FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (November 5, 2026) – In a joint announcement between Northern Arizona and Northern Iowa on Thursday, the two schools have agreed to a two-game home-and-home football series starting with next season at Findlay Toyota Field at the Walkup Skydome.
The Lumberjacks and Panthers will meet in Flagstaff on teams will play on Sept. 4, 2027, with NAU returning the trip to Cedar Falls, Iowa on Sept. 8, 2029. The home-and-home series will be played in two of the six current domes in the FCS, with the 2029 game marking NAU's third-ever trip to the UNI-Dome.
The two teams have not met since 2005, when the Lumberjacks fell to the Panthers in Iowa. Northern Iowa leads the all-time series, 3-1, with NAU's lone win coming in the first-ever matchup between the schools on Nov. 3, 1988 by a 25-12 score. The 1988 game was broadcast live from the Walkup Skydome on ESPN. Northern Iowa then claimed wins in 1990 and 2004 prior to the most recent meeting in 2005 – a season in which the Panthers finished as the I-AA runner-up.
Northern Iowa is currently 4-4 this season with a 3-2 record in the Missouri Valley Football Conference.
Stay up to date with Northern Arizona football by following the Lumberjacks on
X and
Instagram.
