| Year: | 2018 |
| Team: | Northern Illinois Huskies |
| Sport: | football |
| Conference: | Mid-American Conference |
| Division: | West Division |
| Short Conf: | MAC |
| Record: | 8–6 |
| Conf Record: | 6–2 |
| Head Coach: | Rod Carey |
| Hc Year: | 6th |
| Off Coach: | Mike Uremovich |
| Oc Year: | 3rd |
| Def Coach: | Jeff Knowles |
| Dc Year: | 1st |
| Mvp: | Sutton Smith |
| Captain: | Max Scharping, Luke Shively, Josh Corcoran, Kyle Pugh, D. J. Brown |
| Stadium: | Huskie Stadium |
| Champion: | MAC champion MAC West Division champion |
| Conf Champ Result: | W 30–29 vs. Buffalo |
| Bowl: | Boca Raton Bowl |
The 2018 Northern Illinois Huskies football team represented Northern Illinois University as a member of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. Led by Rod Carey in his sixth and final season as head coach, the Huskies compiled an overall record of 8–6 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, winning the MAC's West Division title. Northern Illinois advanced to the MAC Championship Game, where they defeated East Division champion Buffalo to win the program's fifth MAC championship. The Huskies were invited to the Boca Raton Bowl, where they lost to UAB. The team played home games at Huskie Stadium in DeKalb, Illinois.
| Lott Trophy[1] | Sutton Smith | DE | JR | |
| Rimington Trophy[2] | Luke Shively | C | SR | |
| Chuck Bednarik Award[3] | Sutton Smith | DE | JR | |
| Bronko Nagurski Trophy[4] | Sutton Smith | DE | JR | |
| Outland Trophy[5] | Max Scharping | T | SR | |
| Wuerffel Trophy[6] | Max Scharping | T | SR | |
| Ted Hendricks Award[7] | Sutton Smith | DE | JR |
The MAC released their preseason media poll on July 24, 2018, with the Huskies predicted to finish as champions of the West Division.[8]
| West Division | |||
| 1 | Northern Illinois | 133 (15) | |
| 2 | Toledo | 125 (7) | |
| 3 | Western Michigan | 87 (1) | |
| 4 | Eastern Michigan | 67 | |
| 5 | Central Michigan | 58 (1) | |
| 6 | Ball State | 34 | |
See also: 2018 Iowa Hawkeyes football team.
| 1–8 | August 31, 2013 | NIU, 30–27 |
See also: 2018 Utah Utes football team. |}
| First meeting | |||
See also: 2018 Central Michigan Chippewas football team. |}
| 15–17 | November 24, 2017 | CMU, 31–24 |
See also: 2018 Florida State Seminoles football team. |}
| 0–1 | January 1, 2013 | FSU, 31–10 |
See also: 2018 Eastern Michigan Eagles football team. |}
| 24–5–2 | October 26, 2017 | NIU, 30–27 |
See also: 2018 Ball State Cardinals football team. |}
| 17–18 | November 9, 2017 | NIU, 63–17 |
See also: 2018 Ohio Bobcats football team. |}
| 11–10 | November 24, 2015 | OHIO, 26–21 |
See also: 2018 BYU Cougars football team. |}
| First meeting | |||
See also: 2018 Akron Zips football team. |}
| 8–5 | October 12, 2013 | NIU, 27–20 |
See also: 2018 Toledo Rockets football team. |}
| 14–30 | November 2, 2017 | TOL, 27–17 |
See also: 2018 Miami RedHawks football team. |}
| 9–8 | October 17, 2015 | NIU, 45–12 |
See also: 2018 Western Michigan Broncos football team. |}
| 19–23 | November 15, 2018 | NIU, 35–31 |
See also: 2018 Buffalo Bulls football team and 2018 MAC Championship Game. |}
| 11–1 | October 14, 2017 | NIU, 14–13 |
See also: 2018 UAB Blazers football team and 2018 Boca Raton Bowl. |}
| First Meeting | |||
| Head coach | 8 | ||
| Jeff Knowles | Def. Coord./lb coach | 6 | |
| Off. Coord./Asst. Head Coach/TE/fb coach | 3 | ||
| Steve Crutchley | WR Coach | 2 | |
| Craig Harmon | QB Coach | 7 | |
| Melvin Rice | CB Coach | 4 | |
| Joe Tripodi | OL Coach/Run Game Coord. | 9 | |
| Walter Stewart | DL Coach | 1 | |
| Tyler Yelk | Safeties Coach | 1 | |
| Jake Landry | RB Coach | 1 | |
| Dan Sabock | Special Teams Coord. | 1 |
See also: 2019 NFL draft.
| 2 | 55 | Houston Texans | |||
| 6 | 175 | Pittsburgh Steelers |