Youngstown State presents challenge for UNI’s newfound balance on offense

CEDAR FALLS - On paper it appears to be a contrast of styles set to clash at 1 p.m. Saturday at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls.

No. 9 Youngstown State (3-3, 1-2) brings the FCS' ninth-best rushing attack to Cedar Falls to go up against the Panthers' (3-3, 2-1) 19th-ranked passing game.

Hold on though. Or, as Lee Corso would exclaim, 'not so fast my friends.”

After their dominant 38-18 win over then-No. 7 South Dakota State, the Panthers may be headed on a different course offensively to finish the season's remaining five games.

The return of Marcus Weymiller to the backfield translated into a season highs in rushing yards (218), attempts (60), and touchdowns (3). Weymiller's ability as a runner, as well as his unique ability as the ‘wildcat' quarterback, provided nothing short of a mid-season renaissance for a UNI running game that was sluggish through the first five games.

It would be hard to imagine the Panthers going away from that running game that proved so effective last Saturday. Their 60 attempts last week decreased Eli Dunne's volume as a passer, but increased his efficiency and revitalized the play-action passing game.

Youngstown State - which hasn't won at the UNI-Dome since 1999 - enters the matchup with the Missouri Valley Football Conference's third best defense. Needless to say, the Panthers will be able to find out if their newfound production in the running game is for real.

'They played for the title last year, enough said,” UNI head coach Mark Farley stated. 'What concerns me about them is just that they're a physical football team that had North Dakota State, had South Dakota State, and they were in position (to win). They were physically beating those teams on the field.”

Along with the physical challenge, Youngstown State is a no frills, line up and come right at you type of team. Offensively and defensively it's no secret what the Penguins will bring Saturday.

'I don't think they try to trick anybody as much as they try to line up and get their scheme blocked the way they want it blocked,” Farley said. 'Then their running back hits the hole in a way that's very hard to defend. They're a patient football team. They'll take their three, four, five yards then pop you for 12 (yards). Then they've got the play-action behind (the running game) to be very disruptive.”

What could loom largest on Saturday is time of possession. The Penguins' MVFC schedule has done them no favors so far, having to play South Dakota State, South Dakota and North Dakota State. They beat SDSU, but came up just short against USD and NDSU. In their win against SDSU they possessed the ball for 45 minutes and in their loss to South Dakota the Coyotes ran only 35 plays.

'They scored 24 against North Dakota State which is extremely good. They pounded them all day long and had a chance to win the game at the end,” Farley said. 'How we stack up, we're going to find out. We'll take the field with the dudes that we had at South Dakota State and they're going to have to step their game up.”