Now everyone can see why.
Rennie ran for three touchdowns and passed for two others Saturday as the second-ranked Panthers drubbed Western Illinois 38-10 in the Missouri Valley Football Conference opener before 16,059 appreciative fans in the UNI-Dome.
Northern Iowa quarterback #10 Tirrell Rennie, right, was helped up by #74 Misha Danilov, left, after Rennie drove hard into the end zone to score UNI's first touchdown against Western Illinois. / BILL NEIBERGALL / REGISTER PHOTO
Northern Iowa (2-1, 1-0) enjoyed great success in the West Coast offense, which featured a precise passing attack, but Farley realized he had a special talent with Rennie.
Rennie showed all his skills against the Leathernecks (1-3, 0-1). He carried the ball 12 times for 106 yards and completed 10-of-14 passes for 142 yards.
The days of UNI featuring a pocket passer like Eric Sanders are in the history books. Now it’s the Tirrell Rennie Show, running and throwing the ball effectively.
Farley likes the results,
“I don’t think it was a gamble. It was a pretty good gamble, if it was,” he said, smiling. “He’s a dynamic player. He’s always got a chance to make something happen for you.”
Rennie matched his high by accounting for five touchdowns in one game. He also did it last year when he ran for four touchdowns and passed for another against Illinois State.
Rennie had touchdown runs Saturday of 2, 12 and 35 yards. His TD passes covered 30 yards to David Johnson and four yards to Darion Howard as the Panthers built a 38-3 cushion in the third quarter.
Western Illinois coach Mark Hendrickson was impressed with Rennie, saying he gives UNI an extra dimension.
“As long as he can pull it down and gain 12 yards in a hurry, that really makes them tough to defend,” Hendrickson said. “And that was our experience today. Somebody is going to have to play very well to beat them.”
Rennie accounted for 248 yards of offense on just 26 plays.
“It was even funner to see the scoreboard, saying that we won,” he said. “Stats are always nice, and they make you look good sometimes and they can also make you look bad sometimes.”
Rennie said he feels more comfortable in the offense this year. He joined the Panthers last season after playing at Ellsworth Community College.
“It was just me having to be more consistent in the playbook,” he said.
Northern Iowa linebacker L.J. Fort is glad he doesn’t have to tackle Rennie in games. It was bad enough in preseason practice when the first-team defense scrimmaged against the first-team offense.
“We had a formation one time where the two backs were David (Johnson) and Carlos (Anderson) with Tirrell in the same backfield, and good luck stopping that,” said Fort, who led UNI with 12 tackles.
Johnson had another strong game at tailback. He rushed 21 times for 132 yards and caught three passes for 46 yards. The redshirt freshman from Clinton has five touchdowns in three games.
“I’ve been saying this since David got here: David is a freak,” Rennie said. “If you guys haven’t seen it yet, I don’t know what to tell you.”
Johnson has played more than he expected with Anderson bothered by a sprained ankle. Anderson returned to action Saturday and carried the ball three times for 28 yards, but reinjured his right ankle in the second quarter and did not return.
Johnson has excelled in his place.
“He’s so smooth,” Farley said. “He looks like he’s just playing in the back yard.”
The Panthers scored their five touchdowns in a hurry, with drives that took only 1:31, 1:30, 2:20, 1:25 and 3:01.
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