MACOMB, Ill. - Western Illinois University will open the Gateway Football Conference season by hosting eighth-ranked Northern Iowa Saturday in a 1:05 p.m. Homecoming contest between the Gateway?s two most dominant programs.Western Illinois and Northern Iowa, both charter members of the Gateway Conference which began play in 1985, have won 13 of the league?s 20 titles and have a combined conference winning percentage of .680 (166-78). Entering his seventh Gateway season this week, Leatherneck head coach Don Patterson has amassed 24 league wins - more than any other Gateway coach at his current school.The Leathernecks (2-2) will be facing a nationally-ranked team for the first time this season, but it will be the first of three top-10 teams to visit Hanson Field this month as the conference schedule has them hosting the league?s top three teams, according to the preseason poll. Defending champion Southern Illinois, currently ranked No. 2 in the nation, comes to Macomb next Saturday, Oct. 8, and third-ranked Western Kentucky will see Hanson Field on Oct. 22. Under Patterson, Western Illinois is 7-3 against ranked opponents at home and 4-0 when playing as the underdog. During his first season, Patterson led an unranked Leatherneck team to a 46-27 upset of then-No. 11 UNI in Macomb.?It?s no secret that Northern Iowa is a very, very good team,? said Patterson. ?They have a lot of players back from a year ago and they do not have a lot of obvious weaknesses. ?It will be a challenge for our players and a challenge for our coaches, but it?s a challenge that both players and coaches welcome. In many ways, Saturday will be a day of reckoning. Preseason is over with and the Gateway season starts, and it doesn?t get any easier as Southern Illinois comes in the following week.?The Panthers (2-1) have had two weeks to prepare for their Gateway opener, coming off of a 45-21 loss at No. 21 Iowa on Sept. 17 in which they gained a total of 368 yards (263 passing, 105 rushing) against the Hawkeyes. With a 52-17 win in their season opener over Drake and a 49-14 victory over Minnesota-Duluth in game two, the Panthers are averaging 40.7 points per game and 473.0 yards of total offense per outing. Sophomore quarterback Eric Sanders, who has completed 45 of 60 passes for 863 yards, nine touchdowns and just one interception, leads the nation in pass efficiency at 241.99. The Panthers? running game is averaging 168.7 yards per outing, led by senior David Horne (46.3 ypg) who transferred to UNI this fall from Nebraska, and Walter Payton Award candidate Terrance Freeney who rushed for 236 yards last year against the Leathernecks but has been held to just 30.0 yards per game this season due in part to a lingering knee injury. Saturday?s matchup will feature a pair of Payton Award candidates in Freeney and Western Illinois senior running back Travis Glasford. Glasford set the Leatherneck career all-purpose record (4,421 yards) last week against Iowa Wesleyan and will break Aaron Stecker?s record of 41 career rushing touchdowns with his next score. Averaging just under 100 yards per game on the ground (97.8 ypg), Glasford is 272 yards shy of becoming Western Illinois? all-time leading rusher.UNI has won the last two meetings with the Leathernecks and owns a 10-6 all-time advantage in Macomb. The Leathernecks, however, have won seven of their last eight Homecoming games, including the last three. The only team to beat Western during that stretch was the Panthers, who took a 17-14 win during the 2001 Homecoming contest.Panthers, Leathernecks? Schedules Heading in Opposite DirectionsWhile the Leathernecks are in the midst of a three-game homestand and a stretch which sees four of five games at Hanson Field, the Panthers are in the middle of a three-game road trip. Prior to their bye-week last Saturday, the tenth-ranked Panthers started their road swing with a 45-21 loss at Iowa. They will visit Missouri State next weekend and Illinois State two weeks later, wrapping up a stretch which has them away from home for four of five weekends.Homecoming Has Seen Three Straight Victories, Seven Wins in Last Eight YearsThe Leathernecks have posted victories in each of their last three Homecoming contests, most recently a 29-27 win over Indiana State a year ago. In fact, their only Homecoming loss in the last eight years came against Northern Iowa, a 17-14 decision in 2001. UNI also served as Western?s Homecoming opponent in 1997 when the Leathernecks took a 29-22 decision in double-overtime.Homecoming Notes? The first recorded Homecoming football game was played on Nov. 10, 1923 - a 15-0 win over Illinois State. ? Western Illinois has a 47-19-5 record in Homecoming games (12 results not available). Glasford Breaks One Record, Ties AnotherTravis Glasford broke one Western Illinois career record and tied another with his 127-yard two-touchdown performance in one half of action against Iowa Wesleyan. Glasford surpassed Aaron Stecker?s record of 4,316 career all-purpose yards, ending the game with 4,421 in his four-year career, and tied Stecker?s record of 41 career rushing touchdowns. Glasford carried the ball 19 times, playing only in the first half, and averaged 6.7 yards per attempt. After the 14th 100-yard game of his career, Glasford is now 272 yards shy of surpassing Stecker as Western Illinois? all-time leading rushing.Nine Leathernecks See First Action, Four Reach End Zone for First TimeNine Leathernecks saw their first live action against Iowa Wesleyan, and four players recorded the first touchdowns of their career in a game in which 63 players saw the field. Tight end Steve Sowers reached the end zone twice - on receptions of 12 yards and 41 yards - for the first two touchdowns of his career. Linebacker Travis Cherry chased down an Iowa Wesleyan fumbles in the end zone for his first career score, while redshirt-freshmen running backs Herb Donaldson and Ricardo Thomas also reached the end zone for the first time.70 Points Most Since 98-7 Win Over Cheyney in 2004Western Illinois? 70 points scored against Iowa Wesleyan marked the sixth-highest point total in school history, and the largest output since the 98-7 win over Cheyney last season. Rowan goes 10-for-10 on PATsTaylor Rowan connected on all 10 extra point attempts, tying a Keith Jones? school record for most PATs in a game by a freshman. Jones set the record with a 10-of-10 performance against Murray State in 1994. Rowan, a true freshman, extended his streak of consecutive PATs made to 20.