Northern Iowa Panthers football

Northern Iowa Panthers football
2023 Northern Iowa Panthers football team
First season	1895
Athletic director	David Harris
Head coach	Mark Farley 22nd season, 174–98 (.640)
Stadium	UNI-Dome (capacity: 16,324)
Field surface	Mondoturf
Location	Cedar Falls, Iowa
Conference	Missouri Valley
Past conferences	Independent (1895–1922) Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (1923–1934) North Central Conference (1935–1977) Association of Mid-Continent Universities (1978–1984) [1]
All-time record	625–389–47 (.611)
Bowl record	1–1 (.500)
Conference titles	33
Rivalries	North Dakota State, and Southern Illinois
Consensus All-Americans	1
Colors	Purple and old gold [2]
Fight song	"UNI Fight"
Mascot	TC/TK Panther
Marching band	"The Pride of Panther Nation"
Website	unipanthers.com

The Northern Iowa Panthers football represents the University of Northern Iowa in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). The program began in 1895 and has fielded a team every year since with the exceptions of 1906–1907 and 1943–1944. The Panthers play their home games at the UNI-Dome on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa, in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

History

See also: List of Northern Iowa Panthers football seasons

Classifications

• NCAA College Division (1956–1972)
• NCAA Division II (1973–1980)
• NCAA Division I-AA/FCS (1981–present)

Conference memberships

• Independent (1895–1922)
• Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (1923–1934)
• North Central Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (1935–1977)
• Mid-Continent Conference (1978–1984)
• Gateway Football Conference/Missouri Valley Football Conference (1985–present)

Championship and postseason history

Conference championships

UNI's offense against the St. Francis Red Flash September 19, 2009

Northern Iowa has won thirty-three conference titles, ^[3] the most out of the four Iowa Division I institutions. The Panthers have won two Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships, twelve North Central Conference championships, three Association of Mid-Continent Universities football championships and sixteen Missouri Valley Football Conference championships.

Year	Conference	Overall record	Conference record
1927	IIAC	7–0–1	6–0
1928	IIAC	5–1–3	4–0–2
1940	NCC	8–1	5–0
1941	NCC	5–3	5–0
1942	NCC	6–1	5–0
1946	NCC	4–1–2	2–0–1
1947	NCC	5–3–1	4–0
1948	NCC	7–3	5–0
1949	NCC	5–2	5–1
1952	NCC	6–2	5–1
1960	NCC	9–1	6–0
1961	NCC	7–2	5–1
1962	NCC	7–1–1	5–0–1
1964	NCC	9–2	5–1
1981	AMCU	5–6	2–1
1982	AMCU	4–6–1	2–0–1
1984	AMCU	9–2	2–1
1985	MVFC	11–2	5–0
1987	MVFC	10–4	6–0
1990	MVFC	8–4	5–1
1991	MVFC	11–2	5–1
1992	MVFC	12–2	5–1
1993	MVFC	8–4	5–1
1994	MVFC	8–4	6–0
1995	MVFC	8–5	5–1
1996	MVFC	12–2	5–0
2001	MVFC	11–3	6–1
2003	MVFC	10–3	6–1
2005	MVFC	11–4	5–2
2007	MVFC	12–1	6–0
2008	MVFC	12–3	7–1
2010	MVFC	7–5	6–2
2011	MVFC	10–3	7–1

College Division bowl games

Northern Iowa played in the NCAA's College Division from 1937–1972. ^[4] Twice in those years they qualified for a College Division bowl game. ^[5]

Year	Bowl	Record	Opponent	Result
1960	Mineral Water Bowl	9–1–0	Hillsdale College	L 6–17
1964	Pecan Bowl	9–2–0	Lamar (TX)	W 19–17

FCS playoff games

The Panthers have reached the NCAA Division I Football Championship playoffs 22 times, with a record of 24–22.

Year	Round	Opponent	Result
1985	Quarterfinal Semifinal	Middle Tennessee Georgia Southern	W 28–21 L 33–40
1987	First round Quarterfinal Semifinal	Youngstown State Arkansas State Northeast Louisiana	W 31–28 W 49–28 L 41–44
1990	First round	Boise State	L 3–20
1991	First round Quarterfinal	Weber State Marshall	38–21 13–41
1992	First round Quarterfinal Semifinal	Eastern Washington McNeese State Youngstown State	W 17–14 W 29–7 19–7
1993	First round	Boston University	L 21–27
1993	First round	Montana	L 23–29
1995	First round Quarterfinal	Murray State Marshall	W 35–34 L 24–41
1996	Quarterfinal Semifinal	William & Mary Marshall	W 38–35 L 14–31
2001	First round Quarterfinal Semifinal	Eastern Illinois Maine Montana	W 49–43 W 56–28 L 10–38
2003	First round Quarterfinal	Montana State Delaware	W 35–14 L 7–37
2005	Quarterfinal Semifinal National Championship	New Hampshire Texas State Appalachian State	W 24–21 W 40–37 L 16–21
2007	First round Quarterfinal	New Hampshire Delaware	W 38–35 L 27–39
2008	First round Quarterfinal	Maine New Hampshire Richmond	W 40–15 W 36–34 L 20–21
2010	First round	Lehigh	L 7–14
2011	Second round Quarterfinal	Wofford Montana	W 28–21 L 10–48
2014	First round Second round	Stephen F. Austin Illinois State	W 44–10 L 21–41
2015	First round Second round Quarterfinal	Eastern Illinois Portland State North Dakota State	W 53–17 W 29–17 L 13–23
2017	First round Second round	Monmouth South Dakota State	W 46–7 L 22–37
2018	First round Second round	Lamar UC Davis	W 16–3 L 16–23
2019	First round Second round Quarterfinal	San Diego South Dakota State James Madison	W 17–3 W 13–10 L 0–17
2021	First round	Eastern Washington	L 9–19

FCS National Championship games

Season	Game	Record	Opponent	Result
2005	National Championship	11–4	Appalachian State	L 16–21

UNI-Dome

The UNI-Dome opened in 1976, as the home of the UNI Panthers football team. The facility's capacity for football is 16,324. ^[6] At football games, where cold temperatures are frequently an issue for fans, the UNI-Dome announcers will announce "conditions at game time" prior to each game. The announcers will announce the weather in the town where the visiting team is from, the current weather conditions outside the Dome, and then say "Inside - 72 degrees, no wind, welcome to the Dome!" to emphasize the fact that a domed stadium is not affected by the weather. Heading into the 2021 Fall season, the Panthers have a home record of 221-59-1 in the UNI-Dome, having won nearly 80 percent of their games in the UNI-Dome. ^[7]

All-Americans

First Team Selections ^{[8] [9] [10] [11]}

• Paul Jones, E, 1937 (WR)
• Paul DeVan, HB, 1949 (AP)
• Lou Bohnsack, C, 1952 (AP)
• LeRoy Dunn, T, 1955 (WR)
• Dick Formanek, T, 1956 (WR)
• George Asleson, G, 1960 (AP)
• Jerry Morgan, QB, 1960 (WR)
• Wendell Williams, G, 1961 (AP)
• Dan Boals, FB, 1962 (WR)
• Randy Schultz, FB, 1964 and 1965 (AP)
• Ray Pedersen, G, 1967 (AP)
• Mike Timmermans, T, 1975 (AP)
• Brian Mitchell, PK, 1990 and 1991 (AP)
• Kenny Shedd, AP, 1992 (AP)
• William Freeney, LB, 1992 (AP)
• Andre Allen, LB, 1994 (AP)
• Dedric Ward, WR, 1995 and 1996 (AP)
• Brad Meester, C, 1999 (AP)
• Adam Vogt, LB, 2001 (AP)
• Mackenzie Hoambrecker, PK, 2002 (AP)
• Dre Dokes, DB, 2006 (AP)
• Brannon Carter, LB, 2007 (AP)
• Chad Rinehart, OL, 2007 (AP)
• James Ruffin, DL, 2009 (AP)
• Ben Boothby, DL, 2011 (AP)
• Michael Schmadeke, PK, 2014 (AP)
• Jack Rummells, OL, 2014 (AP)
• Deiondre' Hall, DB, 2015 (AP)
• Karter Schult, DL, 2016 (AP)
• Jared Brinkman, DL, 2020-21c and 2021 (AP)
• Trevor Penning, OL, 2021

WR=Williamson Ratings; AP=Associated Press;

c - 2020-21 selections include players who played Fall 2020 and teams (such as Northern Iowa) which moved their schedule to Spring 2021 due to COVID

Notable players

• Willie Beamon
• Eddie Berlin
• Spencer Brown
• Mark Farley
• L. J. Fort
• Daurice Fountain
• Derrick Frost
• Joe Fuller
• Mike Furrey
• Deiondre' Hall
• Ryan Hannam
• Austin Howard
• David Johnson
• James Jones
• Brandon Keith
• Chris Klieman
• Joshua Mahoney
• Brad Meester
• Larry Miller
• Brian Mitchell
• Bryce Paup
• Trevor Penning
• Chad Rinehart
• Eric Sanders
• Benny Sapp
• Randy Schultz
• Terrell Sinkfield
• Varmah Sonie
• Justin Surrency
• Tanner Varner
• Dedric Ward
• Kurt Warner
• Xavier Williams
• Mike Woodley
• Steve Wright

References

1. "Northern Iowa gets okay to shift to new athletic conference for 1978". Iowa City, Iowa: The Telegraph-Herald. June 19, 1977. Retrieved July 13, 2013.
2. University of Northern Iowa Athletics Style Guide (PDF). January 25, 2021. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
3. "UNI Championship Seasons". Archived from the original on September 26, 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
4. "Northern Iowa Panthers". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on August 6, 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
5. "Northern Iowa Bowl History". College Football Data Warehouse. Archived from the original on September 26, 2009. Retrieved July 16, 2012.
6. "University of Northern Iowa UNI-Dome General Information Web Page".
7. "Quick Facts (page1)" (PDF).
8. "2016 Northern Iowa Football Media Guide" . Retrieved July 25, 2017.
9. "FCS Football: AP releases 2016 FCS All-America Team" . Retrieved July 25, 2017.
10. "2020-21 Associated Press FCS All-America Team" . Retrieved September 18, 2021.
11. "Jared Brinkman, Trevor Penning earn 2021 AP All-America Football Team honors" . Retrieved December 20, 2021.

External links

• Official website