2026 roster · Roster geography
The Northern Illinois roster story
In 2016, 42 of 107 roster spots were filled by Illinois players with no earlier college team detected. On the 2026 roster, 32 of 114 fit the same definition. Detected transfers went from 2 to 2.
In 2016 the median player grew up 99 mi from campus. Now it is 249 mi.
Of the 2 players who came from another college, 1 is from Illinois. Those home-state players make up 50% of detected-transfer stock on this roster.
Then → now
2016–18 compared with 2021–25
- Local-developed core
- Transfer stock
| Measure | 2016–18 | 2021–25 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local-developed core | 39.4% | 35.8% | |
| Transfer stock | 2.8% | 5.3% |
The roster, at a glance
- 402 miAverage hometown distanceAverage hometown distance among 106 located players.
- 28.9%In-state28.9% of the roster is from Illinois.
- 32.1%Backyard32.1% grew up within 100 miles of campus.
- 1.8%Detected transfers1.8% of the roster arrived after playing at another school.
Across the FBS
Where Northern Illinois ranks
Homecoming Radius over time
The median hometown-to-campus distance, by season. The dotted line is the FBS median.
Roster composition over time
Where the in-state lens draws the line: local-developed, local transfer, outsider developed, outsider transfer, and unknown. This chart begins where stable athlete IDs make transfer detection possible; the radius chart above carries the official-archive geography farther back.
Where do Northern Illinois's players come from?
| Season | Roster | In-state | Transfer signal | Radius |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | 114 | 28.9% | 1.8% | 249 mi |
| 2025 | 113 | 31.9% | 4.4% | 241 mi |
| 2024 | 122 | 36.4% | 4.9% | 182 mi |
| 2023 | 122 | 37.2% | 6.6% | 191 mi |
| 2022 | 120 | 41.7% | 5.0% | 152 mi |
| 2021 | 128 | 41.4% | 5.5% | 115 mi |
| 2020 | 121 | 46.7% | 2.5% | 88 mi |
| 2019 | 114 | 48.7% | 2.6% | 88 mi |
| 2018 | 91 | 46.2% | 3.3% | 99 mi |
| 2017 | 94 | 35.1% | 3.2% | 203 mi |
| 2016 | 107 | 40.2% | 1.9% | 99 mi |
| 2015 | 119 | 45.4% | 0.0% | 88 mi |
| 2014 | 117 | 42.7% | 0.0% | 89 mi |
| 2013 | 107 | 45.8% | 0.9% | 84 mi |
| 2012 | 109 | 45.0% | 1.8% | 88 mi |
| 2011 | 107 | 42.1% | 0.9% | 103 mi |
| 2010 | 113 | 48.7% | 0.0% | 94 mi |
| 2009 | 106 | 55.7% | 0.0% | 66 mi |
Where the roster grew up
Every 2026 player's hometown, with campus marked and the Homecoming Radius circled.
Homecoming Radius: 249 mi
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