FARGO — The first glimpse of what the first head football coach in 25 years at Northern Iowa came at Missouri Valley Football Conference media day in late July. Todd Stepsis didn’t have to move his family far from Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa, to Cedar Falls. The long haul could be in rebuilding the UNI program.

It uncharacteristically fell off the cliff last season going 3-9 overall and 1-7 in the league.

“We call it football Christmas,” Stepsis said of August practice.

Just what’s under the tree remains to be determined. Mark Farley retired after 24 years with the Panthers leaving as the winningest coach in Missouri Valley history with 182 wins. He won seven league titles and the Panthers were a consistent top-10 team in the Division I Football Championship Subdivision.

Until

See Full Page