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2019 Northern Iowa

10–⁠5 (6–⁠2 Missouri Valley Football Conference).

Schedule and results

Northern Iowa in 2019, game by game: lost at No. 21 Iowa State 26–29; won vs. Southern Utah 34–14; won vs. Idaho State 13–6; lost at Weber State 17–29; won vs. Youngstown State 21–14; lost at North Dakota State 14–46; won vs. South Dakota 42–27; won at Missouri State 29–6; won at Illinois State 27–10; won vs. Indiana State 17–9; lost at South Dakota State 7–38; won vs. Western Illinois 38–7; won vs. San Diego 17–3; won at South Dakota State 13–10; lost at James Madison 0–17+31−32Lost 26–29 at No. 21 Iowa State-3No. 21 Iowa StateWon 34–14 vs. Southern Utah+20Southern UtahWon 13–6 vs. Idaho State+7Idaho StateLost 17–29 at Weber State-12Weber StateWon 21–14 vs. Youngstown State+7Youngstown StateLost 14–46 at North Dakota State-32North Dakota St…Won 42–27 vs. South Dakota+15South DakotaWon 29–6 at Missouri State+23Missouri StateWon 27–10 at Illinois State+17Illinois StateWon 17–9 vs. Indiana State+8Indiana StateLost 7–38 at South Dakota State-31South Dakota St…Won 38–7 vs. Western Illinois+31Western IllinoisWon 17–3 vs. San Diego+14San DiegoWon 13–10 at South Dakota State+3South Dakota St…Lost 0–17 at James Madison-17James Madison
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Aug 31at21Iowa StateL 26–⁠2919%
Sep 7vsSouthern UtahW 34–⁠1477%
Sep 21vsIdaho StateW 13–⁠670%
Sep 28atWeber StateL 17–⁠2938%
Oct 5vsYoungstown StateW 21–⁠1453%
Oct 12atNorth Dakota StateL 14–⁠4615%
Oct 19vsSouth DakotaW 42–⁠2762%
Oct 26atMissouri StateW 29–⁠671%
Nov 2atIllinois StateW 27–⁠1041%
Nov 9vsIndiana StateW 17–⁠982%
Nov 16atSouth Dakota StateL 7–⁠3838%
Nov 23vsWestern IllinoisW 38–⁠787%
Nov 30vsSan DiegoFCS Championship – First RoundW 17–⁠351%
Dec 7atSouth Dakota StateFCS Championship – Second RoundW 13–⁠1039%
Dec 13atJames MadisonFCS Championship – Quarterfinals, CFP QuarterfinalL 0–⁠1725%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to James Madison 17–⁠0 in the FCS Championship – Quarterfinals, CFP Quarterfinal; unranked in the final AP poll; 2nd in the Missouri Valley Football Conference.

In program history: The 6th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 89 on file).

Record
10–⁠5
Conference
6–⁠2 2nd in Missouri Valley Football Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
315–⁠265
Coach
—
Elo
1482 +104 this season
SP+ rating
—
SRS
−11.3 No. 8 of 126 in FCS
Recruiting class
No. 153
Offensive coordinator
Ryan Mahaffey
Defensive coordinator
Jeremiah Johnson

Leaders

Passing yardsWill McElvain QB228 yds
Passing touchdownsWill McElvain QB1 TD
Rushing yardsTrevor Allen RB26 yds
Receiving yardsIsaiah Weston WR48 yds
Receiving touchdownsTrevor Allen RB1 TD
TacklesChristian Jegen WR15 tkl
SacksElerson Smith TE1 sacks

Top recruits in the 2019 class

Justin Fomby PRO★★★No. 1127
Omar Brown CB★★★No. 1444
Nate Martens PRO★★★No. 1679
Cameron Baker ATH★★★No. 1864
Logan Wolf WR★★★No. 2053

247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.

The 2019 class by position

SignedStarsRating
Quarterbacks23.00.842
Receivers13.00.819
Offensive line13.00.817
Defensive backs13.00.840
Athletes and specialists13.00.826
Whole class63.00.831

High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.

2019 Missouri Valley Football Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
North Dakota State8–⁠016–⁠0
Northern Iowa6–⁠210–⁠5
Illinois State5–⁠310–⁠5
South Dakota State5–⁠38–⁠5
Southern Illinois5–⁠37–⁠5
South Dakota4–⁠45–⁠7
Indiana State3–⁠55–⁠7
Youngstown State2–⁠66–⁠6
Missouri State1–⁠71–⁠10
Western Illinois1–⁠71–⁠11

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.