Playoff berth a sigh of relief for UNI football team

CEDAR FALLS — Northern Iowa’s at-large bid to the 24-team FCS playoffs was a sigh of relief Sunday for football coach Mark Farley and his team.

“It was a tense evening and morning just because you had such a desire to get in, but had no control, no idea what was going to happen,” Farley said.

It was also an affirmation of the strength of the Missouri Valley Football Conference — which received a record six bids — and the Panthers’ annually difficult non-conference schedule.

“The (MVFC) itself, because we play each other within the league, makes a big difference. And the way that our league plays non-conference schedules,” Farley said. “We in particular played a strong non-conference schedule and the Sacramento State win ended up being a very big win for us.”

Along with its key win over the Big Sky champion Hornets, UNI’s three wins against teams in the playoff field proved to be the key catalysts for its at-large bid despite a 6-5 record.

Now headed into its first-round matchup against No. 4 Eastern Washington (9-2), the Panthers are set to see the return of a number of players who have recently missed time due to injuries and COVID-19.

Farley said Monday running backs Bradrick Shaw, Tyler Hoosman and Vance McShane are on track to play Saturday, as are wide receivers Sergio Morancy and Isaiah Weston along with tight ends Kyle Fourtenbary and Jayden Scott.

Wide receiver Quan Hampton and defensive back Omar Brown remain out. Meanwhile, safety Korby Sander (lower body) and defensive end Devin Rice (lower body) both are questionable.

“I saw (Rice) yesterday and he says he’s going to play,” Farley said. “Knowing Devin, Devin heals fast.”

The Eagles, who boast the No. 2 offense in the FCS (563 yards per game), are led by senior quarterback Eric Barriere. The Inglewood, Calif., native averages 387 passing yards per game (No. 2 in the FCS) and has thrown an FCS-leading 40 touchdowns.

“They are a wide-open, spread offense that scores a lot of points and that has a great quarterback,” Farley said. “They also have a great defense and special teams.”

Adding intrigue to Saturday’s game is former UNI wide receivers coach Pat McCann, who was with the Panthers from 2017-2018.

McCann is now EWU’s interim offensive coordinator and Farley said his two-year run in Cedar Falls made it clear he was destined to become a play-caller. He also mentioned McCann’s knowledge of the UNI offense might provoke some signal changes.

“Pat knows us pretty good,” Farley said with a grin. “His family is awesome. I’m happy for him, because he always wanted to be the play-caller and we were grooming him that way.”

No. 25 UNI (6-5, 4-4) kicks off against Eastern Washington at Roos Field Saturday at 3 p.m. (ESPN+).