# 2012 Northern Iowa Panthers football team

The 2012 Northern Iowa Panthers football team represented the University of Northern Iowa in the 2012 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The team was coached by Mark Farley and played their home games in the UNI-Dome. They are a member of the Missouri Valley Football Conference. They finished the season 5–6, 4–4 in MVFC play to finish in a tie for sixth place.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Rank | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 1 | 2:30 pm | at No. 12 (FBS) Wisconsin* | No. 9 | Camp Randall StadiumMadison, WI | BTN | L 21–26 | 79,568 |
| September 8 | 6:00 pm | Central State (OH)* | No. 8 | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | Panther Sports Network | W 59–0 | 12,012 |
| September 15 | 2:30 pm | at Iowa* | No. 7 | Kinnick StadiumIowa City, IA | BTN | L 16–27 | 70,585 |
| September 22 | 7:00 pm | at No. 4 Youngstown State | No. 8 | Stambaugh StadiumYoungstown, OH | ESPN3 | L 35–42 | 19,277 |
| September 29 | 6:00 pm | No. 1 North Dakota State | No. 14 | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | Panther Sports Network | L 21–33 | 16,008 |
| October 13 | 2:00 pm | at Southern Illinois | | Saluki StadiumCarbondale, IL | | L 31–34 | 10,575 |
| October 20 | 4:00 pm | No. 20 South Dakota State | | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | MVFC TV | W 27–6 | 13,067 |
| October 27 | 4:00 pm | No. 17 Illinois State | | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | Comcast Illinois | L 21–33 | 9,946 |
| November 3 | 1:00 pm | at Western Illinois | | Hanson FieldMacomb, IL | MVFC TV | W 40–0 | 3,094 |
| November 10 | 12:00 pm | at South Dakota | | Dakota DomeVermillion, SD | MVFC TV/ESPN3 | W 24–21 | 8,476 |
| November 17 | 4:00 pm | Missouri State | | UNI-DomeCedar Falls, IA | | W 38–13 | 8,493 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from The Sports Network Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time ||||||||

## Personnel
### Roster

* 2012 Roster

### Coaching staff

| Name | Position | Year at Northern Iowa | Alma Mater (Year) |
| Mark Farley | Head coach | 12th | Northern Iowa (1987) |
| Rick Nelson | Offensive line | 13th | Northern Iowa (1984) |
| Bill Salmon | Associate head coach Offensive Coordinator | 12th | Northern Iowa (1980) |
| Mario Verduzco | Co-offensive coordinator Quarterbacks | 12th | San José State (1988) |
| Jeremiah Johnson | Defensive backs | 6th | Kansas (2000) |
| Dan Clark | Tight ends | 3rd | Simpson (1995) |
| Travis Williams | Linebackers | 1st | Auburn (2005) |
| Matt Entz | Defensive coordinator/defensive line | 3rd | Wartburg (1995) |
| Todd Blythe | Offensive assistant | 1st | Iowa State (2008) |
| Daniel Bullocks | Defensive assistant | 1st | Nebraska (2005) |
| D. J. Hord | Graduate assistant | 1st | Notre Dame (2009) |

## Rankings

Ranking movements Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking — = Not ranked RV = Received votes :
| | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week | Week |
| Poll | Pre | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Final |
| The Sports Network | 9 | 8 | 7 | 8 | 14 | 22 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV |
| College Sports Journal Poll | 9 | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| FCS Coaches | 7 | 7 | 6 | 8 | 17 | 25 | RV | — | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV |