Getty The Northern Iowa Panthers face James Madison Friday. (Photo by David Purdy/Getty Images)
The James Madison Dukes (12-1) will host the Northern Iowa Panthers (10-4) at Bridgefort Stadium in the quarterfinal matchup of the FCS playoffs.
The game is scheduled to start at 7 p.m. ET and will be televised on ESPN2. If you don’t have cable, you can watch a live stream of the game on your computer, phone, Roku, Fire TV Stick, or other streaming device via one of the following cable-free, live-TV streaming services:
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AT&T TV Now
AT&T TV Now (formerly DirecTV Now) offers six different channel bundles. They range from 45 to 125 live TV channels, and they all include ESPN2.
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Once signed up for AT&T TV Now, you can watch a live stream of Northern Iowa vs James Madison on your computer via the AT&T TV Now website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, or other compatible streaming device via the AT&T TV app. You can also watch the game on the ESPN app if you sign in using your AT&T TV Now credentials.
If you can’t watch live, AT&T TV Now — no matter what channel package you choose — comes with included cloud DVR.
Hulu With Live TV
ESPN2 is included in Hulu With Live TV, which comes with 60-plus live TV channels and Hulu’s extensive on-demand library of TV shows and movies.
Once signed up for Hulu With Live TV, you can watch a live stream of Northern Iowa vs James Madison on your computer via the Hulu website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Echo Show, or other streaming device via the Hulu app. You can also watch the game on the ESPN app if you sign in using your Hulu credentials.
If you can’t watch live, Hulu With Live TV comes with 50 hours of cloud DVR space, as well as the option to upgrade to “Enhanced Cloud DVR,” which gives you 200 hours of space and the ability to fast-forward through commercials.
Sling TV
Sling TV’s “Sling Orange” bundle comes with 25-plus live TV channels, including ESPN2.
Once signed up for Sling TV, you can watch a live stream of Northern Iowa vs James Madison on your computer via the Sling TV website, or on your phone (Android and iPhone supported), tablet, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Chromecast, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the Sling TV app. You can also watch the game on the ESPN app if you sign in using your Sling TV credentials.
If you can’t watch live, cloud DVR is available as an add-on.
Northern Iowa vs James Madison Preview
Northern Iowa is coming off a 13-10 victory at South Dakota State, and Panthers head coach Mark Farley is proud of the grit his team showed in a tough road win last week.
“You have a group of seniors that this is their last run, this is it. We want to give them every opportunity … you want to do everything possible and beyond that to take care of the guys you have and make the run for the team you have. The effort they gave the other day makes you want to work harder for them because they gave a tremendous effort out in Brookings,” Farley said. Farley also noted that he feels James Madison are the same caliber of opponent as the undefeated North Dakota State Bison, so it’s clear he has a great deal of respect for his opponent.
The Panthers are led by quarterback Will McElvain, who has thrown for 2,664 yards, 20 touchdowns, and seven interceptions on the season. He leads an offense that’s scoring just over 22 points a game, and they’ll be facing a Dukes defense that’s giving up a stingy 16.1 points a game, so McElvain will have to be smart and efficient. James Madison has also been incredibly good against the run, allowing 65.1 yards rushing per game, which is the lowest in the nation.
On offense, the Dukes lead the FCS in scoring, putting up 44.1 points a game. Behind dual threat senior quarterback Ben DiNucci, who has 2,825 yards, 24 touchdowns, and four interceptions on the season, this Dukes offense has been hard to stop.
James Madison is putting up over 255 yards rushing to go with 226 passing yards per game, and UNI should provide a unique challenge for the Dukes. Northern Iowa have played stout defense all season. They are allowing 17.7 points and 104.7 rushing yards per game, so DiNucci cannot afford to miss opportunities or make mistakes.
The winner of this game will move on to play either Montana or Weber State in a national final game on December 21st.