| October 15, 2005 Football FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CLOSE AGAIN, ISU DROPS A 31-10 DECISION AGAINST NORTHERN IOWA CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – ISU had revenge on the mind after UNI rolled into Memorial Stadium and defeated the Sycamores by a score of 58-6 during the Trees' 2004 Homecoming. It was Homecoming at UNI this year, but the Panthers were able to hold onto a tight contest, and pull away in the second half for a 31-10 Gateway Football Conference victory. The win dropped ISU to 0-7, 0-3 GFC, while UNI improved to 4-2, 2-1 GFC. Northern Iowa raced to a quick 7-0 lead with 10:41 left in the first quarter when tailback Terrance Freeney plunged into the end zone from one yard out on a fourth and goal play. The Panthers started the drive at the ISU 34-yard line after receiving a short Sycamore punt. After the Sycamore offense failed to get a first down on its next possession, the Panthers went back to work and moved the ball down to the ISU six yard line in just three plays. Junior defensive back Warren English-Malone thwarted that score with his third interception of the season to hold the UNI advantage to 7-0. ISU was able to move the ball into the UNI red zone, but on a third-and-long, senior quarterback Blayne Baggett bobbled the snap out of the shotgun and the Sycamores lost possession. Early on in the next drive senior defensive end Kyle Mitchell recovered a UNI fumble to regain possession. The Sycamores held onto the ball for 14 plays and 74 yards as the drive ended with a 16-yard field goal from junior kicker Kyle Hooper to inch the Sycamores closer at 7-3 with 5:46 remaining in the first half. UNI’s David Horne had the answer for the Panthers and he raced in from 40 yards out give UNI a 14-3 lead with 4:30 remaining in the half. Indiana State once again got near the red zone, but time ran out on the Sycamores before they could get any points before the half. Following the half, UNI took the kickoff and marched down the field to the ISU eight-yard line where kicker Brian Wingert kicked a 25 yard field goal to extend the advantage out to 17-3. The Sycamores would answer with their first points of the second half as Baggett found sophomore wide receiver Ben Schmidt for his first career touchdown reception, a 20-yard catch, to inch closer at 17-10 with 6:51 left in the third quarter. Mitchell would recover another UNI fumble with just over four minutes remaining in the third period to stop a UNI scoring drive that moved just inside the ISU 10. After the Trees went three-and-out, UNI once again moved inside the 10-yard line as time wound down in the third period. This time, they reached the end zone and extended their lead to 24-10 with 48 seconds left before the final stanza on a seven-yard run by quarterback Dexter Hill. Baggett finished the contest with a 25-for-42 passing mark for 241 yards. Baggett’s 25 pass completions, give him 178 for the season, which is a new school record. The old mark was 176 which was set by Jeff Miller during the 1985 season. Andre Forte was the Sycamores’ leading rusher with 20 yards while Jamie Petrowski caught a game-best six passes for 57 yards. Sam Logan caught five as well, while Forte also added five receptions of his own. Defensively, Mitchell had two key fumble recoveries in the contest. UNI’s Horne and Freeney each rushed for over 100 yards in the contest. It was the first time since the 2004 home victory over Murray State, that the Sycamores had allowed a pair of 100-yard rushers in a single contest. Indiana State returns home for its Homecoming contest against the nation’s No. 1 ranked Southern Illinois Salukis on Sat., Oct. 22 at 2:00 p.m. (CDT). The Salukis represent the Sycamores’ fifth consecutive contest against a team ranked in its NCAA Division national poll.
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