Mark Farley moved to the top of the list of winningest football coaches in the Missouri Valley Conference Saturday afternoon with an impressive performance by Northern Iowa.

Of more importance to UNI’s head coach, his team stayed at the top of the Missouri Valley standings.

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Tirrell Rennie completed 13 of 16 passes for 209 yards as the second-ranked Panthers spanked winless Missouri State 42-7 with a dominating effort at Plaster Field.

Farley and Missouri State coach Terry Allen began the day tied for the most league wins in MVC history with 54, but now Farley has moved ahead of his friend and former boss.

“These are friends of ours (on Missouri State’s staff), but you have to line up and find a way to win,” said Farley in the postgame show.

Farley served as one of Allen’s assistant coaches for 12 years, including eight years at UNI and four years at Kansas. Farley improved to 55-19 in Missouri Valley Conference games in 11 years as Northern Iowa’s head coach, while Allen fell to 54-32 in 14 years at UNI and Missouri State.

Farley did not want the game to be about him. He wanted it to be about his team and his players, and Rennie led the way.

Rennie was known more as a runner last season, but the senior from North Lauderdale, Fla., has developed into an effective passer. He led UNI on two long scoring drives to point the Panthers (3-1, 2-0) in the right direction.

Freshman tailback David Johnson carried the ball 18 times for 114 yards and two touchdowns.

Northern Iowa grabbed a 21-7 lead in the first half on a 7-yard run by Chad Owens on an end-around, a 4-yard run by Johnson and a 30-yard interception return by Varmah Sonie.

The Panthers clinched the game by scoring two touchdowns in the opening five minutes of the second half. Johnson ran for a 1-yard score, making it 28-7, and Rennie found Jarred Herring for a 26-yard touchdown pass to make it 35-7.

Farley pulled his starters with 11 minutes left in the game, but that did not stop UNI’s production. Backup quarterback Jared Lanpher completed 6 of 7 passes on a 97-yard drive to make it 42-7, with the payoff coming on an 11-yard toss from Lanpher to Kevin Vereen.

Missouri State fell to 0-5 overall and 0-2 in the MVC.

Northern Iowa rolled up 255 yards passing and 187 yards rushing. The Panthers held Missouri State to 262 yards of total offense.

By Des Moines Register
http://www.desmoinesregister.com/article/20111001/SPORTS/310010051/?odyssey=nav%7Chead