Game Preview: University of Northern Iowa, Rd 2


It was just a few weeks ago that the Jacks defeated the Panthers rather handily by a score of 38-7.  The Jacks took care of the ball in that contest while the Panthers did not; committing 4 turnovers that turned a competitive game into a rout.  Here is the preview for that game and I would encourage you to read it before reading the rest of this article as much of the info has stayed the same besides the stats.  While much is the same, there are some potentially huge differences in this game.  I'll use this blog to lay out those differences so that we are all prepared for Saturday.

1. UNI Injuries

  • In the first matchup, UNI was without Briley Moore (TE), Isaiah Weston (WR), Deion McShane (WR), Tyler Hoosman (RB), and Nick McCabe (RB).  In the first round against San Diego, Weston and McShane played.  Weston reaggravated his injury and his status for Saturday is unknown.  McShane, a dynamic athlete, is still recovering from his knee injury and did not make any statistical contributions on Saturday.  Moore, Hoosman, and McCabe's status is unknown but they could certainly add some juice to an offense that really needs it.  Against San Diego, Chris Kolarevic was injured with a leg injury and did not return to the game.  He is a terrific inside linebacker and his absence would be big for a strong UNI defense.  
2. UNI Offense

  • Obviously, the injuries have taken their toll on the UNI offense.  However, rFr QB Will McElvain has struggled.  Over the last three games, he is completing just 50% of his passes and has only thrown for 425 yards, 2 TD and 3 INT over that stretch.  I didn't watch the UNI win over Western Illinois but against SDSU and San Diego he was missing high on his passes across the middle pretty consistently.  Isaiah Weston accounted for 58 of the 186 yards passing by McElvain and it is evident that throwing the deep ball to Weston is his preferred pass at this point in his development as a QB.   In Weston's absence, true freshman, Logan Wolf made 3 receptions for 82 yards and a TD.  He made his debut against SDSU and was held to just one catch for 10 yards.  In addition to McElvain's struggles, the usually reliable Jaylin James had a couple drops against San Diego. I would not count on him having a multi-drop game again.  Finally, the UNI run game really has struggled for most of the year.  Saturday was more of the same as they only gained 82 positive yards and had just a long fun of 14 yards.  If that is all the production UNI gets on the ground, I love the Jackrabbit chances of winning.
3. UNI Defense

  • In the first matchup, UNI's defense held up rather well for most of the game as they were down just 7-0 at halftime.  However, once the flurry of turnovers by the UNI offense started, their will seemed to break and lack of depth began to come into play. Since that trip to Brookings, they have allowed just 10 points in two games and even scored a touchdown against San Diego on a pick-six.  They are a really good unit at every level.  If Kolarevic is out this week, that would be a big loss but I think Spencer Cuvelier could fill in just fine. Because UNI plays such an amoeba defense they are somewhat flexible in their personnel.
4. UNI Punting

  • The UNI punting situation is worth watching. Zac Kibby and Nate Murphy have been up and down this season.  Kibby hit a 62-yard bomb in the first matchup but the two struggled outside of that punt and Murphy has not kicked since.  Against WIU Kibby had a 41-yard average and against San Diego just a 37-yard average.  Field position will be key in this game as both defenses will likely be suffocating.            

5. SDSU Injuries

  • The Jacks offense would certainly be boosted by the return of Pierre Strong and CJ Wilson.  CJ has been out since the Missouri State game while Pierre went down early against UNI.  Their contrasting styles, coupled with the physical play of Mikey Daniel, make for one of the best backfields in the MVFC.  Their status for this week is not known at the time of writing this.  The bye was key for the guys who have some lingering injuries.  Furthermore, it gave Wes Genant and Marshon Harris another week to heal. Both have played in two games and I would expect them to play in this matchup as well.       
6. SDSU Turnovers

  • The recipe for success has been pretty simple in 2019.  Don't turn the ball over on offense and force turnovers on defense.  In their four losses, SDSU has turned the ball over 12 times (9 fumbles, 3 INT).  This cannot happen against UNI.  In the first matchup, SDSU had zero turnovers while UNI had four.  Last week, UNI forced four turnovers against San Diego.

Prediction
The only team that has beat SDSU in 2019 is SDSU.  I firmly believe that.  If SDSU takes care of the ball they will win this game.  Keaton Heide played a great game in the first matchup but I'm sure Coach Farley will have a gameplan in place to counter what he did well during the first matchup. UNI's defense is very good but ours is just as good if not better.  The SDSU gameplan in the first matchup was to keep the pressure on McElvain and he did not respond great and the ChainGang was especially dominant.  We'll see what Coach Rogers and Coach Bergstrom have dialed up this week. 

Jacks 24
Panthers 6        

Go Jacks!
Matt



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