Playoff hopes maintain a pulse

“We can’t afford another loss,” said University of Northern Iowa head football coach Mark Farley.

Simply put, the Panthers must win their final three games to qualify for the 2009 Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.

Three weeks ago UNI was undefeated in Missouri Valley Conference play and boasting a No. 2 national ranking. After two consecutive losses to conference foes Southern Illinois University and South Dakota State University, the Panthers tumbled down to third in the MVC and No. 11 nationally.

The last time UNI football fell in consecutive games was during the 2004 season.

UNI no longer has a chance of qualifying for the playoffs as an automatic bid, so they must impress the selection committee to earn a spot in the 16-team field. The committee, made up of FCS athletic directors, uses its own set of rankings, unreleased to the public, to determine the playoff bracket.

The back-to-back losses certainly damaged the Panthers’ playoff hopes, but UNI’s strength of schedule has helped them maintain some attraction to the ranking systems.

As painful as it may be for some Panther fans, cheering for the University of Iowa Hawkeyes as well as Southern Illinois and South Dakota State may be in order to increase their team’s allure.

The combined record of the three squads that defeated the Panthers this season is 23-2.

History also indicates that UNI can still control its destiny into postseason play.

Last season, NCAA Division I Football Championship Committee announced that they would be using the Gridiron Power Index, the Sports Network Poll and the FCS Coaches Poll as tools in their selection process. Although the rankings will specifically be used to determine the placing of conference champions who do not receive automatic bids, they have generally been able to predict most at-large selections.

The GPI considers seven different computer rankings as well as the Sports Network, FCS Coaches and Any Given Saturday polls to determine each team’s ranking. As of Nov. 2, the Panthers are ranked No. 9 in the GPI. Although the human-generated polls rank UNI at the No. 11 and No. 12 spots, the computer-generated rankings place the Panthers as high as No. 6.

Last season, only three of the top 16 teams in the GPI eligible for the playoffs were not selected. The highest-ranked squad in that bunch was No. 12 College of William & Mary.

The Panthers can even take some hope from the team that knocked them out of the playoffs last season. The 2008 FCS national champion, the University of Richmond, entered the playoffs with three losses, two of them coming to conference opponents. The committee ranked the Spiders at No. 7, giving them home field advantage for their opening round match.

UNI’s first round opponent in the 2008 playoffs, the University of Maine, qualified with four overall and three conference losses.

Both Richmond and Maine, however, compete in the Colonial Athletic Association, which consistently generates the most playoff bids for a conference. The CAA currently has seven teams in the GPI top 25. The MVFC has three.

If the GPI were to directly coincide with the 2009 FCS playoff selections, the Panthers would qualify as an at-large bid if they were to win out and may even earn a first round game at the UNI-Dome if they can move up one seed.

Although many factors indicate that UNI will qualify for the playoffs with an 8-3 record, the Panthers can only focus on winning their next three games.

Their first challenge comes this Saturday as UNI hosts Youngstown State University. The Penguins are 4-4 overall and 2-3 in the MVC. Like the Panthers, YSU is coming off consecutive losses to Southern Illinois and South Dakota State. The Penguins are ranked No. 42 in the GPI rankings.

Kick-off is set for 4:05 p.m.

 

1 comments

UNI Des Moines Alumni

Mon Nov 9 2009 16:59

Playoff hopes are very much alive, especially after the Youngstown win. New top 25 has Southern Illinois #1, South Dakota State #12 and UNI at #11. Our 3 losses are vs. quality opponents and weren't blowouts. UNI can get the home win vs. WIU, but @ Illinois State is a wildcard, depends on which team (on both sides) shows up. If UNI wins out, we're in the playoffs at 8-3. no doubt.

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