Mixed emotions for Niemann

When Ben Niemann switched his verbal commitment from Northern Illinois to Iowa over the summer, he knew this week was coming eventually. On Saturday, the two teams will face off in the season opener at Kinnick Stadium, which for Niemann means not only his two finalists, but also his future college against the team where his father, Jay, is the defensive coordinator.

"It's a difficult situation and an awkward one to be honest," said Niemann.

Still, with deep roots in the state of Iowa, the Niemann family will have several members in attendance on Saturday, including Ben who opens his senior season at Sycamore High School on Friday night with a game at Lincoln-Way West.

"I'll be there," Niemann said. "I'm not going as a recruit. I will to a few other games, but this week I'm sitting with my mom and my brother, and I have some extended family and friends coming as well."

With Iowa projecting Niemann at outside linebacker in college and his father coaching the Northern Illinois defense, the two-star prospect says he is rooting for a low scoring, defensive battle on Saturday.

"I'm just going as a fan to see a good game between two great teams," said Niemann. "I'll be rooting for both teams, both defenses."

Meanwhile, Niemann has been busy preparing for his senior year at Sycamore as they look to improve on their 7-4 record from last season. A returning all-state wide receiver, Niemann looks forward to making a bigger impact on defense this year as well.

"Things are going really well," Niemann said. "I'm really excited to finally get back under the lights. We play at Lincoln-Way West tonight and I'm playing both ways at wide receiver and strong safety. Sometimes I might walk down as another outside linebacker in certain formations as well."