Western Illinois 1 pm

[ronfitch]

63-0 would be the 5th worst defeat WIU has ever had. Let's not get too crazy no matter how bad they are.

SIU scored 64-yard pass on their first offensive play of the game, a fumble return for a TD, and 3 more TDs of 25+ yards. On top of that, they were given a number of shorter fields as WIU had 4 failed 4th down conversion attempts. They "only" had 474 yards of offense and had the ball for 28 minutes. For a team that scored 63, you'd think both of those would be higher than that, but that's just how that game played out.

WIU is really bad, but Farley isn't a run-the-score kind of coach. He used to be, but he/the program got hammered pretty damn hard after the USD game in 09 and those kinds of drubbings seemed to stop. Remember SFA or Monmouth in the playoffs? The one Drake game? The McNeese game? Utah Tech and St Thomas last year? Idaho State this year? All were games where there would be a legitimate reason to believe they could/should have finished 60+ to less than 13. USD to end the year last year was the one "out of hand" game we truly saw, but even then the second half was all 2s and 3s and ran the ball to kill the clock.

He may want some extra style points to prove a point for playoff selections this year, but I'd be shocked if he allowed to to get much worse than a 45-7 type game if it started getting sideway. That would be directly in line with what WIU has seen every game this year. This late in the year you always want to protect players' health so a guy like Day, Schnee, Penning, etc. likely won't stick around for long once it's out of reach. I think last year's USD game I mentioned is pretty close to what we could see.

Farley-led teams keep their opponents in the game until the end, even when it should be second-team players with a comfy lead in the third quarter. It is just his way.

I expect a win on Saturday, but I won't be surprised if it ends up a one-score difference in a low-scoring game.

[UNIdad]

Farley-led teams keep their opponents in the game until the end, even when it should be second-team players with a comfy lead in the third quarter. It is just his way.

I expect a win on Saturday, but I won't be surprised if it ends up a one-score difference in a low-scoring game.

I suppose it may be possible that Farley lets them stay in the game, but that would be a backfiring of strategy (e.g. a porous "prevent" defense). I expect the opposite. Farley will open it up because he needs the committee to be impressed all day long with UNI's strength.

[PantherFan]

I suppose it may be possible that Farley lets them stay in the game, but that would be a backfiring of strategy (e.g. a porous "prevent" defense). I expect the opposite. Farley will open it up because he needs the committee to be impressed all day long with UNI's strength.

Just like Farley did against South Dakota last year.

[UNI92]

Just play great football this weekend, get better, stay healthy and try to get a comfortable win at home. We've had so many close, hard fought games...we need a breather. This week's game has the makings of that happening.
Rhetorical question: How exciting and refreshing is it to be in the drivers seat and know that if we at least win the next 2 games, we are in the playoffs?
Winning all 3 remaining games puts us in a damn good spot (obvious statement I know but much better than the years in the past where we were all scoreboard watching to hope other teams get beat).
Hope the Panthers put their foot down early and often, entertain the fans and keep getting better!

[vbfan19]

it's "band day", so I need to remember to bring my earplugs for halftime

[pnthr53]

Hopefully with it being band day....we will have some more people in the stands. Anything helps.

[pnthr53]

I said it last week so I’ll press my luck again….get a good nights sleep….get up…grab a cup of coffee….find a way to win another football game. Go panthers!

[pnthr53]

See you in the dome….Go Panthers!

[ronfitch]

Damn, Wolf. That was nice

[ronfitch]

Cook .. all time scoring leader!

[PantherAlum09]

This almost feels wrong. Western Illinois is so bad. Gotta step on their throats and make it ugly, though.

[ronfitch]

This almost feels wrong. Western Illinois is so bad. Gotta step on their throats and make it ugly, though.

If still a Panther, Morrissey might be warming up on the sideline now.

[Wxcpanther]

Remember when people thought "Farley would coach to keep this game close"? Lol

[Trapped in California]

The WIU DBs look completely lost half the time

[ronfitch]

Remember when people thought "Farley would coach to keep this game close"? Lol

That was me. Happy to be wrong this time.