CEDAR FALLS, Iowa ? Highlighted by a season-long pitch and catch from the arm of Charles Dowdell to the hands of Rafael Price, the Sycamores ended their 2007 season with a 68-14 loss at No. 1 nationally-ranked Northern Iowa in front of 16,624 fans at the UNI-Dome. ISU falls to 0-6 all-time against No. 1 ranked teams.
The Sycamores conclude the season with a 0-11 mark (0-6 Gateway), while UNI wins the league crown and improves to 10-0, 6-0 GFC.
Northern Iowa controlled the first quarter as they provided the bulk of the excitement in the period. UNI scored in four different manners, every way possible except for a two-point conversion, in racing out to a 19-0 advantage.
The Panthers opened the scoring with a 9-yard touchdown pass from Eric Sanders to Johnny Gray and followed that with a 32-yard field goal by Billy Hallgren for a quick 10-0 lead.
Darian Williams seemed poised to make it 17-0 on the Panthers' next drive by Chris Mobley caught the speedster from behind at the 2-yard line and forced Williams to fumble into the end zone. Senior Shonda Faulkner pounced on the ball for a touchback to keep the scoreboard reading 10-0.
UNI's Jordan Lacy was credited with a sack at the 3:21 mark of the first quarter to make the score 12-0, and the Panthers added to their advantage with a 9-yard run by Cory Lewis.
The Sycamores got back in the game with a little second half excitement of their own when redshirt freshman Charles Dowdell completed a 63-yard pass to senior receiver Rafael Price for a touchdown to cut into the lead, 19-7. The 63-yard catch and run by Price marked the longest play from scrimmage for the Sycamores this season, topping Tony West's 51-yard run at Illinois State in the seventh game of the season.
UNI's Lewis got right back to work on the next drive with a 4-yard touchdown scamper of his own, his second of the game, to make it 26-7 with 11:19 left before the half.
At the 9:57 mark of the first half senior Chris Johansen booted a perfect 42-yard spiral but UNI's Gray made of the most spectacular punt returns you will ever see as he eluded nearly all 11 Sycamore tacklers and made a pair of spin moves inside the 10-yard line to record a 67-yard touchdown to give the Panthers a 33-7 lead. It was the first punt return for a touchdown allowed by an Indiana State team since Missouri State's Eric Davis returned a punt 55 yards for a touchdown last season.
UNI made it 40-7 on a 35-yard pass play from Sanders to Montari Leonard with 6:12 left in the first half.
After UNI went into the locker room with a 54-7 lead at the half, the Sycamores drew first blood in the third quarter. Sophomore Dan Millington blocked a punt, Indiana State's second of the season, which set the Sycamores up at the UNI 3-yard line. It took just one play ? a 3-yard plunge by senior Bryan McCulley to make it 54-14.
Justin Collins paced the Sycamores with 30 rushing yards while Dowdell added 28. Dowdell completed 6-of-17 passes for 90 yards while McCulley gathered a team-best two catches for 13 yards. Price had the one scoring grab for 63 yards.
