CEDAR FALLS -- Mark Farley sees a fragile record waiting to be shattered.

Northern Iowa's career rushing mark will not be at the top of the priority list Saturday when the Panthers host Maine in the opening round of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. At the same time, Farley wouldn't object if Corey Lewis stomped on that record with both feet.

"I hope he gets it," said the UNI head coach. "I hope he gets it early, but it's nothing we've been trying for or talking about."

Lewis, the senior running back from St. Paul, Neb., can buy himself that career rushing mark with 25 yards Saturday against the Black Bears. He has 3,811 yards to 3,835 for Jeff Stovall.

With the end of Lewis' career approaching, Farley took a wide view. While the senior back has been the driving force of UNI's offense, he has made an impact across the board.

"When you look at it, he's balance," said Farley. "He's a runner and a receiver for us."

Farley added, "He has caught a lot of balls through the air for us. He's been a great person in the program -- a great leader."

Given that UNI has become even more of a running team in 2008, Lewis' receiving numbers are down. He caught 54 passes last season and owns 19 this year. Lewis stands fourth on the team in that department.

Nonethless, he'll be remembered as the preeminent ballcarrier in Panther football history.

"That (record) is a huge milestone, probably moreso here at UNI than anywhere else," said Farley. "We run the ball so much here and over the years."

MARK HIS WORDS ï½ Mark Huygens carried a glittering resume into the season. Named a second-team all-American by The Sports Network in 2007, the UNI defensive tackle seemed destined for more. He was a preseason all-American this summer.

An early season shoulder injury, though, slowed down the senior. Everette Pedescleaux moved into his starting spot, and Huygens came off the bench. Entering the Maine game, Huygens owned 13 tackles in UNI's 12 games, well below his 2007 pace

According to Farley, Huygens' shoulder is improving. On the other hand, his leadership has been very robust.

"You wouldn't have noticed on the practice field that he's been hurt and missing some reps," said the UNI head coach. "He hasn't changed his demeanor. I think he's led better this year than any prior year to this."

AERIAL SNAPSHOTS ï½ During the first part of 2008, the numbers looked sky-high. Brigham Young gained 486 yards passing against the UNI defense. South Dakota got 290. South Dakota State tallied 375.

During that span, the Panthers faced BYU's Max Hall, who received some early Heisman Trophy hype. SDSU's Ryan Berry is a candidate to be an all-Missouri Valley Football Conference quarterback.

Meanwhile, Farley insisted he wasn't worried about the passing figures, arguing that he'd swap a few air yards for making opposing offenses one-dimensional.

For what it's worth, over the final nine games of the 2008 regular season, not a single team has gained 300 yards through the air on UNI. Southern Utah came the closest, at 260.

Some of the attacks UNI faced later in the year, like Western Illinois and Nicholls State, prefer to run the ball. Still, senior cornerback Sean McMoore offered his own theories on the improvement in pass defense.

"We had a lot of people with individual goals," said McMoore, who became a starter at midseason. "By the time it was the middle of the season, everybody put that aside and worked for the same, common goal.

"We really put it on the defense's back to win games. Last year, we had this explosive offense. The defense didn't get any credit. We wanted to change that this year."

DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS ï½ A story in Wednesday's Courier incorrectly reported that Liberty lost its final regular-season game. Liberty defeated Elon last weekend, and that outcome may have played a part in Maine's landing an at-large berth in the FCS tournament.

Contact Jim Sullivan at (319) 291-1434 or jim.sullivan@wcfcourier.com