Northern Illinois football grabs MAC title behind Jordan Lynch

Jordan Lynch rushed for a 2-yard touchdown in overtime to secure a 44-37 win over Kent State on Friday and lead Northern Illinois to its second consecutive Mid-American Conference championship.

Lynch was 19-of-34, passing for 212 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed 36 times for 160 yards and three touchdowns in the win.

Lynch was the MAC regular-season MVP and broke the NCAA rushing record for a quarterback by recording 1,771 yards. He eclipsed the previous mark of 1,702 set by Michigan's Denard Robinson in 2010.

When asked about his Heisman candidacy, Lynch told Fred Mitchell of the Chicago Tribune that he didn't want to talk about it, preferring to focus on the "team effort."

Northern Illinois had 524 yards of total offense while holding Kent State to just 260. The Huskies converted 10-of-19 on third downs and were also 2-of-2 on fourth down. The Huskies were ranked 21st nationally heading into the game versus Kent State.