Today's article from the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa — Measuring Mark Farley’s level of concern requires just two numbers: 1-2.
One win, two losses. That’s the record for Northern Iowa’s football team as it begins Missouri Valley Football Conference play Saturday at fourth-ranked Youngstown State.
Farley isn’t surprised to be there, given that the Panthers played Wisconsin and Iowa in the non-conference portion of the season. He’s also not thrilled about their record.
“We’re 1-2 — that’s what I’m concerned about,” the UNI coach said Monday. “We’re 1-2 and we’re going to Youngstown.
“Yeah, our backs are against the wall, no question about it. I knew that coming into the season.”
Farley also made it clear. They may be a step below .500, but the Panthers will not settle for anything less that success.
Farley said, “This is our schedule, our team. We’re gonna line up and find a way.
“That’s our purpose this week — find a way.
“We’re gonna have to make some adjustments, no question, with the injuries we took and also the way (the Penguins) are playing. Youngstown is playing very, very well right now and they’re very confident and getting to play at home.”
While the Penguins (3-0) are on the rise, UNI is dealing with some physical issues.
Monday, Farley didn’t offer much new information on his wounded players. Linebackers Jordan Gacke and Zach Cutkomp are dealing with knee injuries. A third linebacker, Max Busher, has a bad ankle. Another Panther who might have provided depth at that spot, true freshman Nate Shaw, hasn’t practiced since fall camp because of a concussion.
Sticking to his theme of the day, though, Farley said he’ll deal with adjusting his lineup.
“It’s not our first rodeo,” he said, smiling. “We’ve been hurt before. We’ll figure something out. We’ll find a way. I’ve been messing with it for a couple of days now, waiting to see what (the injury) outcome was.
“We’ve got good players. We’ve just gotta figure out a way to get the right ones on the field at the same time.”
WHO ARE YOU? Asked to describe what kind of team he had through three games, Farley boiled it down to three words.
“An inconsistent one,” he said
According to Farley the Panthers were average offensively while losing at Wisconsin and played well on defense. In the 27-16 defeat to Iowa, UNI did a good job with the football, but dipped to average defensively.
“We played two very good teams,” he said. “Hopefully, we’ll be a better team for it, lining up against Youngstown.”
DISTANT REPLAY - Asked if he would accept a future schedule with two teams from a BSC-level conference, Farley pointed to the financial issues that led to the Badgers joining the Hawkeyes as 2012 opponents.
“That’s always a big part of it, and we know it,” said Farley. “Really, my feeling right now is we’ll play whoever we’re asked to play.”
The UNI coach also said he hoped the Panthers could split those games this season.
“I really thought we had a 50-50 chance at getting one or the other,” he said. “I think we played that way. We came down to the wire for the most part in both games, but it didn’t fall in our direction. So we’ve got to find a way to do a great job within our league.”
TOUTING TYLER - UNI junior Tyler Sievertsen, with 22 field goals in 24 career tries, is the active leader in 3-point percentage among FCS placekickers.
Sievertsen nailed a career-best 49-yarder Saturday, one of three he made at Kinnick Stadium.
“Tyler’s been consistent his whole career,” said Farley. “He’s made himself into that. You never would have known that as he came through as a freshman. All the credit goes to him for what he made himself into.’
http://wcfcourier.com/sports/college/uni/football/uni---but-far-from-through/article_40396af8-0152-11e2-9cec-0019bb2963f4.htmlAnd yesterday's
CEDAR FALLS, Iowa --- Mark Farley likes what he’s seen through the first three weeks of Northern Iowa’s football season.
Farley wants to see that team again. He just isn’t certain that he will.
The nonconference portion of the schedule is over. UNI battled back and had a chance to upset Wisconsin before falling, 26-21. The Panthers led Iowa early and stayed close in the second half before the Hawkeyes secured a 27-16 win Saturday at Kinnick Stadium.
In between the Big Ten wars, UNI blew out Division II Central State.
Now comes the Missouri Valley Football Conference games, and life doesn’t get any easier for the Panthers. They go to Youngstown State next Saturday. UNI’s beaten the Penguins 11 straight times, but this YSU team knocked off Pittsburgh to begin its season.
“That’s a huge game for Youngstown as it is for us,” said Farley.
After that, the Panthers host defending FCS and MVFC champion North Daktota State in the UNI-Dome.
That’s ahead. As he looked back on UNI’s effort against Wisconsin and Iowa, Farley showed mixed emotions.
“I’m pleased with our team and what they had to do in two of the last three weeks,” said the UNI coach.
Farley added that the challenge ahead is getting the Panthers healthy physically and motivated emotionally for the MVFC after going at a high level against the Big Ten programs.
“I think we’re better for it, leaving here” he said. “But, my biggest concern right now is getting them all back for next week. How do we get to that level of play next week? We’ve been to the intensity level twice now. We’ve gotta go back for two more weeks now.
“So how we get this team back will be very important. That will be the biggest test of this team now.”
The training room also figures to be very, very important in the upcoming days.
UNI lost at least two players to injuries. Zach Cutkomp, who had made the transition from running back to linebacker, went down with a leg injury. He had found a role in the Panthers’ nickel package.
Jordan Gacke, the man who became the top linebacker while replacing L.J. Fort in the middle, actually came off the field twice with injuries. He returned, then left again late in the game.
“I’ve just got an idea of our football team, but our football team will change a little bit next week,” said Farley. “We lost a couple of guys today. We’ll see what we come up with next week for Youngstown.”
Defensively, UNI will try to rebound after Iowa muscled its way to 201 yards rushing and 429 in total offense. The Hawkeyes also burned the Panther secondary with passes over the middle to Kevonte Martin-Manley and sideline routes with Keenan Davis late. And quarterback James Vandenberg enjoyed time to throw without being sacked.
On the offensive side, UNI couldn’t maintain the pace after scoring 13 first-half points. But David Johnson enjoyed his biggest game of the season with 154 total yards. Sawyer Kollmorgen threw his first interception of 2012, and still put 245 passing yards in the book. Young receivers Brett LeMaster and Chad Owens continue to be productive.
Kollmorgen said two tough, rugged losses will have value as UNI prepares for Valley Football.
“We’ve gotta get healthy,” he said. “But playing in a place like Kinnick and Camp Randall is gonna be huge for us when we go to Youngstown and then play North Dakota State at home.
“Those are gonna be two excellent teams, but I think we’ve already played two excellent teams along with Central State. I think we’ll be prepared. We’ve gotta keep the train rolling and just keep going and figure out what we need to do to win.”
NOTES: Ryan Bingaman, who was a starter in the offensive line at Wisconsin, played tight end Saturday against Iowa. ....Punter Kyle Bernard might be on the way to his best season as a Panther. He entered Saturday’s game averaging a career-high 44.7 yards per kick. Then he punted three times for a 58.3 average, including a 71-yarder that fell four yards short of his 75-yard boot a year ago.
http://wcfcourier.com/sports/college/uni/football/panthers-lick-wounds-prepare-for-youngstown-st/article_6636b26c-005b-11e2-9ad9-001a4bcf887a.html