ST. LOUIS – UNI Football opens the 2021 spring football season with a home game against Illinois State on Feb. 20 at the UNI-Dome. The game is the first of eight Missouri Valley Football Conference games slated for the Panthers. The conference schedule was released Thursday by the league.
The schedule has the same home and road opponents as the previously scheduled 2020 Fall season, but the order of the games was rearranged to accommodate weather and facility issues.
After opening at home, the Panthers travel to South Dakota for a Friday night game against South Dakota in the Dakota Dome on Feb. 26. On March 6, UNI hosts Missouri State before playing three consecutive road games.
The Panthers play road games against Western Illinois on March 13, Southern Illinois March 20 and Youngstown State on March 27.
UNI will have a bye week on April 3 before hosting defending national champions North Dakota State on April 10 and South Dakota State April 17.
Tuesday, the NCAA Division I Board of Directors voted on a 16-team FCS Playoffs beginning on April 24 with a national championship scheduled between May 14-16. Pairings will be announced on April 18.
The Panthers are ranked No. 3 in the FCS in the STATS Perform Preseason Poll. Six UNI players were named to the FCS STATS Perform Preseason First and Second Team.
Head Coach Mark Farley enters his 20th season at the helm and is the active leader in playoff wins with a 17-12 record in his career. He has 159 career victories.
| Date | Opponent | Location |
| Feb. 20 | Illinois State | Cedar Falls, Iowa |
| Feb. 26 | at South Dakota | Vermillion, S.D. |
| March 6 | Missouri State | Cedar Falls, Iowa |
| March 13 | at Western Illinois | Macomb, Ill. |
| March 20 | at Southern Illinois | Carbondale, Ill. |
| March 27 | at Youngstown State | Youngstown, Ohio |
| April 3 | BYE | |
| April 10 | North Dakota State | Cedar Falls, Iowa |
| April 17 | South Dakota State | Cedar Falls, Iowa |
| April 24 | FCS Playoffs | TBA |
