Panthers Look To Carry Momentum Into Southern Utah

UNI GAME NOTES

CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Seeking to close out the non-conference slate on a strong note,18th-ranked Northern Iowa (1-1) travels to Southern Utah (1-1) on Saturday for an offensive showdown in Cedar City, Utah.

"We're playing a good football team on Saturday," head coach Mark Farley said. "Their quarterback [Patrick Tyler] is excellent, he has the ability to get out of trouble and has a great set of wide receivers. He's a difference maker for them, he's one of the best quarterbacks in the Big Sky."

Kickoff between the Panthers and Thunderbirds is slated for 7 p.m. CT.

"They have a good atmosphere at Southern Utah," Farley said. "You can easily get caught up in the scenery and the mountains in the background. It has a calming effect to it, so we have to make sure to stir up our players a little bit."

The game will mark UNI's first visit to Cedar City, Utah since 2008.

HOW TO TUNE IN
The game against Southern Utah will be televised on PlutoTV. Fans can also listen in on 1540 KXEL or www.UNIPanthers.com as Gary Rima and Scott Petersen call the action.

LIVE STATS
Live stats for Saturday's game will be made available via the Southern Utah athletics website (www.SUUTBirds.com). Fans and media can visit @UNIFootball on Twitter for links to the feed.

LAST TIME AGAINST THE THUNDERBIRDS

UNI and Southern Utah last faced off in 2011, with the Panthers coming away with a 34-21 win at home. The last time UNI traveled to SUU was in 2008's 34-24 victory.
The Panthers rushed for 216 yards on the ground, with Corey Lewis leading the way with 99 yards on 19 carries and a touchdown.
The win in 2008 capped a 10-2 year for the Panthers, as UNI advanced to the FCS playoffs that season.

SERIES WITH SOUTHERN UTAH

UNI and Southern Utah have faced off four times on the gridiron, with the panthers owning a perfect 5-0 advantage. The two squads played in back-to-back season in 1996-97 and in 2007-2008, before 2011's meeting at the UNI-Dome.
The two programs will split home/away trips following this Saturday's game, with the last game in 2011 taking place in Cedar Falls.

SCOUTING THE THUNDERBIRDS

Southern Utah is in its second season under head coach Demario Warren. The Thunderbirds finished last season with a winning record, going 6-5 overall.
This season, the Thunderbirds have had a lot of points during their first two games as SUU has scored 72 points, but has also given up 91 points.
The Thunderbirds average just shy of 500 yards of total offense per game this season, with quarterback Patrick Tyler leading SUU with 611 passing yards and five touchdown tosses.

PANTHERS AGAINST BIG SKY FOES

UNI has had success against the current members of the Big Sky Conference, racking up an all-time record of 53-25-1. UNI holds a winning record over 10 of the 13 schools, with Montana being the only series with a Big Sky opponent holds the edge in.
The Panthers faced two Big Sky opponents last season, hosting Montana for the 2016 home opener before traveling to Eastern Washington the next week.
UNI already owns one victory over a Big Sky foe this season, after downing Cal Poly in overtime.
The win was UNI's first over a Big Sky foe since 2015, as the Panthers went 0-2 in 2016 against the conference.

PASSING WILL BE ON FULL DISPLAY IN UTAH

Coming into this Saturday's game, the Panthers and Thunderbirds will have two of the top-15 offenses in the FCS. UNI ranks 13th overall and Southern Utah is currently fifth in the nation.
The Thunderbirds are gaining 342.0-yards passing per game, while the Panthers are averaging 292.0.

STREAK OF FORCING TURNOVER UP TO 11-STRAIGHT GAMES

The Panther defense continued its success in producing turnovers on Saturday, as the UNI D posted its 11th-consecutive game forcing at least one turnover.
The streak dates back to last season's game against Eastern Washington.
The Panther defense earned a turnover in 10 of 11 games last season, with the contest against Montana being the only game without forcing a turnover.

UNI VERSUS NON-CONFERENCE FOES

UNI has the most victories among league members over top-25 non-conference opponents with 33 since 1985.
UNI posted back-to-back wins against non-conference top-25 opponents in 2015 for the first time since the 2008 playoffs (Maine, New Hampshire) when they beat No. 7 Eastern Washington (9/12/15) and No. 17 Cal Poly (9/19/15).
This week's game against Southern Utah will conclude the non-conference slate.
With a victory over the Thunderbirds, the Panthers can secure a winning record against non-conference opponents for the first time since 2015 (2-1).

PANTHER DEFENSE VERSUS THE RUN

Last season, the UNI defense held opponents to 164.1 yards per game to rank 16th in the FCS.
The Panthers have allowed 134 and 305 in back-to-back weeks against Iowa State and Cal Poly to rank 94th overall in the FCS.
The Thunderbirds have earned 157-yards per game on the ground this season.

PANTHERS AGAINST THE PASS

The Panther defense has allowed a total of 254.5-yards passing per game this season, to rank 82nd overall in the FCS.
UNI has given up six passing touchdowns this season, with four coming in last week's overtime win against Cal Poly.
This week's opponent - Southern Utah - has gained 342-yards through the air per game this season. That total ranks fifth overall in the FCS.

FARLEY CLAIMS MVFC DEFENSIVE POW HONORS

After a stellar game against Cal Poly, senior linebacker Jared Farley earned MVFC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
With the game tied at 7-7, Farley scooped up a fumble and took it 48 yards to put the Panthers ahead. The return was Farley's first of his career, while the fumble recovery was his fifth at UNI.
Farley finished the game posting 11 total tackles, with four solos and seven assists as well as one tackle for a loss.
Farley has won Defensive POW honors twice as a Panther. The last time came after his sensational game against Iowa State during last season's 25-20 victory.

ANOTHER MULTI-TD DAY FOR DUNNE

Junior signal caller Eli Dunne earned four touchdowns through the air against Cal Poly in Saturday's home opener, earning a career-high mark for the Panther quarterback.
Dunne has earned five multi-touchdown games for his career, with three coming in 2016.
The junior threw a pair of touchdowns against Missouri State, North Dakota State and Western Illinois in 2016, while throwing three in 2017's season opener against Iowa State.

MOORE HAS CAREER DAY VERSUS CAL POLY

Tight end Briley Moore earned a career-high seven catches against Cal Poly, which ranks as the most by any Panther tight end since Brian Cutright snagged eight balls on Nov. 26, 2005 against Eastern Washington in the first round of the FCS Playoffs.

DUNNE SPREADS THE BALL AROUND

Quarterback Eli Dunne found eight different targets during Saturday's home opener against Cal Poly, with two receivers catching touchdowns.
To open the season, Dunne found nine different receivers against Iowa State.
The nine receivers making a catch is also the most for UNI since Dunne found 10 targets in a 61-7 route over Missouri State on Oct. 22, 2016.

DRYSDALE BOOTS CAREER LONG, AGAIN

A week removed from setting his career long at 43 yards, sophomore kicker Sam Drysdale booted a 45-yarder against Cal Poly to up his career-long mark.
Last season, Drysdale was a perfect 6-for-6, with his long being 40 yards to cap a successful freshman season with the Panthers.

UNI MOVES UP TO 18 IN COACHES POLL

After Saturday's win over Cal Poly, the Panthers moved up three spots to No. 18 overall in this week's NCAA FCS Coaches Poll.
In the STATS FCS Poll, the Panthers stayed put at No. 21 this week.

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

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