Northern Iowa Panthers football

College football team of the University of Northern Iowa From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Northern Iowa Panthers football program represents the University of Northern Iowa in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level as member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC). The program began in 1895 and has fielded a team every year since with the exceptions of 1906–1907 and 1943–1944. The Panthers play their home games at the UNI-Dome on the campus of the University of Northern Iowa, in Cedar Falls, Iowa. They have appeared in the Division I FCS playoffs 22 times, third most among all current teams but have never won an FCS Division I championship.

First season1895; 131 years ago (1895)
Athletic directorMegan Franklin
Head coachTodd Stepsis
1st season, 3–9 (.250)
LocationCedar Falls, Iowa
Quick facts First season, Athletic director ...
Northern Iowa Panthers football
2025 Northern Iowa Panthers football team
First season1895; 131 years ago (1895)
Athletic directorMegan Franklin
Head coachTodd Stepsis
1st season, 3–9 (.250)
LocationCedar Falls, Iowa
StadiumUNI-Dome
(capacity: 16,324)
NCAA divisionDivision I FCS
ConferenceMissouri Valley
ColorsPurple and old gold[1]
   
All-time record707–464–47 (.600)
Bowl record1–1 (.500)
Conference championships
IIAC: 1927, 1928
NCC: 1940, 1941, 1942, 1946, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1952, 1960, 1961, 1962, 1964
AMCU: 1981, 1982, 1984
Gateway: 1985, 1987, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2007
MFVC: 2008, 2010, 2011
Consensus All-Americans1
RivalriesDrake (rivalry)
Iowa State
North Dakota State
Southern Illinois
Fight song"UNI Fight"
MascotTC/TK Panther
Marching band"The Pride of Panther Nation"
Websiteunipanthers.com
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History

See also: List of Northern Iowa Panthers football seasons

Classifications

  • NCAA College Division (1956–1972)
  • NCAA Division II (1973–1980)
  • NCAA Division I-AA/FCS (1981–present)

Conference memberships

Championship and postseason history

Conference championships

UNI's offense against the St. Francis Red Flash September 19, 2009

Northern Iowa has won thirty-three conference titles,[2] the most out of the four Iowa Division I institutions. The Panthers have won two Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference championships, twelve North Central Conference championships, three Association of Mid-Continent Universities football championships and sixteen Missouri Valley Football Conference championships.

More information Year, Conference ...
Year Conference Overall record Conference record
1927IIAC7–0–16–0
1928IIAC5–1–34–0–2
1940NCC8–15–0
1941NCC5–35–0
1942NCC6–15–0
1946NCC4–1–22–0–1
1947NCC5–3–14–0
1948NCC7–35–0
1949NCC5–25–1
1952NCC6–25–1
1960NCC9–16–0
1961NCC7–25–1
1962NCC7–1–15–0–1
1964NCC9–25–1
1981AMCU5–62–1
1982AMCU4–6–12–0–1
1984AMCU9–22–1
1985MVFC11–25–0
1987MVFC10–46–0
1990MVFC8–45–1
1991MVFC11–25–1
1992MVFC12–25–1
1993MVFC8–45–1
1994MVFC8–46–0
1995MVFC8–55–1
1996MVFC12–25–0
2001MVFC11–36–1
2003MVFC10–36–1
2005MVFC11–45–2
2007MVFC12–16–0
2008MVFC12–37–1
2010MVFC7–56–2
2011MVFC10–37–1
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College Division bowl games

Northern Iowa played in the NCAA's College Division from 1937–1972.[3] Twice in those years they qualified for a College Division bowl game.[4]

More information Year, Bowl ...
Year Bowl Record Opponent Result
1960Mineral Water Bowl9–1–0Hillsdale CollegeL 6–17
1964Pecan Bowl9–2–0Lamar (TX)W 19–17
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Division I-AA/FCS playoff games

The Panthers have made twenty-two appearances in the Division I-AA/FCS playoffs, with an overall record of 24–22.

More information Year, Round ...
Year Round Opponent Result
1985Quarterfinal
Semifinal		Middle Tennessee
Georgia Southern		W 28–21
L 33–40
1987First round
Quarterfinal
Semifinal		Youngstown State
Arkansas State
Northeast Louisiana		W 31–28
W 49–28
L 41–44 2OT
1990First roundBoise StateL 3–20
1991First round
Quarterfinal		Weber State
Marshall		W 38–21
L 13–41
1992First round
Quarterfinal
Semifinal		Eastern Washington
McNeese State
Youngstown State		W 17–14
W 29–7
L 7–19
1993First roundBoston UniversityL 21–27 2OT
1993First roundMontanaL 23–29
1995First round
Quarterfinal		Murray State
Marshall		W 35–34
L 24–41
1996Quarterfinal
Semifinal		William & Mary
Marshall		W 38–35
L 14–31
2001First round
Quarterfinal
Semifinal		Eastern Illinois
Maine
Montana		W 49–43
W 56–28
L 10–38
2003First round
Quarterfinal		Montana State
Delaware		W 35–14
L 7–37
2005Quarterfinal
Semifinal
National Championship		New Hampshire
Texas State
Appalachian State		W 24–21
W 40–37
L 16–21
2007First round
Quarterfinal		New Hampshire
Delaware		W 38–35
L 27–39
2008First round
Quarterfinal
Maine
New Hampshire
Richmond		W 40–15
W 36–34
L 20–21
2010First roundLehighL 7–14
2011Second round
Quarterfinal		Wofford
Montana		W 28–21
L 10–48
2014First round
Second round		Stephen F. Austin
Illinois State		W 44–10
L 21–41
2015First round
Second round
Quarterfinal		Eastern Illinois
Portland State
North Dakota State		W 53–17
W 29–17
L 13–23
2017First round
Second round		Monmouth
South Dakota State		W 46–7
L 22–37
2018First round
Second round		Lamar
UC Davis		W 16–3
L 16–23
2019First round
Second round
Quarterfinal		San Diego
South Dakota State
James Madison		W 17–3
W 13–10
L 0–17
2021First roundEastern WashingtonL 9–19
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FCS National Championship games

More information Season, Game ...
Season Game Record Opponent Result
2005National Championship11–4Appalachian StateL 16–21
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UNI-Dome

The UNI-Dome opened in 1976, as the home of the UNI Panthers football team. The facility's capacity for football is 12,200.[5] At football games, where cold temperatures are frequently an issue for fans, the UNI-Dome announcers will announce "conditions at game time" prior to each game. The announcers will announce the weather in the town where the visiting team is from, the current weather conditions outside the Dome, and then say "Inside - 72 degrees, no wind, welcome to the Dome!" to emphasize the fact that a domed stadium is not affected by the weather. Heading into the 2025 season, the Panthers have a home record of 233–68–1 in the UNI-Dome, having won nearly 80 percent of their games in the UNI-Dome.[5]

All-Americans

First Team Selections [6][7][8][9][10]

  • Paul Jones, E, 1937 (WR)
  • Paul DeVan, HB, 1949 (AP)
  • Lou Bohnsack, C, 1952 (AP)
  • LeRoy Dunn, T, 1955 (WR)
  • Dick Formanek, T, 1956 (WR)
  • George Asleson, G, 1960 (AP)
  • Jerry Morgan, QB, 1960 (WR)
  • Wendell Williams, G, 1961 (AP)
  • Dan Boals, FB, 1962 (WR)
  • Randy Schultz, FB, 1964 and 1965 (AP)
  • Ray Pedersen, G, 1967 (AP)
  • Mike Timmermans, T, 1975 (AP)
  • Brian Mitchell, PK, 1990 and 1991 (AP)
  • Kenny Shedd, AP, 1992 (AP)
  • William Freeney, LB, 1992 (AP)
  • Andre Allen, LB, 1994 (AP)
  • Dedric Ward, WR, 1995 and 1996 (AP)
  • Eric Harris, LB, 1999 (AP)
  • Brad Meester, C, 1999 (AP)
  • Adam Vogt, LB, 2001 (AP)
  • Mackenzie Hoambrecker, PK, 2002 (AP)
  • Dre Dokes, DB, 2006 (AP)
  • Brannon Carter, LB, 2007 (AP)
  • Chad Rinehart, OL, 2007 (AP)
  • James Ruffin, DL, 2009 (AP)
  • Ben Boothby, DL, 2011 (AP)
  • Michael Schmadeke, PK, 2014 (AP)
  • Jack Rummells, OL, 2014 (AP)
  • Deiondre' Hall, DB, 2015 (AP)
  • Karter Schult, DL, 2016 (AP)
  • Jared Brinkman, DL, 2020-21c and 2021 (AP)
  • Trevor Penning, OL, 2021 (AP)
  • Matthew Cook, 2023, K (AP)

WR=Williamson Ratings; AP=Associated Press;

c - 2020-21 selections include players who played Fall 2020 and teams (such as Northern Iowa) which moved their schedule to Spring 2021 due to COVID

Notable players

Future non–conference opponents

Announced schedules as of October 23, 2025.[11]

2026 2027 2028 2029 2031
at Eastern Washington Butler at Iowa State at Iowa at Iowa State
Drake at Nebraska
at Iowa
 

References

External links

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