2021 Northern Iowa Panthers football team

American college football season

2021 Northern Iowa Panthers football

NCAA Division I First Round, L 9–19 vs. Eastern Washington
Conference	Missouri Valley Football Conference
Ranking
STATS	No. 23
FCS Coaches	No. 25
Record	6–6 (4–4 MVFC)
Head coach	Mark Farley (21st season)
Offensive coordinator	Shawn Watson (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Jeremiah Johnson (9th season)
Home stadium	UNI-Dome
Seasons ← 2020 2022 →

2021 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
No. 1 North Dakota State $^	7	–	1	14	–	1
No. 14 Missouri State ^	6	–	2	8	–	4
No. 16 Southern Illinois ^	5	–	3	8	–	5
No. 18 South Dakota ^	5	–	3	7	–	5
No. 4 South Dakota State ^	5	–	3	11	–	4
No. 23 Northern Iowa ^	4	–	4	6	–	6
Indiana State	3	–	5	5	–	6
North Dakota	3	–	5	5	–	6
Western Illinois	2	–	6	2	–	9
Illinois State	2	–	6	4	–	7
Youngstown State	2	–	6	3	–	7

$ – Conference champion ^ – FCS playoff participant Rankings from STATS Poll

The 2021 Northern Iowa Panthers football team represented the University of Northern Iowa in the 2021 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Panthers competed as members of the Missouri Valley Football Conference and were led by 21st-year head coach Mark Farley. They played their home games at UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 4	3:30 p.m.	at No. 7 (FBS) Iowa State*	No. 21	Jack Trice Stadium Ames, IA	ESPN+	L 10–16	61,500
September 11	8:00 p.m.	at Sacramento State*	No. 21	Hornet Stadium Sacramento, CA	ESPN+	W 34–16	8,067
September 18	4:00 p.m.	St. Thomas (MN)*	No. 18	UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA	ESPN3	W 44–3	5,124
October 2	4:00 p.m.	Youngstown State	No. 15	UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA		W 34–7	8,771
October 9	1:00 p.m.	at No. 5 North Dakota State	No. 16	Fargodome Fargo, ND	ESPN+	L 20–34	18,536
October 16	4:00 p.m.	No. 21 South Dakota	No. 16	UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA		L 21–34	7,202
October 23	2:00 p.m.	at No. 6 South Dakota State	No. 20	Dana J. Dykhouse Stadium Brookings, SD		W 26–17	16,889
October 30	4:00 p.m.	No. 3 Southern Illinois	No. 16	UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA		W 23–16	5,902
November 6	12:00 p.m.	at Illinois State	No. 13	Hancock Stadium Normal, IL		L 10–17 ^OT	6,000
November 13	2:00 p.m.	at No. 16 Missouri State	No. 20	Robert W. Plaster Stadium Springfield, MO		L 27–34	9,173
November 20	1:00 p.m.	Western Illinois		UNI-Dome Cedar Falls, IA	ESPN3	W 41–3	6,785
November 27	3:00 p.m.	at No. 4 Eastern Washington*		Roos Field Cheney, WA (NCAA Division I First Round)	ESPN+	L 9–19	3,845
*Non-conference game Rankings from STATS Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[1]^[2]

Game summaries

At Iowa State

Northern Iowa Panthers (0–0) vs. Iowa State Cyclones (0–0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Northern Iowa	7	3	0	0	10
Iowa State	3	10	0	3	16

at Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA

Date: Saturday, September 4, 2021
Game time: 3:30 p.m. CDT
Game weather: sunny • Temperature: 73°F
Game attendance: 61,500
Referee: Kevin Hassell
TV announcers (ESPN+): Shawn Kenney, Sage Rosenfels, Skubie Mageza

Game information
First Quarter (4:09) UNI – Quan Hampton 52 yard pass from Will McElvain, Matthew Cook kick (Drive: 5 plays, 87 yards, 3:24; UNI 7–0) (1:06) ISU – Connor Assalley 35 yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 57 yards, 3:03; UNI 7–3) Second Quarter (7:25) ISU – Breece Hall 2 yard run, Connor Assalley kick (Drive: 14 plays, 59 yards, 7:19; ISU 10–7) (2:35) UNI – Matthew Cook 41 yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 51 yards, 4:50; 10–10) (0:00) ISU – Andrew Mevis 40 yard field goal (Drive 10 plays, 52 yards, 2:35; ISU 13–10) Fourth Quarter (6:18) ISU – Connor Assalley 21 yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 57 yards, 5:20; ISU 16–10)

Game information

First Quarter

(4:09) UNI – Quan Hampton 52 yard pass from Will McElvain, Matthew Cook kick (Drive: 5 plays, 87 yards, 3:24; UNI 7–0)
(1:06) ISU – Connor Assalley 35 yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 57 yards, 3:03; UNI 7–3)

Second Quarter

(7:25) ISU – Breece Hall 2 yard run, Connor Assalley kick (Drive: 14 plays, 59 yards, 7:19; ISU 10–7)
(2:35) UNI – Matthew Cook 41 yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 51 yards, 4:50; 10–10)
(0:00) ISU – Andrew Mevis 40 yard field goal (Drive 10 plays, 52 yards, 2:35; ISU 13–10)

Fourth Quarter

(6:18) ISU – Connor Assalley 21 yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 57 yards, 5:20; ISU 16–10)

Statistics	UNI	ISU
First downs	13	17
Total yards	275	336
Rushes/yards	26/45	34/136
Passing yards	230	199
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	21–34–2	21–26–0
Time of possession	28:48	31:12

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Iowa	Passing	Will McElvain	21–34, 230 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Dom Williams	12 carries, 43 yards
	Receiving	Quan Hampton	8 receptions, 99 yards, 1 TD
Iowa State	Passing	Brock Purdy	21–26, 199 yards
	Rushing	Breece Hall	23 carries, 69 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Xavier Hutchinson	7 receptions, 88 yards

At Sacramento State

	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 21 Panthers	7	0	27	0	34
Hornets	3	6	0	7	16

St. Thomas (MN)

Youngstown State

At No. 5 North Dakota State

Northern Iowa Panthers (3-1) vs. North Dakota State Bison (4-0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 12 Panthers	0	10	7	3	20
No. 5 Bison	10	3	14	7	34

at Fargodome, Fargo, ND

Date: October 9, 2021
Game time: 1:00 p.m. (CT)
Game weather: Indoors; 70 °F (21 °C)
Game attendance: 18,536
TV: ESPN+

Statistics	Northern Iowa	North Dakota State
First downs	14	15
Plays–yards	63-381	64-363
Rushes–yards	32-124	43-181
Passing yards	257	182
Passing: comp–att–int	12-31-0	11-21-0
Time of possession	27:37	32:23

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Iowa	Passing	Theo Day	12/31, 257 yds, TD
	Rushing	Bradrick Shaw	10 car, 44 yds
	Receiving	Isaiah Weston	5 rec, 181 yds, TD
North Dakota State	Passing	Quincy Patterson	11/21, 182 yds, 2 TD
	Rushing	Quincy Patterson	12 car, 60 yds, 2 TD
	Receiving	Christian Watson	5 rec, 163 yds, TD

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	UNI	NDSU
1st	7:37	1	85	0:11	NDSU	Christian Watson (#1) 85-yard touchdown reception from Quincy Patterson (#2), Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good	0	7
1st	3:37	6	40	2:11	NDSU		0	10
2nd	11:24	8	73	3:36	UNI	Isaiah Weston (#80) 44-yard touchdown reception from Theo Day (#12), Matthew Cook (#97) kick good	7	10
2nd	3:00	8	73	3:36	UNI	33-yard field goal by Matthew Cook (#97)	10	10
2nd	0:23	9	71	2:37	NDSU	22-yard field goal by Jake Reinholz (#37)	10	13
3rd	11:46	2	9	1:12	NDSU	Quincy Patterson (#2) 4-yard touchdown run, Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good	10	20
3rd	9:02	4	21	2:06	NDSU	Noah Gindorff (#87) 3-yard touchdown reception from Quincy Patterson (#2), Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good	10	27
3rd	7:39	3	75	1:23	UNI	Dom Williams (#7) 5-yard touchdown run, Matthew Cook (#98) kick good	17	27
4th	14:09	16	80	8:26	NDSU	Quincy Patterson (#2) 4-yard touchdown run, Jake Reinholz (#37) kick good	17	34
4th	9:08	11	48	5:01	UNI	44-yard field goal by Matthew Cook (#98)	20	34
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							20	34

No. 21 South Dakota

At No. 6 South Dakota State

No. 3 Southern Illinois

At Illinois State

At No. 16 Missouri State

Game Ten: #20 Northern Iowa Panthers (5–4) at #16 Missouri State Bears (6–3)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
No. 20 Northern Iowa	3	3	7	14	27
No. 16 Missouri State	6	7	7	14	34

at Plaster Stadium • Springfield, MO

Date: Saturday, November 13, 2021
Game time: 2:05 p.m. CDT
Game weather: 45 °F (7 °C), Winds W 7 mph; Sunny
Game attendance: 9,173
Referee: Aaron Adams • Umpire: Keith Wohlers • Linesman: Gordon Hanson • Line judge: Scott Lively • Back judge: Kurt Dingmann • Field judge: Brad Brunet • Side judge: Leanne Surmin
TV announcers (ESPN+): Don West and Corey Riggs

Game information
First Quarter (10:14) MSU - Jose Pizano 30 yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 18 yards, 02:44; MSU 3-0) (04:55) UNI - Matthew Cook 27 yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 66 yards, 05:11; TIED 3-3) (01:03) MSU - Jose Pizano38 yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 35 yards, 03:44; MSU 6-3) Second Quarter (12:54) UNI - Matthew Cook 47 yard field goal (Drive: 7 plays, 45 yards, 03:09; TIED 6-6) (05:21) MSU - Tobias Little 1 yard run, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 07:33; MSU 13-6) Third Quarter (12:44) MSU - Jason Shelley 3 yard run, Jose Pizano Kick (Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 0:10; MSU 20-6) (06:10) UNI - Tyler Hoosman 2 yard run, Matthew Cook kick (Drive: 12 plays, 73 yards, 06:25; MSU 20-13) Fourth Quarter (13:01) MSU - Jason Shelley 8 yard run, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 9 plays, 80 yards, 03:54; MSU 27-13) (05:11) UNI - Deion McShane 8 yard pass from Theo Day, Matthew Cook kick (Drive: 8 plays, 77 yards, 02:02; MSU 27-20) (02:14) UNI - Deion McShane 18 yard pass from Theo Day, Matthew Cook, kick (Drive: 5 plays, 32 yards, 01:41; TIED 27-27) (00:58) MSU - Naveon Mitchell 55 yard pass from Jason Shelley, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 01:16; MSU 34-27)

Game information

First Quarter

(10:14) MSU - Jose Pizano 30 yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 18 yards, 02:44; MSU 3-0)
(04:55) UNI - Matthew Cook 27 yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 66 yards, 05:11; TIED 3-3)
(01:03) MSU - Jose Pizano38 yard field goal (Drive: 9 plays, 35 yards, 03:44; MSU 6-3)

Second Quarter

(12:54) UNI - Matthew Cook 47 yard field goal (Drive: 7 plays, 45 yards, 03:09; TIED 6-6)
(05:21) MSU - Tobias Little 1 yard run, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 13 plays, 75 yards, 07:33; MSU 13-6)

Third Quarter

(12:44) MSU - Jason Shelley 3 yard run, Jose Pizano Kick (Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 0:10; MSU 20-6)
(06:10) UNI - Tyler Hoosman 2 yard run, Matthew Cook kick (Drive: 12 plays, 73 yards, 06:25; MSU 20-13)

Fourth Quarter

(13:01) MSU - Jason Shelley 8 yard run, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 9 plays, 80 yards, 03:54; MSU 27-13)
(05:11) UNI - Deion McShane 8 yard pass from Theo Day, Matthew Cook kick (Drive: 8 plays, 77 yards, 02:02; MSU 27-20)
(02:14) UNI - Deion McShane 18 yard pass from Theo Day, Matthew Cook, kick (Drive: 5 plays, 32 yards, 01:41; TIED 27-27)
(00:58) MSU - Naveon Mitchell 55 yard pass from Jason Shelley, Jose Pizano kick (Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 01:16; MSU 34-27)

Statistics	UNI	MSU
First downs	22	18
Total yards	360	379
Rushes/yards	33/122	32/59
Passing yards	238	320
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	17-30-2	22-30-0
Time of possession	29:28	30:32

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Northern Iowa	Passing	Theo Day	17/30, 238 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Dom Williams	16 carries, 83 yards
	Receiving	Deion McShane	6 catches, 86 yards, 2 TD
Missouri State	Passing	Jason Shelley	22/33, 320 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Tobias Little	10 carries, 34 yards
	Receiving	Naveon Mitchell	3 catches, 74 yards, 1 TD

Western Illinois

FCS Playoffs

At No. 4 Eastern Washington–First Round

	1	2	3	4	Total
Panthers	0	7	0	2	9
No. 4 Eagles	6	3	7	3	19

Players drafted into the NFL

Round	Pick	Player	Position	NFL Club
1	19	Trevor Penning	OT	New Orleans Saints

References

^ "2021 Northern Iowa Panthers Football Schedule".
^ "2021 Northern Iowa Panthers Football Schedule". FBSchedules.com.

v t e Northern Iowa Panthers football
Venues	O. R. Latham Stadium (1936–1975) UNI-Dome (1976–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Drake
Culture & lore	"UNI Fight"
People	Head coaches NFL draftees
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v t e 2021 NCAA Division I FCS playoff participants
Davidson East Tennessee State Eastern Washington Florida A&M Holy Cross Incarnate Word James Madison Kennesaw State Missouri State Montana Montana State North Dakota State Northern Iowa Sacramento State Sacred Heart Sam Houston South Dakota South Dakota State Southeastern Louisiana Southern Illinois Stephen F. Austin UC Davis UT Martin Villanova
Champion – North Dakota State