University of Northern Iowa Athletics
University of Northern Iowa
Western Illinois
Panther football takes on Leathernecks for Military Appreciation and Band Day
11/1/2023 3:35:00 PM | Football
UNI looks to keep rolling with another conference matchup inside the UNI-Dome.
#18/23 UNI (5-3 / 4-1 MVFC) vs Western Illinois (0-8 / 0-5 MVFC)
- 1 p.m. CT | Nov. 4, 2023
- Cedar Falls, Iowa | UNI-Dome (16,324)
- Panther Sports Network (CFU 15, KCRG 9.2, ESPN+) (Brad Wells: Play-by-Play / Justin Surrency: Analyst)
- Panther Sports Radio Network (J.W. Cox: Play-by-Play / Scott Peterson: Analyst)
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- Panther football has the Western Illinois Leathernecks in its sights this weekend with the final conference matchup between the two programs. The Leathernecks are leaving the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) at the conclusion of the 2023 season and are heading for the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). Â
Northern Iowa and Western Illinois have a storied history dating back to their first competition in 1967. The Panthers lead the all-time series with the Leathernecks, 35-16, and will attempt to close out their MVFC series history with a fifth straight win.
The Panthers have a chance for their first 5-1 start to conference play since 2019. UNI has gone on to make the FCS playoffs each of its last seven seasons, winning five of its first six league games.
UNI PANTHERS
UNI's passing offense has averaged 271.9 yards per game, the second-highest average in the MVFC and 13th-best average nationally. Quarterback Theo Day leads the MVFC in passing yards (2,152), passing yards per game (269), and total offense per game (259). Day's 269 yards per game through the air is the 10th-best average in FCS. He has the chance to move up on the UNI all-time charts for both passing completions and passing attempts in a career this week against Western Illinois. Day needs four passing attempts to pass Sawyer Kollmorgen (2011-15) who sits in seventh with 852 passing attempts. He needs 23 completions to pass Eli Dunne (2015-18) who sits in fourth with 544 completions. Day currently ranks second in the MVFC in completions per game with 19.38. Day will be facing a Leatherneck defense that has given up the second-most passing yards per game in the conference this season as well as the best passing efficiency by opposing quarterbacks in the conference.
Amauri Pesek-Hickson has the chance to rewrite UNI rushing history on Saturday. His 107-yard rushing performance at Illinois State marks the first time that Northern Iowa has posted consecutive games with a 100+ yard rusher since 2017 (Marcus Weymiller, 105 vs. Indiana State / J'Veyon Browning, 136 vs. Monmouth). The last time the same player had rushed for 100+ yards in back-to-back games was also in 2017 when Marcus Weymiller rushed for 131 yards against Missouri State and followed it up with a 105-yard performance against Indiana State. That would make that string of three games the last time a Northern Iowa rusher has gone over 100 in three consecutive games. On top of that, the last time the same player had three consecutive 100+-yard rushing performances was Tyvis Smith in 2015 (166 vs Southern Illinois, 147 vs. Eastern Illinois, and 207 at Portland State). Pesek-Hickson will be facing a Western Illinois team that allows the most rushing yards per game in the conference this Saturday.
The Panther receiving core continues to be one of the best in the conference and includes some of the highest-ranked wide receivers in conference categories. Redshirt senior Sam Schnee leads the UNI pack, ranked second in the conference with 729 total receiving yards, third in the conference with 91.1 receiving yards per game, and fourth in the conference with four receiving touchdowns. He is also just 78 yards shy of eclipsing the 2,000 receiving-yard mark for his career.
Cordarrius Bailey comes into the matchup as one of the top defensive linemen in the conference with 0.75 sacks per game which ranks him second in the MVFC. He has also recorded 1.2 tackles for loss per game which is third most in the conference. In the secondary, Corry Thomas Jr. has recorded an interception in each of his last two games, the first Panther to pick off a pass in consecutive contests since Benny Sapp III last season against Western Illinois and Indiana State.Â
Placekicker Matthew Cook is just three points shy of breaking David Johnson's (2010-14) all-time scoring record at UNI. Cook has scored 382 career points off of 145 made PATs and 79 field goals, and currently ranks fourth all-time in MVFC history in points scored. The senior extended his career streak of made PAT kicks against the Redbirds with three successful attempts. He has made all 145 PAT attempts in his career and extended his own program record of scoring at least one point to 38th consecutive games, a record he broke in UNI's home win over North Dakota on Oct. 21.
WESTERN ILLINOIS LEATHERNECKS
Coming off a 63-0 loss against Southern Illinois, the Leathernecks are hunting for their first win of the season and their first victory against the Panthers since a 37-17 victory in 2018.
The game against Southern Illinois saw the Leathernecks force three total fumbles and bring down the ball carrier behind the line of scrimmage four times for a total of eight yards of loss. The offense struggled, only managing to put up 104 yards of total offense against a stellar Southern Illinois defense. Quarterback Matt Morrissey finished with 48 passing yards in the matchup and running back Ludovick Choquette led the backfield with 49 total rushing yards.
The Leatherneck defense comes into the matchup against the Panthers with the conference's top tackler. Defensive back Bradyn Smith leads the MVFC in both solo tackles per game (6.1) as well as total tackles per game (9.6). He also holds the MVFC mark for total solo tackles with 45 on the season.
ÂCELEBRATING 125 SEASONS OF PANTHER FOOTBALL
This year marks the 125th season of play for the UNI football program. Kicking off games in 1895, the Panthers have played every year since, with the exception of 1906, 1907, 1944 and 1945, with over 1,300 players wearing the purple and gold. UNI will celebrate the milestone season all year long with special history lessons on social media, a 125th season website and more. The Panthers will honor this anniversary season with a 125th season decal on their helmets all season long.
