Coffman will return to play football in 2010
After informing head football coach Jerry Kill in January that he intended to forgo his senior season in order to graduate from Northern Illinois and begin his post-football career, NIU defensive end Jake Coffman has decided to return to the Huskies for the 2010 campaign.
That news was warmly received by the NIU head coach, who begins his third season at the helm of the Huskie program in 2010.
“It is great for our football team to have a young man like Jake Coffman decide to remain in our program for another year,” Kill said. “He brings instant respect among our players and is an extra boost to our defense. We are thrilled he has decided to return.”
Coffman, a Marine Corps veteran who returned to college football as a 22-year old freshman in 2006 and developed into Northern Illinois University’s top defender in 2009, said in a few months away from the game, he realized his desire to play was still as strong as ever.
“I thought I was ready to be done with it, but I realized that after 18 years of playing a sport that I love, I wasn’t ready to quit yet,” Coffman said. “Right after the season, I thought I did everything that I wanted to do with [football], and then [a couple months later] I talked to my father and grandfather, and they pointed out that I finish everything that I start; and why not football? That was the first time they had weighed in on it, and that hit me.
“I spent a whole week thinking about it. I talked to Coach Kill and he was receptive [to me coming back]. As soon as I got the green light from him that it was an option to come back, I wanted to. I talked to the players and coaches, and they were receptive to it and here I am.”
In addition to his desire to finish what he started, Coffman freely admits that he missed his Huskie teammates and missed playing the game.
“I live across the street from the stadium and the first day of [spring] practice I stood by the fence watching for about 20 minutes,” he said. “I missed the game, I missed the guys, and the friends I have on the team that I’ve been around for five years. I wanted to come back and be around them and Coach Kill. Coach Kill has been unbelievable to me and my family, and so have all the coaches. I felt like I needed to finish my career for myself, my family, the coaches, and the players I came in with.
“I never planned on sitting out spring and then coming back. Being away [from football] during the spring renewed my passion for the game and made me realize how much I missed it and how much it’s a part of my life. In the end, I’m still a football player.”
Coffman’s return means the Huskies will return 11 players on defense who started at least six games a year ago. The redshirt senior is excited about adding to an already strong defensive line group and the potential for an exciting 2010 season.
“Watching the defense in spring, they’ve got a good team right now,” Coffman said. “I’m going to go in there and play the way I play and hopefully I can help the team out. I’m not playing for individual stats or honors; I want to help the team bring home a MAC title.”
Following the 2009 season, the Touchdown Club of Columbus awarded Coffman its 2009 Male Athlete of the Year Award, based on both his outstanding play as a junior and on his inspiring story and record of service to the country.
Following graduation from Forreston High School, Coffman enlisted in the Marines and completed two tours of duty in the Middle East. He rose to the rank of corporal, then returned to Illinois, enrolled at NIU and walked on to the Huskie football team.
As a junior in 2009, he led a Northern Illinois defense which ranked No. 1 in the Mid-American Conference and No. 30 in the country in total defense. Among the Huskies’ seven wins in 2009 was an upset victory at Purdue, the school’s second win all-time over a Big Ten Conference school.
Playing both at defensive end and at defensive tackle, Coffman finished the season with 39 tackles, a team-leading 8.5 quarterback sacks and 13.5 tackles for loss and recorded one of the top moments of the season with a 79-yard interception return versus Western Michigan.
Aside from his obvious on-field contributions, Coffman provides a veteran presence which will benefit a talented young Huskie defense, and gives the Northern Illinois coaching staff additional peace of mind.
“Not only does Jake help the defensive line, but he helps the defense as a whole, as well as the entire team with his expertise, his knowledge, his experience of playing in the big games, his toughness and his perseverance,” said NIU assistant coach Jeff Phelps, who works with the defensive line. “His story inspires everyone, including myself.
“On the field, I trust Jake. He’s a reliable, dependable guy. He can help make the transition smooth for [freshmen] Stephen O’Neal and Anthony Wells and help guys like Alan Baxter and Sean Progar as they take on more of a leadership role.
“He leads by example and does the right things to be prepared for every practice and every game. It’s easy for him to fit in with any group, because he has their respect. He’s a guy [our players] aspire to be like.”
Coffman’s Huskie teammates selected him as the 2009 Defensive MVP and he was a second team All Mid-American Conference choice. After earning his undergraduate degree from Northern Illinois in May, he will take post-graduate courses while competing next season.
Northern Illinois made its second straight bowl appearance in 2009 and finished the season 7-6. The Huskies open the 2010 campaign on Thursday, Sept. 2 at Iowa State before starting their 2010 home schedule Saturday, Sept. 11 versus North Dakota at Huskie Stadium.
