UNI football opens MVFC play with dramatic 44-41 win over Youngstown State

CEDAR FALLS — A fourth-quarter defensive stand set the stage for a 44-41 comeback win for Northern Iowa against No. 19 Youngstown State in its Missouri Valley Football Conference opener Saturday.

Trailing 27-23 late in the third quarter, Theo Day’s pass for Sam Schnee on the first play of the drive deflected off the senior’s hands and was intercepted by Tjyon Jones, making memories of a 20-13 halftime lead feel distant.

However, UNI stopped Matt Davidson’s quarterback sneaks on third-and-1 and fourth-and-1, giving the ball back to Day and the offense at their own 16.

“Just don’t jump (offside),” UNI sophomore linebacker Tucker Langenberg said. “It’s obvious they were running up the middle. So, stick your head in there and it’s mano a mano. Gotta buckle up.”

Day quickly began moving the Panthers downfield, completing a 32-yard pass to Alex Allen to begin the drive. Six plays later, the senior QB connected with Schnee on a 30-yard touchdown pass — his fourth of the game — giving UNI a 30-27 lead with 10:36 to play.

UNI (2-2, 1-0) mustered another key stop on the Penguins’ next drive, and the offense once again found the end zone, going 70 yards in five plays that included a 26-yard pass to Landon Wolf and a Tye Edwards 30-yard touchdown run for a 36-27 lead with 5:58 remaining.

“A game like that, depending on what type of player you are, it can go up and down, but it’s about staying level-headed, trusting your o-line, trusting the gap and scheme,” Edwards said. “We’ve been emphasizing one and a half — do your job and do more.”

Youngstown State (2-2, 0-1) refused to go away, exploiting UNI’s defense with its fourth touchdown, a 10-play, 70-yard drive capped by a 31-yard completion to Bryce Oliver that was followed by a 5-yard touchdown pass to Oliver.

Clinging to a 37-34 lead with 1:40 remaining, the Penguins’ onside kick was picked up quickly by safety Dalesean Staley, who burst through YSU’s kick team with a big return to YSU’s 15-yard line.

A 12-yard run from Edwards on the following play set up a 1-yard Day quarterback sneak for a touchdown. That proved to be key, as Youngstown State put together a fifth touchdown drive to pull within three with 32 seconds remaining.

A second onside kick attempt was recovered by the Panthers’ Naran Buntin, giving way to a Day kneel-down to seal a dramatic MVFC-opening win.

“Up to yesterday’s meeting, the film that was shown was (Youngstown State) last year at Illinois State and at Western (Illinois) down by two possessions in both games with less than three minutes to go in both games and won both games,” Farley said. “So, this is the type of team that we had actually prepped (ourselves) that this will go to the last whistle.”

Day finished 21-for-29 passing with 337 yards and five total touchdowns.

Life was made easier for the senior quarterback as Edwards provided 21 carries and 124 yards on the ground.

Buntin led all Panther receivers with 79 yards on three catches, including a 30-yard touchdown in the second quarter.

Langenberg led UNI with 11 tackles, while linebacker Jahsiah Galvan added to an impressive redshirt freshman campaign with five tackles and his first career interception in the second quarter.

“I think we can be way better in terms of errors,” Langenberg said. “I think this team can be great. We saw it all through camp. We see bits and pieces of it now, we just gotta put it all together.”

The Panthers travel to Indiana State (0-3) next Saturday for a 6 p.m. (CT) kickoff at Memorial Stadium.

“(That win) tells me we got work to do, but we got a lot of people to work with,” Farley said. “I think we got an opportunity now to take another step forward.”