Once again, the UNH football team is headed to Cedar Falls, Iowa, in the Football Championship Subdivision tournament. The Wildcats play the University of Northern Iowa in the UNI-Dome in a quarterfinal match on Saturday at 7, Eastern time. . . . The Wildcats are becoming quite familiar with the Panthers. UNI ended UNH’s season twice in the past three years. Last year, UNH took a lead with 1:16 left in the game, but could not hold off the No. 1-seeded Panthers and lost 38-35 in the first round of the playoffs. In 2005, UNH was the No. 1 seed in the tournament and Northern Iowa came to Durham in the quarterfinals. UNI won that one, 24-21. . . . The Panthers, the No. 3 seed this year, improved to 11-2 with a 40-15 win over Maine on Saturday. They have won their last nine games and are 7-0 at home. . . . Their losses were at Brigham Young University, 41-17, in their opener and at Southern Illinois, 27-24, in their last loss. UNH won at Southern Illinois, 29-20, on Saturday to earn another shot at the Panthers.
UNH and Southern Illinois University kick off in Carbondale in about 20 minutes. Jim Jeannotte and Mike Murphy, as always, are doing the game on the UNH Sports Radio Network on stations WTSN, WNTK and WGIR. . . . UNH and SIU are also teaming up to livestream the game for free. It can be picked up at www.unhwildcats.com. . . . The winner of this first-round game meets the winner of this afternoon’s Northern Iowa-Maine game in the quarterfinals next Saturday. . . . If Northern Iowa wins, next week’s game will be played there. UNH officials have not yet been told by the NCAA where next week’s game would be played if it’s between Maine and New Hampshire.
The Eugene-Register Guard in Oregon, citing college sources, is reporting today that Manchester native and University of Oregon offensive coordinator Chip Kelly will interview for the head coaching job at Syracuse University next Wednesday. . . . Kelly is in his second year at Oregon after a long tenure of running the offense at UNH. Oregon is 8-3 and plays Oregon State on Saturday afternoon. The Ducks are averaging 39.8 points and 458.5 yards a game this season. They put up 38.1 ponts and 467 yards a game last season. . . . Syracuse fired Greg Robinson, who went 10-36 over his four seasons, last week. . . . Kelly developed the high-powered, attacking offense that has UNH in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs for the fifth straight season.
Don’t tell UNH football coach Sean McDonnell, but we’re going it look ahead for a minute. Just for a minute. . . . If UNH manages to win at Southern Illinois on Saturday in the first round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs, a familiar opponent is up next. The UNH-SIU winner plays the winner of the Maine at Northern Iowa game in a quarterfinal matchup. UNH lost in the first round at Northern Iowa last year and won at Maine last weekend. The winner of that quarterfinal game advances to the semifinals. . . . If the seeds hold, the semifinal game would be against Appalachian State, the three-time defending national champion, and be played in Boone, N.C. . . . The semifinal winner moves on to the national title game, which will be played at Finley Stadium in Chattanooga, Tenn., on Dec. 19. . . . No. 1 seed James Madison and No. 4 Montana are among the teams in the opposite side of the draw from UNH and Appalachian State.
Southern Illinois and UNH square off on Saturday at 2 p.m. in Carbondale, Ill., in the first round of the NCAA’s Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. Like UNH, the Salukis were 9-2 during the regular season. They were 2-2 at one point and have won their last seven games. Their results:
Hampton, W, 37-31
@ Northwestern, L, 33-7
No. Iowa, W, 27-24
@ No. Dakota State, L, 35-27
Indiana State, W, 60-7
@ Youngstown State, W, 33-0
@ Missouri State, W, 23-17
No. Dakota, W, 40-21
W. Illinois, W, 24-14
So. Dakota State, W, 38-35
@ So. Illinois State, W, 17-10 (OT)
UNH is going to the Football Championship Subdivision tournament for the fifth straight season and will play Southern Illinois on Saturday in the first round. The Salukis are 9-2 overall and in the tournament for the sixth consecutive season. . . . For the second straight season, the Colonial Athletic Association placed five teams in the 16-team field. James Madison is the No. 1 seed and is hosting Wofford. Villanova is hosting Colgate and Richmond is hosting Eastern Kentucky. Maine, a surprise pick after losing to New Hampshire on Saturday, is playing at Northern Iowa. . . . The UNH-Southern Illinois winner plays the Maine-Northern Iowa winner in the second round.
The UNH football team moved up a spot to No. 10 in the Sports Network’s last regular season poll. The Wildcats are the fourth of four Colonial Athletic Association teams in the Top 10. James Madison is at No. 1, Villanova at No. 6 and Richmond at No. 10. William & Mary and Maine, both of whom still hope to be selected for berths in the NCAA tournament, are at No. 19 and 20. . . . The 16-team tournament field will be announced tonight at 7. . . . UNH put in a bid to host a tournament game and could draw Colgate. Football Championship Subdivision followers at www.anygivensaturday.com have also speculated that UNH could be sent to places such as Montana, Northern Iowa or Southern Illinois. . . . Northern Iowa is No. 4 at 10-2 in today’s Sports Network poll. Montana is No. 5 at 11-1 and Southern Illinois No. 9 at 9-2.
The Sports Network is predicting New Hampshire will knock off Maine, 30-24, in their Football Championship Subdivision showdown tomorrow in Orono. TSN goes along with the opinion that the Wildcats may be picked for the 16-team NCAA tournament if they lose to Maine and fall to 8-3. But then again they may not. . . . “Many feel that even with a New Hampshire loss to the Black Bears, the Wildcats are already comfortably in the 16-team field. However, with a weak non- conference slate that includes wins over the likes of Dartmouth and fledgling FBS Army, the prospects of a playoff bid aren’t written in stone with a New Hampshire loss,” said the Sports Network report.
Junior running back Chad Kackert on his role in the last game UNH played at the University of Maine two years ago: “I can sum it up with a dropped screen pass and a touchdown,” Kackert said with a smile. “That’s all I got in for.” . . . Kackert said he dropped the pass at the end of the first half. His number wasn’t called again until then-offensive coordinator Chip Kelly summoned him for what turned out to be the last play of overtime. “He said run to the sideline and get to that pile-on.” . . . Kackert did just that and scored a 6-yard touchdown that gave UNH a 19-13 win and sent it to the NC AA playoffs. . . . Saturday, Kackert and the Wildcats will play again at Maine with an eye on a fifth straight appearance in the Football Championship Subdivision tournament.
The UNH defense must contend with another run-first offense on Saturday against Maine in Orono . . . . The Black Bears are averaging 272.5 yards a game in the ground in their current six-game winning streak. They are running behind an offensive line anchored by seniors Ryan Canary and Chris Arnao. And, with senior Jhamal Fluellen slowed by injury, they’ve been doing it with young backs. . . . Redshirt freshman Jared Turcotte, a 6-2 and 235-pounder from Lewiston, had 20 carries for 121 yards and three touchdowns against Rhode Island on Saturday. True freshman Pushaun Brown has also been in on the action. . . . “For whatever reason, we’re fortunate to have a number of talented backs,” said Maine coach Jack Cosgrove. “We’ve hit some home runs (in recruiting) with some people.”
