On Friday night, the 2011 FCS playoffs roll on with a quarterfinal matchup between the Montana Grizzlies and the Northern Iowa Panthers.
Montana advanced to the quarterfinals with a convincing 41-14 win over the Central Arkansas Bears, while Northern Iowa played a much closer game to defeat the Wofford Terriers. Down 14-7 at halftime, the Panthers struggled to stop a Wofford rushing attack that racked up 457 yards and three touchdowns on a 73 carries, but a late error by Wofford's Stephon Shelton on a kick return yielded a special teams touchdown for the Panthers that sparked a 28-21 comeback win.
The Grizzlies are the No. 4 seed in the FCS playoffs bracket, while UNI is seeded fifth in the tournament. The Panthers are 1-3 in their last four quarterfinal games on the road, and are 0-4 all-time against the Grizzlies. For the full FCS Playoff bracket, go here.
The winner of this matchup will play the winner of the Montana State Bobcats vs. Sam Houston State Bearkats game on Saturday afternoon. The FCS Semifinals will be played on Dec. 16th and 17th.
Here's the information for Friday night's game:
Game Time: 7:05 p.m. CST
Location: Washington-Grizzly Stadium in Missoula, Montana
TV Coverage: ESPN and ESPN3
Series record: Montana leads, 4-0
Friday's game is the first game of the quarterfinal round, and the other three games will be played on Saturday. Check out the full television schedule of this weekend's games.
For more on the tournament, be sure to visit the 2011 FCS Playoffs StoryStream.