UNI not looking past Southern Illinois in MVFC opener

CEDAR FALLS - It'd be hard to criticize a Northern Iowa fan for looking past this week's game to the three top-six ranked Missouri Valley Football Conference opponents that loom in Weeks 6 through 9. However, Southern Illinois (2-1) - picked eighth in the conference preseason poll - presents a formidable challenge that should not go overlooked.

Now in the second year of head coach Nick Hill's rebuild, the Salukis soundly defeated Mississippi Valley State and Southeast Missouri before falling to FBS Memphis in the final game of their non-conference schedule.

While their first two wins didn't create much buzz, it was their narrow loss to Memphis (which was 31st in the Sagarin Rankings prior to the game) that showed the potential of this Saluki team.

'The Memphis game was their biggest test to really gauge where they're at. They played really well. They had a chance to win the football game. They took Memphis to task all day long,” UNI head coach Mark Farley said. 'Which is concerning because Memphis beat UCLA. So, it shows the strength of their team.”

On paper, this matchup with the Salukis doesn't appear to set up anything like last year's tilt that ended in a 42-24 blowout in favor of UNI. The Panthers defense will be dealing with a balanced SIU offense that totals more than 400 yards per game. An offense that's engineered by the head coach, Hill, who was an All-American quarterback for the Salukis in 2006 and 2007 under head coach Jerry Kill.

'Their quarterback has got a real strong arm. They're a good football team that's building and growing and they grew a lot last week in that Memphis game,” Farley said. 'Their tailback is excellent. He's hard to tackle in space. I think their defense is much improved. I think they've got a great secondary.”

On top of the challenges Southern Illinois offers, the Panthers have been dealing with challenges of their own. Since entering the bye week after a 24-21 loss to Southern Utah in Week 3 there have been injuries to overcome, a running game to fix and more. Add in that the Panthers are back on the road for the fourth time in six weeks and Farley is plenty aware of the challenge this week's game presents.

'We've got two games in our first six games at home the past four years in a row. So, it becomes that we've got to get very good early in the season to be a road team. I think you saw the dynamics of our team at home versus the dynamic of the team on the road. It just creates a different environment,” Farley said. 'It'll be a big challenge for this team, I know that. Coming off an open date should give us some type of energy. How healthy we are at that time will be a big deal.”

HEALTH STATUSES UNCERTAIN FOR PLENTY OF PANTHERS

Panthers that have been dealing with injury during the bye week include left tackle Cal Twait, reserve guard Ezra Szczyrbak, running backs Marcus Weymiller, Trevor Allen and J'Veyon Browning, wide receiver Jalen Rima and defensive back Elijah Campbell.