Football hangs with UNI, but late burst caps 44-3 loss

No. 15-ranked Northern Iowa capitalized on five takeaways and had just one turnover of its own as it pulled away in the final quarter to record Saturday's 44-3 home win over St. Thomas in non-conference play before a crowd of 6,886 at the UNI-Dome in Cedar Falls, Iowa.

The victory spoiled the Tommies' FCS football debut in facing their first Division I opponent in their inaugural season at NCAA's top level. The loss ended St. Thomas' winning streak at five games dating back to October 2019.

St. Thomas (1-1) fell behind 10-0 in the game's first 8:15 on the clock before settling in and playing the Panthers much tighter through the middle of the contest. The Toms trailed just 17-3 at halftime and were still within a 23-3 count after three quarters.

But Northern Iowa outscored St. Thomas 21-0 in the final 15:00, including a 12-yard fumble return on a scoop-and-score play with only 54 seconds to play to cap the scoring.

The Panthers (2-1) recovered a fumble and recorded an interception in the first half, then picked two more passes in the second half before adding the final fumble recovery and score.

UNI rolled up 386 yards of offense on the game and had three offensive scoring plays of 35 or more yards. Dom Williams ran 36 yards for the first TD; Vance McShane burst 41 yards for a second-quarter touchdown; and Isaiah Weston burned the Toms with a 60-yard TD catch and run from QB Theo Day in the final quarter.

UNI kicker Matthew Cook made all eight kicks he attempted -- field goals of 42, 46 and 32 yards and all five PATs.

Tommie sophomore Louis Hyde converted a 36-yard field goal late in the second quarter for the his team's only points.

A high snap and fumble punt when attempt the UNI scored its final touchdown was credited for minus-28 yards of team rushing and dropped St. Thomas' final offensive yards to just 105 on the game. Joe Hird had a highlight-reel interception and contributed to nine tackles. The Tommie defense

"I'm wildly proud of our defense," Tommie head coach Glenn Caruso said. "(Effort-wise) that first half might have been one of the best halves we played in my 14 years at St. Thomas."

Caruso said he's glad St. Thomas scheduled this game against a perennial FCS power, and called it a great learning experience.

"I know that iron sharpens iron, and we are going to grow because we were tested," Caruso said. "We're not going to be a wallflower that sits back and doesn't take on opportunities. We're not going to be somebody who sits there and gets comfortable. That's not who we are as a team or as a university."

Football hangs with UNI, but late burst caps 44-3 loss

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Team Stats

Cade Sexauer

Tommy Dolan

Branden Smith

Players Mentioned

Joe Hird

Louis Hyde

Players Mentioned

Joe Hird

Louis Hyde

University of St. Thomas Athletics

Football hangs with UNI, but late burst caps 44-3 loss

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Next Event

Team Stats

Game Leaders

Cade Sexauer

Tommy Dolan

Branden Smith

Players Mentioned

Joe Hird

Louis Hyde

Related News

Players Mentioned

Joe Hird

Louis Hyde

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