In addition, DB transfers are proving their worth and new AD Megan Franklin has made an impression

CEDAR FALLS – There are a lot of questions to answer before the season starts, and a lot was learned Tuesday at the Northern Iowa football team’s media day.

The Panthers host Valparaiso on August 31st.

Here are some of those answers:

Joel Filani is the favorite for the game announcements

Coach Mark Farley narrowly missed the opportunity to name new wide receiver coach Joel Filani as the team’s playmaker on Tuesday.

After Luke Falk left in late June due to a family illness, Filani was recruited from Northern Arizona, where he served as passing game coordinator and wide receivers coach for the Lumberjacks.

His experience with the Air Raid offense dates back to when he played wide receiver for the late Mike Leach at Texas Tech. He also coached with Leach at Washington State.

“It’s no secret – Filani called (the offense) the most,” Farley said.

Aidan Dunne leads the tight quarterback competition

Even Farley’s comments on the competition for the starting quarterback position were not enough to officially name a starter, but they did reveal a favorite.

With 1 1/2 weeks of training camp remaining before Week 1 practices begin, the 24-year coach said he will likely announce the starter after this weekend, hinting that it will be former Dubuque-Hempstead star Aidan Dunne.

“Has anyone made it to the top? Yes, but (the others) are not far behind,” Farley said.

Support for new AD Megan Franklin

Farley on Tuesday had high praise for Megan Franklin, who has served as athletic director since her first year. His comments follow a frank description at the end of last season that there needed to be top-down alignment within the university, the athletic department and the football program itself.

Farley described Tuesday how having the team eat in campus dining halls for the first time in seven years fostered camaraderie and brought his players closer to the university and the student body – something that would not have been possible without Franklin.

He also noted that the quick hiring of Filani following Falk’s sudden, unforeseen departure and the formal hiring of Logan Meyer as director of football operations were extremely beneficial.

“(Franklin) has had a real impact on our football team this camp,” Farley said. “She’s had a real impact on our football program through some of the things she’s allowed me to do. She’s really put some things in place to give us the opportunity to really do more with football. To her credit, she doesn’t boast about it herself. She stays in the background.”

DB tTransfers prove themselves

After graduation and the transfer portal that wreaked havoc on UNI’s defensive backfield, Farley and his staff rebuilt the group with several transfers who impressed in preseason training camp.

Six-foot-two Fletcher Marshall Jr. and six-foot-one Robbie Peterson Jr., who transferred from Aurora, have started at cornerback. JJ Dervil, who transferred from New Mexico State, is poised to start at free safety. Farley also mentioned true freshman Antonio Scott, a six-foot-two defensive back from McRae, Georgia.

“If someone came in here, they’d say we’re long. We have big cornerbacks,” Farley said. “JJ Dervil from New Mexico State is a great football player. Antonio Scott, the freshman from Georgia, could play cornerback or safety. There’s enough talent there.”

The crime? Airstrike-adjacent/vice versa

Since mentioning a spring training joke that their new “Air Raid” offense was more “Air Raid”-like, Farley, Filani and the players pointed out Tuesday that the team’s personnel have developed a hybrid, versatile version of the scheme.

“We definitely have a lot of ‘Air Raid’ in our DNA, but we can also line up with 12 men (one running back, two tight ends) and run the ball,” QB candidate Jaxon Dailey said. “I think our ability to put playmakers in space and then run the ball down (teams’) throats when we need to is what’s going to make us special this (season).”