CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – UNI rode a dominant first-half performance to a 61-7 victory over Missouri State Saturday afternoon in Missouri Valley Football Conference action at the UNI-Dome. The Panthers (3-4, 2-2 MVFC) scored on each of their six offensive possessions in the opening half to build a 31-0 lead, thanks in large part to a shutdown defensive effort and a career day from quarterback Eli Dunne.
In his first career start for UNI, Dunne completed 25-of-33 passes for 418 yards – including 308 in the opening half – and a pair of touchdowns. The sophomore completed his first 12 passes, six of which went for gains of 20 yards or more. In all, Dunne hooked up with a total of 10 different receivers on the day to post the first 400-yard passing performance by a UNI quarterback since 2009.
The Panther defense was equally as potent in the early stages, limiting the Bears (3-4, 1-3 MVFC) to 30 yards of total offense in the opening quarter and just 117 for the half. UNI safety A.J. Allen set the tone on the game’s first play from scrimmage, picking off a Brodie Lambert pass and returning the interception 25 yards to the MSU 2. The MSU defense held, however, forcing an 18-yard Austin Errthum field goal that gave the home club a 3-0 lead just over two minutes into the game.
It took UNI less than six minutes to tack on another score, when Michael Malloy jumped over the pile from the one-yard line to cap a six-play, 71-yard touchdown drive. A 47-yard pass from Dunne to Trevor Allen set up the score that put UNI up by double figures midway through the opening quarter.
A 45-yard completion to Daurice Fountain on UNI’s third possession set up another touchdown at the 3:03 mark, with Malloy going up and over from one-yard out again to make it a 17-0 affair with 3:03 to play in the first period.
The Panthers didn’t let off the gas in the second quarter, covering 79 yards on seven plays on their next series to claim a 24-point lead on an eight-yard rush by Tyvis Smith. Midway through the quarter, Allen and Dunne hooked up on a 61-yard scoring play on a key third-and-six conversion that made it 31-0 with just under eight minutes left in the opening half.
Missouri State got on the board late in the half on a third-and-long completion from Lambert to Jason Randall, after Deion Holliman lateralled to the sophomore tailback after reeling in a short reception at the UNI 30. Randall sprinted down the far sideline to paydirt, which made it a 31-7 contest at the 2:47 mark. The drive included a pair of third-down conversions and a facemask penalty against UNI to extend what would ultimately end up being a 10-play, 75-yard series.
UNI tacked on a 33-yard field goal by Errthum moments before intermission to make it 34-7 at the midway point. The Panthers out-gained the Bears by a 384-to-117-yard margin, while converting 6-of-8 of their third-down attempts in the opening half.
The Panther defense kept the heat on in the third quarter, turning a pair of interceptions into two more touchdowns as part of a 21-point outburst UNI. Dunne opened the second-half scoring with a 17-yard scoring strike to Jalen Rima at the 9:43 mark, before Elijah Campbell recorded the first of the Panthers’ two pick-sixes on the very next play from scrimmage, returning a Lambert pass 42 yards to make it a 47-7 game. Duncan Ferch followed suit later in the quarter, snagging a Michael Briggs pass out of the air and bringing it back 23 yards for his second interception return for a touchdown this season.
UNI capped its best offensive performance of the season with a methodical 14-play, 86-yard scoring drive that consumed more than eight minutes of the fourth quarter. J’Veyon Browning finished the drive with an 11-yard touchdown run to put the Panthers over the 60-point mark for the first time in seven years.
For the day, the Panthers forced three turnovers and limited MSU to just 81 rushing yards and 189 yards of total offense. Smith led UNI with five receptions for 53 yards, while recording 38 rushing yards on his 12 attempts.
Dylan Cole turned in a 13-stop performance for the Bears to lead all tacklers, while D’Shawn Dexter made eight tackles for the Panthers.
Missouri State returns home next Saturday (Oct. 29) to host Southern Illinois in its annual Salute to Heroes Day. Kickoff is slated for 2:04 p.m. at Robert W. Plaster Stadium.
Postgame Notes: The loss marks the ninth-straight road setback for the Bears in the series; MSU drops to just 5-32 all-time vs. UNI, including a 2-17 road mark against the Panthers … The 54-point victory represents the largest for either club in the 37-game series, surpassing a pair of 42-point wins for the Panthers (45-3 on Sept. 27, 1986 and 42-0 on Nov. 8, 2008) … Dylan Cole made his 42nd consecutive start for the Bears; the senior All-America candidate moved up to sixth on the Bears’ all-time tackles chart, passing Bill Walter (385 tackles) and Caleb Schaffitzel (386) with his 13-tackle performance that gave him 394 for his MSU career … Jason Randall was credited with his second receiving touchdown of the season and his fourth TD overall on the Bears’ lone scoring play of the afternoon … The Panthers’ 375 passing yards represent not only a season-high for a Missouri State opponent, but the best single-game passing day by a Bears foe since Murray State’s 570-yard passing day on Oct. 9, 2010.
