With three games remaining in the regular season U-N-I has its sights set on a Conference title and a trip to the one-double-a playoffs. The Panthers moved to 4-0 in the Gateway with a victory at pre-season favorite Western Illinois. For his part in the victory defensive end Matt Mitchell was named the Gateway defensive player of the week. Mitchell says like in all phases of the game everyone is contributing. He says anyone on the defense could’ve gotten the reward, and the ultimate reward is a conference and national championship. Mitchell’s early interception was a key momentum builder for the Panthers who improved to 7-1 overall. He says it set the tone as they wanted to come out and score early.The Panthers are sixth ranked nationally and host Youngstown State on Saturday.