot to clean up before its Big 12 opener against Texas Tech on Sept. 29. The Cyclones were penalized seven times for 75 yards and were minus-three in turnovers - two interceptions and a fumble.
The Cyclones have time to get that work done because they're off next weekend.
Western Illinois started the season with victories over Butler, a non-scholarship FCS program, and Division II Indianapolis. But an opponent from a BCS conference simply was too much for the outmanned Leathernecks.
Their only chance was Iowa State suffering a major letdown after its 9-6 victory over Iowa, the Cyclones' first win in Iowa City in 10 years, but that didn't happen, even if ISU wasn't especially sharp.
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