Ex-Oswego star Jack Hugunin adjusts to a fall without football as freshman at NIU

Jack Hugunin had a quick answer to what weekends without football will look like this fall.

The same as any other college freshman.

"As weird as it is to say, I'll still be living the normal college life," Hugunin said. "I'll be staying in the dorm. Not sure what our workout policy will be."

Hugunin, ever happy-go-lucky, is rolling with the punches as best as he can in the wake of the Mid-American Conference canceling its fall football season on Aug. 8. The freshman at Northern Illinois and ex-Oswego star defensive tackle is indeed living the typical college life.

He does walkthroughs, lifting and conditioning in numbered groups. Other than that, Hugunin passes the time playing Madden and Call of Duty in his New Residence Hall dorm room. NIU starts school Aug. 24, although only two of Hugunin's six classes are in-person.

The MAC was the first Football Bowl Subdivision Conference to cancel fall sports. Since then, the Big Ten and Pac-12 have done so amid safety concerns over the coronavirus.

NIU was in the middle of its second day of fall practice when news broke of the decision.

"From my personal standpoint, a total football lover, it stinks that we couldn't play, but there is a lot of uncertainty," Hugunin said. "People aren't sure what to expect. NIU and the MAC are doing what they were told, following it to a T. Personally, I'm upset that we won't be playing football, but playing in the spring gives me months to get better."

Hugunin has been in DeKalb since early June. The program has the football players in dorms, isolated in groups of 3-4 people, a bubble of football players. Limited to very small groups, they did position-specific workouts. Hugunin did personal development stuff to stay busy and works with the other freshman defensive linemen.

Hugunin said they still have not been together as a full team. He's been tested for coronavirus 3-4 times, and said another test was scheduled.

It's part of life as a college athlete during a pandemic.

Knock on wood, Hugunin said NIU's team hasn't had any issues with COVID-19.

"It's kind of tough," Hugunin said. "It takes a little bit of accountability. You have to take care of your own bubble. It's tough when other guys go out partying and whatnot. But the football players hold each other accountable to take care of each other. If you want to play, that's what you got to do."

Hugunin, who said he's lost some fatty weight and put on muscle in his brief time in DeKalb, was of course hopeful for a season.

He also was aware of its uncertainty.

According to a report by Sports Illustrated, NIU athletic director Sean Frazier and president Lisa Freeman led the way in persuading the MAC to postpone the season. The goal is to play the fall sports in the spring, but no firm plans are in place.

Frazier did acknowledge in an interview with Shaw Media that he was "definitely out there the last two months in looking to a spring season" to keep athletes, students and the community safe.

He said Freeman was also a big advocate for the cancellation.

"First off, the MAC and the presidents and the ADs, that's where the leadership came from," Frazier said. "I'm biased toward my president. She's a scientist. She's a doctor. This is not new for her, her ability to understand the rate of what a virus is as well as her access to information. You've got to respect that. Give her that level of respect. She understands it. ... She's legit. She gets it. It's always been about health and safety to her from Day 1."

Hugunin could understand the decision-making process and is hopeful that NIU and other schools can do what's necessary to make a spring season a reality.

"Personally, I would have loved to play, but playing against teams from other states, you just don't know what they're doing," Hugunin said. "Everybody that I talk to, they are very conscious of where they go. They don't go out unless they have to, keep in that bubble. There's not a person on NIU's team that doesn't want to go out there and play. We're doing what we can."