Rushing Attack Carries UNI Past No. 7 SDSU

Saturday, October 14

Brookings, S.D.

2 p.m.

University of Northern Iowa

3-3 , 2-1

South Dakota State

4-2 , 1-2

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

UNI

South Dakota State

Rushing Attack Carries UNI Past No. 7 SDSU

10/14/2017 7:35:00 PM | Football

Box Score

FINAL STATS

BROOKINGS, S.D. – Propelled by 170 yards rushing from junior MarcusWeymiller, Northern Iowa (3-3, 2-1 MVFC) dominated No. 7 South Dakota State (4-2, 1-2 MVFC) on the road, 38-18.

The Panthers have knocked off a top-10 Jackrabbit team in two out of the last three seasons, with the last also coming in Brookings on Oct. 24, 2015 (10-7). The 20-point win against SDSU ranks as the largest margin of victory over a ranked foe since upsetting No. 1 North Dakota State (23-3) on Nov. 8, 2014.

UNI's Weymiller led the Panthers, with 170 yards rushing and two scores, while Eli Dunne threw two touchdowns through the air for 169 yards passing. The 170 yards for Weymiller were the most for the junior since gaining 171 against Indiana State on Nov. 5, 2016. Weymiller had not carried the ball this season before Saturday's game.

On the defensive side, the Panthers forced three turnovers with Elijah Campbell earning an early interception while Alfonzo Lambert II and Joe Friedrich scooped up two fumbles for UNI.

Despite the cold weather, UNI came out of the gates on fire Saturday to earn an early 17-0 lead after one quarter of play. The Panthers began the scoring with a 41-yard field goal from Sam Drysdale, which was followed by a Christian Jegen one-yard score after Elijah Campbell returned an interception down to the two-yard line.

With the lead at 10-0, the Panthers would break out the "wildcat" as Weymiller raced around the edge for an 11-yard touchdown to end the first-quarter scoring. SDSU responded in the second quarter after Taryn Christion found Jake Wieneke for a touchdown. The first SDSU-kicking miscue of the day would rear its head as the Jackrabbits missed the extra point.

The Panthers drove down the field following the Jackrabbit score and extended their lead to 24-6, thanks to Weymiller's 15-yard touchdown. The junior finished the half with 77 yards on 14 carries and two touchdowns.

The Jackrabbits would squander two field goal attempts to follow the Panther touchdown as SDSU missed from 25, before bobbling a snap on a 31-yard attempt to close out the half.

Leading 24-6, UNI would give up a score to SDSU after Christion capped a quick, two-play drive with a 19-yard touchdown to Dallas Goedert. The Panthers rejected a Jackrabbit two-point conversion attempt to follow however, leaving the score at 24-12 heading to the fourth quarter.

Dunne turned in a pair of touchdowns in the final quarter of Saturday's game, after finding Daurice Fountain and Isaiah Weston for 18 and 11-yard scores. The Jackrabbits made a futile push with the Panthers leading big, to bring the final score tot 38-18 after a two-yard touchdown run late.

UP NEXT
UNI continues its stretch against top-10 foes as the Panthers return home to host No. 8 Youngstown State on Saturday, oct. 21 at 1 p.m. CT.

TICKETS
Fans can purchase season and single-game tickets to UNI football home games through UNITIX. Call 319-273-4849 or visit www.UNITIX.uni.edu.

SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on the UNI football program, follow the Panthers on Twitter at "@UNIFootball" and on Facebook at "UNI Football."

ADDITIONAL NOTES

UNI has knocked off a top-10 SDSU team in two of the last three seasons, with the last also coming against the Jackrabbits after the 10-7 win on Oct. 24, 2015.
The ranked win over No. 7 SDSU was UNI's highest since downing No. 5 Portland State 29-17 on Dec. 5, 2015 in the FCS Playoffs.
UNI ran the ball 60 times on Saturday, the most since rushing 63 times against Missouri State on Nov. 14, 2015.
The 218 yards on the ground for UNI was the most since earning 318 against Indiana State on Nov. 5, 2016.
With 170 yards on the ground, Marcus Weymiller became UNI's first 100-yard rusher since Weymiller picked up 171 against Indiana State on Nov. 5, 2016.
Weymiller earned his first carry, yard and touchdown of the season in the 38-18 win over SDSU.
Senior wide receiver Daurice Fountain has caught 120 passes for his career at UNI.
With his touchdown on Saturday, Fountain now has 16 for his career at UNI.
Eli Dunne has five multi-touchdown games this season and eight for his career.
Attendance for Saturday's game was 14,347